Stressors In Children

Divorce has become a common thing among children in the United States.  Whether parents and caregivers realize it or not, when parents are going through a divorce no matter how old their children are it effects them.  A friend of mine is currently separated from his wife.  He spends a lot of time at my house with my husband and his oldest daughter (who is three) knows that whenever he is not home he is at my house.  Recently, we were at this friend's home for a birthday party.  The child remarked to me, "Why can't I come to your house when Daddy comes over?"  It broke my heart trying to explain that while she was always welcome at my home, Daddy sometimes needed to spend time at my house with his friend just like she had play dates with her friends.  Well during this party, her mother and father were very obviously not getting along.  In front of family and friends, the child said, "Stop fighting, I do not want to hear fighting anymore!"  At that point, every adult in the room looked at each other and realized the severity and the impact of the situation between her parents.  I expressed to my friend the importance of maintaining a civil relationship with his wife regardless of what happens and staying active in his child's life.  Currently, he is living at my house, but everyday watches his daughter and makes a point to talk to her before she goes to bed. 


There are a few families at my center that are from Ghana.  I chose to research the stressors of children who live in Ghana.  Child labor is the biggest issue I have found thus far in Ghana.  Children often work in agricultural fields with little or no payment in order to contribute to providing for their family.  The common cause for full time child labor in Ghana seems to be a lack of importance in education and because education is seemingly too costly.  Research on child labor and why it is so common in Ghana has found that the education level of the father in particular has a impact on the families' decision to send their children to school.  Recently, there has been an initiative to raise funds in order to lower the cost of schooling and reach out to the more rural areas to ensure education reaches all of Ghana's children. 


Resource

Canagarajah, S., Coulombe, H.  (1997).  Child labor and schooling in Ghana.  Work Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 1844.  Retrieved from http://ssrn.stanford.edu

Immunizations in Children

I choose to explore immunizations in children.  In my current line of work, it is extremely important that I have detailed health documents for every child at my center, as per Department of Public Welfare regulation.  One day, I approached a caregiver reminding her I needed an updated Child Health Record for her granddaughter.  The grandmother so kindly reminded me that she refused to have her grand daughter vaccinated because it did more harm to the body than good and she would not allow her to have foreign substances that could cause Autism in her body.  Out of 163 children at my center only one child does not have immunizations and to me that was quite interesting.  In our country, families have the choice as to whether or not their children get immunized and their reasons vary from religious reasons to they just don't feel that it is medically necessary. 

I wanted to look at immunizations and how they are handled in other countries and I perused www.huggies.com (yes the diaper company!).  They have immunization schedules and the direct website for many countries.  I decided to take a look at Singapore.  While many of the vaccines are similar to ones administered in the USA, I did not see one for chicken pox or the flu included in Singapore's vaccine schedule.  Singapore also has a wonderful interactive and user friendly website, "National Immunisation Registry" that families can use (www.nir.hpb.gov.sg). 

Noting this information, I can be sure to remember that not all countries require, encourage, or monitor vaccines in children.  As I was reading the above information, I realized that the grandmother I was talking to is not from the United States.  It could also be a cultural choice not to immunize her granddaughter.  I need to continue to be aware and respectful of these choices, while also educating myself and my staff.

A Personal Birthing Experience and Experiences Outside of the U.S.

 A Personal Birthing Experience

On May 28, my mother gave birth to a 6lb 12 oz baby girl.  At that time my mother was a newly turned 17 years old.  She gave birth via C-section after going into labor the night before.  The C-section was necessary because a natural birth was not an option.  That baby girl was obviously me.  I have not had the chance to experience any other births, except for arriving after mom and baby had time to bond and relax.  My father was the first one to hold and feed me.  My mother looks back on that time being very emotional.  When asked, my parents say they weren’t scared or nervous.  There was no turning back and they both took on the responsibility of being parents, and amazing parents at that, all before they turned 18. 

I think birth is a completely unique experience.  Each birth is different and probably not “text book”.  I think it is a time for families and only a time for families.  It is and should be a celebration, but I understand that not all births will have a celebration in the end.  I also think that a birth experience can have an impact on child development, but only if there were medical complications during birth that have long lasting effects or if a stressful experience occurred right before, during, or shortly thereafter the bond between mother and baby or baby and father can be changed therefore possibly having an effect on the child’s development.  Hopefully, later in my course, I will find out if what I think proves to be true. 

Birth in the Netherlands

I choose to do some research on Dutch birthing experiences.  I choose this because my husband’s family is from Holland and I love to learn as much as I can about his family’s culture.  In Holland, mothers can choose between a home delivery and a hospital delivery.  According to www.parents.com, the majority of mothers choose to have a home birth with the help of a midwife.  If a hospital delivery is chosen or deemed necessary, most women do not get epidurals, an epidural is dependent upon the time of day the birth occurs.  Mom and baby can sometimes go home in as little as two hours, with a nurse (covered by insurance) coming to the house for a specified amount of time to check on mom and baby, while also completing basic housekeeping duties.  Nurses will also make a traditional snack called beschuit met muisjes, which means biscuits with mice.  The biscuits are decorated with corresponding candies to match the babies’ sex. 

I was really surprised and pleased to see how well births are handled in Holland.  There is little doctor intervention unless absolutely necessary.  I think it makes the whole experience more enjoyable and comfortable for the family.  I have to think they are doing something right either during pregnancy or with the birth because Holland produces some extremely tall and well nourished people!  An obvious difference between my birth and a birth in the Netherlands is the lack of medical intervention.  I can’t speak for all the birthing experiences in Holland, but for the most part they seem much more calm and specific to mom and baby.  In writing, it sounds like an ideal experience. 

A Special Thanks

The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention. ~ Oscar Wilde

I want to send a special thank you to my Professor and colleagues for being so supportive throughout this journey.  I admire each and every one of you and wish you nothing but the best as you continue your Educational Journey!