Essay Sample on Children Witnessing Domestic Abuse: 3M+ Kids Face Painful Reality

Introduction

According to the United States Justice department sector, it's reported that approximately 3 million children witness domestic violence where their mother is physically abused at their homes (Adams, 2010). Furthermore, many of these children happen to witness also their mother being sexually abused. These experiences are confirmed to inflict pain on children though they may not be physically hit. During domestic violence, children are exposed to physical abuse. Some indications show that the children are physically abused, such as multiple fractures and bruises, injuries on parts of the body that are typically hidden by clothing and injuries that are unexplained. Children that have to experience physical abuse may exhibits; sleeping problems, poor school performance, anger, sadness, anxiety, low self-esteem, aggressive behavioral nature, and drug abuse. Children's physical and sexual abuse results mostly from the parent or even close relative. However, these children can be used as weapons on their counterparts in families. They may threaten to harm or even abuse to hurt either mother or father. To add on that, some children are used as spies on their mother's and even taught on how to abuse. Children exposed to domestic violence are aware of and usually affected. For instance, young boys are likely to exhibit abusive behavior when they are adults. These acts of violence and abuses affect children emotionally leaving hidden scars behind that cause Trauma (Adams, 2010).

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Studies have shown that trauma affects children's brain structure and functioning. Hence responsible for children's chances of behavioral, emotional, and cognitive development. For instance, if the child had experienced threatening domestic violence, their brain will always focus on survival instincts rather than reasoning and learning. Children may perceive a certain situation as life-threatening when others don't. Therefore, shelter service providers can assist in children's response and behavior by helping their parents to understand and identify these behavioral patterns usually resulted from domestic violence.

Children Trauma-Informed Care

Trauma-informed care has various approaches when working with children who in one way or another get exposed to the traumatic condition in their life experiences. Studies have shown that trauma-informed care is considered to benefit children and their families through reductions of children's posttraumatic stress as well as behavioral problems. Health and Human Service Commission and Family Violence Prevention services have the regulation that helps to govern direct trauma-informed care programs for traumatic children in shelters (Sullivan, Murray, & Ake, 2016). TIC uses various approaches assumptions which I should recognized sign and symptoms of trauma, seek to find ways to resist re-traumatization conditions, fully include knowledge about trauma by integrating it to their policies and practices, and comprehend the extensive impact caused by trauma and understand likely paths that could lead to recovery.

Trauma-Informed Shelter Programs Principles

Emphasis on Safety

Children who survived trauma often feel they are not secured and may be in great danger. Example, children who are victims of domestic violence. Trauma-informed shelter service providers should work towards building initiative for physical as well as emotional safety for sheltered children and their providers. All necessary precautions should be taken to ensure that all the shelters were physically safe. Additionally, shelter providers should be aware of any possible and potential triggers for a child's trauma and work on avoiding any case or situations that can cause retraumatization. Cases of interpersonal trauma exist within this shelter organization which involves abuse of power and violation of standards set boundaries (Steele, & Malchiodi, 2012). Therefore, the Health and Human Service commission on child safety plans, advocate on using systems that are aware of the dynamics of trauma with clearly established roles and boundaries as a result of effective collaborative decision-making. To develop an emotionally safe and sound environment certain aspects such as privacy, mutual respect and confidentiality are very important. Moreover, diversity and cultural differences in gender and ethnicity must be taken into consideration and respected within trauma-informed shelters.

Opportunity to Rebuild Control

During a traumatic situation, children are always taken away from their control over their life, most are dictated and forced to do things against their own will. To add on that, more often they found themselves homeless in the process of domestic violence, where the mother and children are chased away from home. Such an act is disempowering and causes tremendous trauma (Tomlinson, Gonzalez, & Barton, 2011). Trauma-informed shelter on these children and their parents usually emphasize the importance of providing choices to the victims. According to family violence prevention services, the shelter programs should create a predictable social environment and atmosphere that provides the victims' sense of personal control as well as efficacy over their lives. The shelter program should involve the children and parents to participate in the design and evaluation of their services and programs.

Strength-Based Approach

The trauma-informed shelters program is designed in a strength-based approach delivery method rather than being deficit- oriented. Their services are built on a criterion that assists the children to identify and know their exceptional strength and also allow for coping valuable skills that can assist them in their day to day live activities as they fight over the trauma condition, they may have experience (Steele, & Malchiodi, 2012). Regulation on the HHSC and FVPs advice shelter trauma-informed shelter to create services that focus on the children's future and utilizing available skills by building them further to develop their resiliency.

Trauma Awareness

Trauma-informed shelter program providers involve a detailed understanding of trauma into their services and work. They ensure their staff are aware of and understand various behavior as well as symptoms of trauma victims and how well they can thrive by adapting to traumatic experiences. HHSC recommends staff supervision, training, and consultation which are essential for any trauma-informed shelter program practices that should be modified to include awareness on trauma devastating impact (Tomlinson, Gonzalez, & Barton, 2011). The regulation also requires the shelter programs to implement and conduct routine screening to assess the history of childhood traumatic exposure, routine safety assessment, and create credible strategies that would increase accessibility to trauma-informed shelter program services. The staff may have also experienced trauma themselves which may be triggered by their client's behavior and responses.

Conclusion

Conclusively, Child Trauma majorly resulted from domestic violence. Children become the victim of circumstances where they find themselves dragged into family affairs unwillingly. Therefore, resulting in both physically and emotionally abusive. For children to recover from such trauma, services such as trauma-informed care have been introduced. These programs are provided where these children are sheltered. Children informed care play an important role in the recovery of children from trauma and provide an environment that prevents retraumatization. However, the shelter programs have to follow rules and regulations provided by HHSC as well as FVPS in conducting trauma-informed care services. Moreover, following certain principles which act as a guide for better recovery and peaceful coexistence with the victims of trauma. Perhaps, every society needs to be aware and accept that traumatization among children exist in our community, thus they should be assisted to recover and live like other normal children by partnering with bodies and agencies supporting trauma-informed care services.

References

Adams, E. J. (2010). Healing invisible wounds: Why investing in trauma-informed care for children makes sense (p. 1). Washington, DC: Justice Policy Institute.

Sullivan, K. M., Murray, K. J., & Ake III, G. S. (2016). Trauma-informed care for children in the child welfare system: An initial evaluation of a trauma-informed parenting workshop. Child maltreatment, 21(2), 147-155.

Steele, W., & Malchiodi, C. A. (2012). Trauma-informed practices with children and adolescents. Routledge.

Tomlinson, P., Gonzalez, R., & Barton, S. (2011). Therapeutic residential care for children and young people: An attachment and trauma-informed model for practice. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.