Key Takeaways
Adverse childhood experiences are stressful events that can affect a person’s physical and mental health.
Research indicates that the probability of developing mental health conditions from adverse childhood experiences escalates.
Aside from mental conditions, a person with ACEs has a high chance of developing chronic diseases, substance abuse, and learning disabilities.
Many situations and conditions affect a person’s mental health. Some can be due to biological and environmental factors; some result from life experiences. Adverse Childhood Experiences are due to the latter. Following, you’ll get to know all about them, from how they can affect a child’s mental health to the ways of treating the child with ACEs.
What are Adverse Childhood Experiences?
Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs, are traumatic, negative, or stressful situations or experiences that can affect a person’s life, both physically and mentally. These experiences are primarily the result of neglect, household disturbance, bullying, and any abuse to the person done when they were a child.
The parent or the caregiver of the child can take the Pediatric ACEs and Related Life-events Screener (PEARLS) to assess the issues. It will be submitted to a medical professional, after which they will see and provide any necessary diagnosis.
Studies show that the ACE checklist helps healthcare professionals identify the mental health conditions of children.
How do ACEs Affect a Child’s Mental Health?
The connection between ACEs and child mental health has been proved by many studies where the researchers have found a person with ACEs can develop many psychological difficulties including, but not limited to, long-term chronic mental illnesses, toxic stress, trauma, and even suicidal thoughts. According to a study, these factors require intervention to help with their condition.
1. Anxiety and Depression
ACEs affect the person psychologically in many ways, but the most common chronic mental health conditions are stress, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depression.
2. Low Self Esteem
Due to neglect and other similar treatments by people in their childhood, the child can start to feel worthless. They can shut down because of low self-consciousness around people.
3. Behavioural Problems
The toxic experiences of childhood can change the way a person’s behavior and even contribute to changing their personality. They can get easily irritated, aggravated, frightened, or impulsive.
Dr. Malcolm Horn, Ph.D., LCSW, MAC, SAP Director of Mental Health Services at Rimrock Fountain, quotes:-
“It’s often behavioral issues in kids that we see more than them (children) saying I’m scared or I’m not safe or I’m unhappy; they don’t necessarily say those things.”
4. Difficulty in Sleep
Because of the nightmares, anxiety, flashbacks, or overthinking about any adverse childhood situation, the child can experience hyperarousal and even become insomniac.
5. Difficulty in Making Emotional Development
Due to the stressful time spent as a child, the kid can develop mistrust issues. This can serve as a reason not to form any real or emotional connections with people while also making the individual insecure.
6. Self Harm
The stressful situations of childhood can make them turn towards harming themselves to avoid thinking about the traumatic events. Not all children with ACEs will self-harm, but it is still a possibility.
Assistance for those with Adverse Childhood Experiences
Since it’s some negative situations that are affecting your brain and not an actual mental health disease, there is not ‘one’ proper cure for ACEs. Still, there are many ways to deal with these experiences for the survivors that can help overcome their incidents. Some of these ways include:
1. Seek therapy
Therapy creates a safe space for people with adverse childhood experiences. There are different types of psychotherapies that doctors have seen work on decreasing the consequences of negative childhood incidents.
Some of the most common therapies for children include Trauma-Informed Care, CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), Art Therapy, and Play Therapy.
After analyzing your health, your doctor will recommend a kind of therapy that best suits your mental health condition.
2. Manage stress
Children shouldn’t experience stress in their lives. Stress can make coping with the situations around them challenging, which in turn increases the chances of developing different mental health illnesses. Thus, the parents or caregivers should look out for their children and ensure that they are not under any stress or burden.
Robert Anda, MD, MS, and the co-principal investigator of The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) study, quotes:-
“The major thing is to say that much of what happens in mental health and substance abuse can be prevented if we can reduce the level of stress in children’s lives.”
3. Making Healthy Lifestyle Changes
From creating a better sleeping schedule to following a balanced diet, there are many areas in life that parents or caregivers should look out for to make the child’s daily routine as smooth and healthy as possible. Even for adults with ACEs, choosing healthier lifestyle options can help decrease the effects of negative childhood experiences.
4. Regular Physical Activity
Apart from different mental health treatments for people with ACEs, physical activity also helps in the process of consoling the situation. Exercises and activities like running, dancing, swimming, and more help release endorphins, which reduce stress and boost mood!
5. Doing Mindfulness Activities
Mindfulness techniques like yoga, meditation, and deep breathing exercises are recommended to overcome ACEs, as they will provide relaxation to the person. Adding these procedures to our daily lives helps in decreasing stress as well.
6. Supportive Relationships
If the child knows that they always have strong family, friends, or caregivers behind them, it will make them feel seen, encouraged, and confident. Places and websites like ACEs Aware help provide a place with all the useful resources for a patient with ACEs, from finding exercises to calm down to building a community!
Conclusion
Though not every child who goes through ACEs will develop a mental health condition, it is usually seen. But today, various techniques exist to cope with this condition, including seeking therapies, making healthy lifestyle interventions, and having a solid support system.
