Effects Of Parental Addiction On Children

Growing up in the household under substances influence can cause severe damage to the child. Parental substance abuse has a significant impact on family function, and it may also contribute to child maltreatment. It heightens the risks to both of the physical and emotional safety of the children, and it generates children’s problematic outcomes. Children who grow up in such families may also experience mental health issues, social isolation, financial difficulties, and exposure to stressful life events and so on.

Another considerable factor of this problem is the influence these substances have on children. Alcoholism in the home is an extremely hard issue to cope with as a child. Domestic violence, which is often worsened by alcohol abuse, causes a lot of mental issues that affect children permanently. Many kids do not have a stable home and are forced to see their parents and loved ones struggle with drinking (Hopkins 7). Suffering through the effects of drugs and alcohol also make education a challenge. Children often times stay home from school or are inattentive during class due to lack of sleep from late-night parties or rowdiness at home.This makes it almost impossible to succeed later in life and lets the problem continue onto the next generation.

I was fascinated by the roles that children portray when they are victims of addicted and codependent parents. The blamer is the child who blames the parent or other family members. The placater is the child who will do anything to keep the peace in the dysfunctional family and home. The computer is the child, who is super rational; furthermore, they intellectualize using their defense mechanism. The pain, suffering, and agony of the addicted parent is too great; therefore, they hide their pain. The star child is the child the come home with the best grades, gifted and talented, the head cheerleader, or the star football player. These children are trying to escape the pain and seek the attention of the parent. This can work both ways, and

Considering that many teens are drinking illegally and also choosing to drive, many teens in our nation are lacking maturity. In Dying of Acceptance it states, “Alcohol abuse is involved in almost thirty percent of all academic problems, and about one-third of all emotional difficulties. A study done by the Nemours foundation found that teens who drink alcohol regularly are more likely to have problems in school, try drugs, and be delinquent” (Esherick 60). In addition to this fact, American teens show more likelihood to develop long-term alcoholism. Alcohol, like certain other drugs, is relatively easy to acquire. Some might even feel that alcohol is better than other drugs due to its easy accessibility. “Alcohol, like nicotine, is a gateway to later use of drugs” (Esherick 64). Gateway drugs are truly a gateway to trouble. Teens are more susceptible to the influence of drugs. If drugs are taken in the teenage years, it's likely that the teen will become addicted to the substances with little continuation. This shows how dangerous drugs can be and how a legal drug can be just as dangerous as an illegal drug. Drug use can result in highly delinquent behavior. Alone, drug use can create unwanted tensions. Young adults who use alcohol are not in the best state of mind, and will often influence the younger adolescents. Juvenile delinquency is commonly defined as general misbehavior involving children under the age of eighteen;

While both alcoholism and child abuse are prevalent issues in today 's society, alcohol is a more prevalent issue at hand. The Glass Castle clearly illustrates the reality of the effects when adult abuse children, and the everlasting effects it has upon children’s children; domino effect if one must, or vicious cycle that is difficult to break free from. Whatever the case maybe alcoholism and child abuse go hand in hand like fuel and fire, when both combined and united, both are extremely combustible, and deadly. Thus, going into depth into the effects of alcoholism and child abuse, we will analyze how people’s lives are impacted from a social, emotional, physical, psychological, and economical standpoint by relating personal effects to successfully analyze a controversial topic.

Nothing makes a child grow up faster than having a parent who is addicted to drugs. A child of an addicted parent has no choice but to act as an adult. These children are often left alone and when they aren’t alone, their addicted parent is usually passed out in a drug induced stupor; leaving the child to fend for themselves and/or their siblings. Does having a drug addicted parent have an effect on a child’s emotional development? If so, does this form of abuse that is recognized in the category of neglect have a long lasting effect on the child into adulthood?

There were more than 8.3 million children who lived with a parent or parents who actively abused or were dependent on an illegal drug or alcohol in 2008 (SAMSHA, 2009). Over the years comprehensive research has been accomplished and has determined that children raised by substance using parents are at an increased risk for developing substance use disorders (SUDs) in adulthood as a result of familial dissemination of substance abuse through both the environments in which the children are raised and genetic susceptibility (Merikangas et al., 1998; Merikangas & Avenevoli, 2000). However, there is an insignificant amount of literature examining the effects that the combined treatment and recovery of substance abusing parents has

Children with alcoholic parents suffer all kinds of abuse and it is often life threatening (20). Addiction is not something that begins and ends with one person, the impact addiction has is tremendous and devastating. "Addiction sends shock waves through an entire family unit" (Straussner 1). Over 27 million children live with an alcoholic parent. It is nearly impossible to find children from alcoholic homes who are completely unscathed (The Visitation Handbook for the Custodial Parent 167). Children who grow up with alcoholic parents are forced to mature and grow up much sooner than they ought. Over 22 million adults have come out and said they have lived with an alcohol parent when they were a child (Seixas and Youcha xi). Alcohol continues to be predominant in The United States, because it is a drug that works for the majority of people. Alcohol allows a person to temporarily escape from the problems they are suffering. Most people reap the consequences of previous actions daily and therefore turn to alcohol which allows them to temporarily escape reality. Alcohol may allow people to escape their reality for a time being, but it also creates a horrific reality for 27 million

Addiction is a disease that not only affects the person with the addiction but the family as well. The children that grow up in this environment take on different roles in their family to try and cope with their environment. According to American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, there is an estimate of 26.8 million children that are exposed to alcoholism in the family (2015). As these children grow up they develop many common characteristics into adulthood. These characteristics have a lasting impact on their lives.

Per Alati, Baker, Betts, Connor, Little, Sanson, and Olsson (2014), heavy parental alcohol consumption has played a role in early alcohol consumption of adolescents between twelve and fifteen years old. Mothers who drink heavily when their children are young also contribute to the development of an alcohol disorder in male adolescents and young adults (Alati et al, 2014). Parental use and abuse of drugs and alcohol is associated with adolescents as young as twelve years of age experimenting with drugs and alcohol (Sittner, 2015). Parents who use drugs and alcohol demonstrate to their children that drug and alcohol use is normal and acceptable. Thus, adolescents believe there is nothing wrong with using drugs and alcohol because their parents are using drugs and alcohol. In addition to parental substance use contributing to adolescent substance use, poor parent-child relationships also play a

Along with illegal behavior often a substance abuser will find themselves as homeless, spending their paychecks on their habits of using substances (Tracy, 2005). Children of abusers are affected by both possessing negative role models that set the example that drug use is not wrong and sometimes the children are placed into the care of the community because of neglect and abuse by the substance user (National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Division of Adolescent and School Health [CDC], 2009). Other medical, social, and economic issues also are being experienced from substance abuse and use.

Alcohol misuse is a vast problem in America. Alcoholism is defined as a constant disease that involves in not being able to regulate the intake of drinking, continuously consumed by alcohol, usage of alcohol. However, it may cause complications, such as dependency of alcohol physically, and when there is an absenteeism of alcohol there are withdrawals. Alcoholics usually do not comprehend that they are not just causing harm to themselves but the individuals close to them as well. Often, the children who retain notably one alcoholic parent are influenced the greatest. Children of alcoholic parents are affected harmfully in their life, both mental and physical wellbeing. Which is why the way parents raise their children plays a vital part and effects the children and their lives. Parents are significant to the growth and progression of children.

Drug addiction is a serious issue in not only America today, but globally. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, substance addiction is a “chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite the harmful consequences” (“What is drug addiction?”). Drug abuse affects not only the user, but those around the user as well. The actions of a drug user place a significant amount of worry on the people that are closest to them such as friends and family. Children with parents who are addicted to drugs or alcohol can be severely affected by the actions of their parents which can cause them much harm in terms of biological and

The term alcohol abuse in this case encompasses harmful use of alcohol and misuse of alcohol resulting from dependence. The experience of alcohol abuse can have far-reaching consequences on the family, the community, and the nation. According to NIDA, drug and substance abuse costs the nation $600 Billion every year. This cost factors in crime, healthcare, and lost productivity. Alcohol accounts for 40% of this cost. It is, therefore, necessary, within the context of the family, to delve into the treatment and support of people who abuse alcohol

Drug addiction is caused when chemicals from drugs are released into the brain and cause one to become dependant on a drug or substance, which ultimately becomes a new way of life. Drug addiction is bad because it causes negative health effects such as brain damage, emotional stress, and could possibly cause one to overdose resulting in death. In addition, drug consumption is bad for one’s social life because it is a way of fitting in and giving into peer pressure. Furthermore, drug addiction is used to hide emotional pain and can isolate a person from having a social life, which causes one to suffer from social anxiety and low self-esteem. Additionally, drug addiction also changes one’s outlook on life, causing depression and poor work performance. Poor work attendance can result into being terminated from one’s job; unfortunately, this can lead to a person having to find an alternative way to make money, which can include prostitution and theft. It can also affect one’s family life and can result in the loss of children to aid organizations, the abuse of significant others, or can result in an entire family being evicted and forced to live on the street due to not having the money to pay bills because a family member decided to spend money on drugs instead.