I don't know if this should be posted here or on the pediatric forum but here goes.
We have an eight week psychiatric rotation. The 1st place we were was a geropsych unit, Seriousely, it was just like being in long term care on a lockdown alzheimers unit. I hated it. Then, I had some time in the ED with a social worker who was doing an admission interview on an intoxicated manic young man. Thet was...ummmm....interesting. Then that afternoon, from 12-4pm, myself and another student went over to the pediatric psych unit. I almost lost my composure reading over some of the charts. I was expecting teenagers who had run away, or had anorexia, or were acting out in school.
That's not what I saw. A 5 year old, a 7 year old, and a few teenagers. They had absolutely had HORRIBLE lives and when I saw the terrible things that had happened to them, it was almost too difficule to do my paperwork. When I left that unit, I felt broken. I went home and cried my eyes out. My twin boys are 4. That 5 year old boy played and acted just like any other child that age. just like my children. I saw his admission picture and I had a hard time getting over it. I've talked about my experience with instructors and the staff from that floor and feel o.k. now. Just God bless those of you who pediatric psychiatric nurses, and even adult and geriatric psych nurses. I can tell that area of nursing Isn't for me but I am so glad you guys are out there for others. Thanks!
You just know that most of those kids are never going to have productive, fulfilling lives no matter what anyone does. They're already destroyed.
I was going to disagree with you because the hope that a few of mine will get out and lead happy lives is what keeps me going to work every day. Unfortunately you are correct in that most of them will either end up in the adult facility or prison. When I read about the abuse they suffered at the hands of their parents/guardians it makes me ashamed to be a human being. I struggle to remind myself that their pathetic parents were most likely these same children a few years ago. Its a cycle, sigh. I still I hold out hope that my kindness, respect and support will make a difference even if just in the tone of their day.
I have a friend who used to be a foster care caseworker, and one thing she never got over was how much those little kids always knew about Mediaography. They talked about Media actors the way other kids talk about regular actors, and this was long before the Internet.
Specializes in telemetry, med-surg, home health, psych.
I was going to disagree with you because the hope that a few of mine will get out and lead happy lives is what keeps me going to work every day. Unfortunately you are correct in that most of them will either end up in the adult facility or prison. When I read about the abuse they suffered at the hands of their parents/guardians it makes me ashamed to be a human being. I struggle to remind myself that their pathetic parents were most likely these same children a few years ago. Its a cycle, sigh. I still I hold out hope that my kindness, respect and support will make a difference even if just in the tone of their day.
or if even one child gets well out of them all, it will be worth it...Keep up your wonderful, caring work....
Please bear in mind that not all kids in a psychiatric unit have been abused or damaged by parents or caregivers. When I worked inpatient child psych, we had a whole spectrum of parents ranging from the ones who were horrible, evil people to ones who were kind, loving parents who did everything "by the book" but still had children who were terribly damaged for some reason. To think that all psychiatric issues are a result of poor parenting is a pretty out-dated idea.
There were certainly a lot of kids I felt had little chance of leading happy, rewarding lives, but there were also a lot of kids who I felt would be just fine with the right meds and some good psychotherapy.
Specializes in telemetry, med-surg, home health, psych.
Please bear in mind that not all kids in a psychiatric unit have been abused or damaged by parents or caregivers. When I worked inpatient child psych, we had a whole spectrum of parents ranging from the ones who were horrible, evil people to ones who were kind, loving parents who did everything "by the book" but still had children who were terribly damaged for some reason. To think that all psychiatric issues are a result of poor parenting is a pretty out-dated idea.
There were certainly a lot of kids I felt had little chance of leading happy, rewarding lives, but there were also a lot of kids who I felt would be just fine with the right meds and some good psychotherapy.
Yes, but unfortunately these were few and far between....the majority had been emotionally or physically abused by someone, not always parents, relatives, friends, etc....Definately there were some that will go on to lead normal lives with the right meds and tx. But the vast majority will not...I saw so many return children just in the 6 mo. I worked that unit....
To think that all psychiatric issues are a result of poor parenting is a pretty out-dated idea.
I don't think anyone was implying that all of them are a result of poor parenting but in my experience a very conservative estimate would be 95% of my patients come from a home environment with abuse, neglect or untreated mental illness/substance abuse. Most of the ones that we get that are not the result of poor parenting are either brain injured or were adopted and I would bet they have bio family members with mental illness.
I don't think anyone was implying that all of them are a result of poor parenting but in my experience a very conservative estimate would be 95% of my patients come from a home environment with abuse, neglect or untreated mental illness/substance abuse. Most of the ones that we get that are not the result of poor parenting are either brain injured or were adopted and I would bet they have bio family members with mental illness.
A large percentage of our pediatric psych patients were adopted, usually as older children, or came from the foster care system. Very astute observation. And this includes foreign adoption; I've never heard of a Romanian or Russian orphan who didn't have serious psychiatric issues. Interestingly, I have seen very little of this among adoptees of Asian descent. Does anyone have any theories as to why that is so?
There was a family I grew up with who had an adopted Korean daughter who went through some serious rebellion in her late teens, and some authorities thought it was conflict about her adoption. I went to school with her older sister, who was the couple's biological child, and she was one of those people that nobody really liked but people hung around with her because their parents kept a very well-stocked liquor cabinet and didn't ask questions when things turned up missing.
I guess not all children who are exposed to traumatic events end up in adult psych or prison. I have a very good friend who fled afghanistan (sp?) with her family, (mom who was 7 mos pregnant, six younger brothers and sisters, dad, and grandma) she was the oldest at age 13 and her brothers and sisters were as young as toddler ages. Anyway, she saw people shot in the face, was almost kidnapped and sold into sex slavery, came across bodies with no heads and heads with no bodies, and during the day she and her family had to hide in the desert. If for some reason they were out and about during the day and an afghani plane flew overhead, they had to drop to the ground and play dead so they would not be shot and killed. she and her family had to step over rotting corpses and as a result of all the physical trauma, her mother gave birth to a stillborn baby right after they crossed into the pakistan (sp?) border. My point is what she endured would be enough to cause severe psychologic issues. They went to pakistan to iran to canada and then the united states. She had a few years of intense psychotherapy here in the U.S. and today, she is leading a happy healthy life. She is married and has a beautiful baby girl. She doesn't even take any meds. the same goes for her family. I think it has a lot to do with genetics as well as stressors in life. Some people are just genetically engineered to get through severe trauma.
I think this story kind of goes back to what lucianne had said about children who came from "good" homes sometimes and up having major psychological issues for unknown reasons. Some children who come from major trauma are able to get over it and have a "normal" productive life.
I My point is what she endured would be enough to cause severe psychologic issues. They went to pakistan to iran to canada and then the united states. She had a few years of intense psychotherapy here in the U.S. and today, she is leading a happy healthy life. She is married and has a beautiful baby girl. She doesn't even take any meds. the same goes for her family. I think it has a lot to do with genetics as well as stressors in life. Some people are just genetically engineered to get through severe trauma.
I
I only wish we could bottle exactly what it is that allows some people to continue to thrive despite such horrors! I'd bet it helped your friend that her family is close, supportive and weathered this together.
I guess not all children who are exposed to traumatic events end up in adult psych or prison. I have a very good friend who fled afghanistan (sp?) with her family, (mom who was 7 mos pregnant, six younger brothers and sisters, dad, and grandma) she was the oldest at age 13 and her brothers and sisters were as young as toddler ages. Anyway, she saw people shot in the face, was almost kidnapped and sold into sex slavery, came across bodies with no heads and heads with no bodies, and during the day she and her family had to hide in the desert. If for some reason they were out and about during the day and an afghani plane flew overhead, they had to drop to the ground and play dead so they would not be shot and killed. she and her family had to step over rotting corpses and as a result of all the physical trauma, her mother gave birth to a stillborn baby right after they crossed into the pakistan (sp?) border. My point is what she endured would be enough to cause severe psychologic issues. They went to pakistan to iran to canada and then the united states. She had a few years of intense psychotherapy here in the U.S. and today, she is leading a happy healthy life. She is married and has a beautiful baby girl. She doesn't even take any meds. the same goes for her family. I think it has a lot to do with genetics as well as stressors in life. Some people are just genetically engineered to get through severe trauma.
I
This reminds me of Victor Frankl's "Man's Search For Meaning". Trauma has little to do with it. People can cope with anything as long as they have hope, a support system, and can develop a meaning. Near countless people suffered and survived concentration camps, torture and all that through world war 2, but most of them would be regarded as having turned out fine. Juxtapose that with a kid living with every modern convenience in the suburbs, getting felt up by his "uncle" and having both his parents focused entirely on their careers rather than to listen to his problems, all of a sudden, you have a serial killer. Support, hope and reason to chose to live.
Jules A, MSN
8,864 Posts
I was going to disagree with you because the hope that a few of mine will get out and lead happy lives is what keeps me going to work every day. Unfortunately you are correct in that most of them will either end up in the adult facility or prison.
When I read about the abuse they suffered at the hands of their parents/guardians it makes me ashamed to be a human being. I struggle to remind myself that their pathetic parents were most likely these same children a few years ago. Its a cycle, sigh. I still I hold out hope that my kindness, respect and support will make a difference even if just in the tone of their day.