Consequences of Stress on Children's Development

Natural disasters happen daily all over the world, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, fires, and etc. When I was younger we had an F5 tornado come through our town. It was the end of the school year, and we were home already in early afternoon. The storm hit and it seemed like all the others before, but then the warnings went out. We looked out our front door and even though the tornado was at least 6 or 7 streets over it looked like it was about to swallow my grandparent’s house which was directly across the street from ours. It devastated our town and created a path of destruction for miles to come. It hit our elementary school and we had no power for a very long time. I do not remember what day of the week it was but I do remember that we had a skating rink that most kids were on their way to. If this tornado would have hit 20-30min later so many more lives would be lost. It leveled that skating rink along with several other businesses and homes. Our house had little to no damage, but mentally my brother and I had several obstacles.

My grandparents worked for the Red Cross and were out day and night working to help the people who were greatly affected. My parents also volunteered to help find missing people. I remember being left with a babysitter when we had no electric and more storms were coming. It terrified me and my brother. We had severe separation issues and were terrified of storms for many years to come. To this day the little town of Niles Ohio remembers that horrific day every time bad weather hits. It greatly affected the people who lived through it. http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2010/05/trumbull_county_twister_of_may.html

Our community came together after the devastation of this natural disaster and helped comfort one another. Our family and friends stayed close and we still to this day talk about it to this day. It hit my elementary school and I still can remember the fear of going back to school the next year. With the love and support of the community, family, and the educators we were comforted and assured that we would be safe. I am sure that it had great effects on children and their learning that first year back. It is very hard to concentrate on studies when you live in fear when a storm hits. If not for the strong sense of the community I do not think most of us would have made it through that first year.

In 2004 Thailand experienced a devastation no one can imagine. The Tsunami that came through the area had a deadly effect on over 230,000 people in several different countries. My family and I watched the movie the Impossible which told the story about the tsunami and one family in particular that made it against all odds. The trauma that the children went through is really incomprehensible to me. Just these three children in this family went through physical, mental, and emotional trauma more than you or I might experience in a lifetime. People from all over the world donated their time and money to go and help families try to put their lives back together. The land was devastated and the homes were gone. The dead bodies lined streets and hotels which created a pathway for disease. There was no clean water to drink or bath in. Not enough room to even treat the injured and the conditions that they were treated in were deplorable. Children lost their parents and were orphaned. Over the years countries came together to help put this area back together so that the children had homes, water, food, and schools. Slowly the towns were put back together, but the emotional and mental turmoil for the children who lost loved ones or were put through horrific physical impairments will last a lifetime. Only through the love and support of families and the community can these children start to heal. They must receive counseling and be given extra love and attention in home and in the classrooms to make sure that their development stays on track. 

 http://theimpossible-movie.com/

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxm050h0k2I

 http://tsunami2004videoarchive.com/