Parents Key To How Trauma Affects Kids
Parents can play a key role in determining how their children react to trauma, U.S. researchers say.
The review, published in the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy (http://www.jmft.net/), suggests the quality of parenting practices following trauma mediates the relationship between the traumatic event and the child’s subsequent adjustment.
Study leaded Abigail Gewirtz of the University of Minnesota reviewed the existing literature to inspect the ways in which parents can affect children’s recovery in the aftermath of trauma. Gewirtz says certain parenting behaviors have the potential to significantly improve children’s outcomes.
The review finds that parenting practices that provide structure, security, emotional warmth and an environment that addresses the traumatic event serve to surround children with a protective environment.
“By providing an overview of the evidence to-date, and a proposed prevention research framework, it is our hope that others will see and respond to the need to advance this field,” the study authors said in a statement.
© 2008 United Press International. All Rights Reserved. (Emphasis mine)
Philadelphia Area 9 Year Old Claims Being Transgendered
In a very challenging case for school officials, a 9 year old child (and of course the very accomodating parents) is asking to start dressing like a girl. The school decided to let the other 100 Third Grade families know about the “transition” in a meeting.
About one in 5,000 people is transgender, said Walter O. Bockting, a psychologist and coordinator for transgender health services at the University of Minnesota. Bockting said he sees about 10 children a year who are 9 or younger.
“It’s a little early, but occasionally that happens,” he said.
Not all transgender people have sex-reassignment surgery in adulthood, and such surgeries are not typically performed on children, said Sharon Garcia, president of TransYouth Family Allies, a non-profit group that helped the Chatham Park student and school officials devise a way to explain the situation to parents.
So far, 49 families have contacted TransYouth Family Allies asking for help with a transgender child, Garcia said. Most of the children are between 6 and 10.
See the complete article at http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/pa/chester/20080503_School_challenge__Transgender_student_is_age_9.html where the writer seems to avoid the tabloid topics and has done some pretty thoughtful research. For Children’s Ministries there is an opportunity to share how in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, Male nor Female, while at the same time demonstrating a love that transcends our gut response. We had the same polarizing discussions when AIDS/HIV was discovered among children (should we allow them to be in the same class, let’s have a well-child-policy) and now we are all pretty informed so we can be calm!
What do you think?
