Dealing with the loss of a parent may be one of the most uniformly significant emotional occurrences that happen to everyone and most especially children. It is estimated that around five percent of children lose either one or both parents at the very tender age (Newman, 2014). The chances of losing a parent tends to vary based on difference in locality and the social-economic groups. For instance, minor ethnic groups often experience higher cases of parental loss due to migration and little attention that they receive, which increases their vulnerability. This often proves to be one of the most painful and traumatic moments in most children’s lives (Newman, 2014). Under most circumstances, the death of either the mother or father has a long-term effect on a child. For most adults beyond the age of 16, the development continues as normal even with the loss of a parent. However, this experience alters a child’s physical, cognitive, and psychosocial development. In addition, loss of a parent may lead to the sickness of a child. This essay aims at discussing how the physical, cognitive, and psychosocial life development of a child is affected by the loss of a parent.
To begin with, losing a parent in childhood affects the physical development of a child. Childhood is the most crucial moment in the growth and development of an individual. It usually marks the basic stage in a person’s establishment of physical ability. Nutrition is very vital for the physical maturity of a child and parents are relied on for the provisionof their children in terms of food (Newman, 2014). As a result, once a parent has died, a child may be left without a person to provide food and nutrition. In turn, this may adversely affect the physical development of a child.Malnutrition affects the physical development and maturation of child sequentially affecting a child’s growth rate, weight, and ultimate height (Newman, 2014). Further, the death of a parent causes depression in a child. This may lead to some children causing physical harm to themselves such as committing suicide. Additionally, depression may affect a child’s health status since a child may lose concentration leading to lack of sleep or loss of appetite (Newman, 2014). Depression may also cause a child to withdraw from activities that interest the child such as physical practices since most of the times a child tends to feel tired or even bored. Inactivity could affect a person’s health (Newman, 2014). Physical activity in children and adolescents is believed to reduce the body mass index thus lowering risks of heart complications. Hence, reduced physical activity caused by depression of a child may lead to future physical and health-related complications of obesity, higher risk of heart diseases, diabetes, and higher chances of contracting types of cancer.
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In addition, the loss of a parent at a tender age affects a child’s cognitive development. The loss of a parent at a tender age often disrupts a child’s foundation making him or her to lose their sense of security and safety (Newman, 2014). This causes devastating trauma, emotional pain, and stress in a child’s brain and in turn having an impact on thecognitive development of the child. The death of a parent has long-term effects on a child. Young children tend to become irritated and they express their irritability through crying, anger, confusion. Further, most of them tend to show feelings of distress and fear in display of abandonment. As a child advances, distress continues and it is usually shown by the lack of interest in play (Newman, 2014). Further, the loss of a parent leads to grief in the child. This is a normal for most people extending over to adults. However, the expression of grief during the mourning process in children varies from that of adults. Young children, especially those attending school express a wide range of emotions that include of shock, regressive behavior, and detachment (Newman, 2014). This assists them in dealing with the pain. For adolescents, tend to withdraw from people. Further, a study taken proves that a wide number of people who suffer from psychological impairment and mental health problems such as anxiety, fear, and substance abuse lost their parents at a very tender age. This is caused by depression, which affects the brain’s structural and cognitive process of maturation.
Finally, losing a parent in childhood alters a child’s psychosocial development. Psychosocial refers to the general social life and behavior of a person in relation to their mental wellness. As a child matures, the formation of intimate relationships with their parents usually marks a critical part of the psychosocial development of a child. According to the attachment theory, a childneeds to be subjected to one caregiver who should show the child love, support, and affection in order for the child to develop attachment (Newman, 2014). In most cases, the child’s caregiver turns out to be the mother. They help to establish the foundation of social life that later transforms to a better long-term sexual life, comprising of marriage and family development upon reaching adulthood. Thus, the death of the parent destroys the child’s development of an intimate and interpersonal relationship (Newman, 2014). This greatly affects the child’s social life and could cause mistrust issues due to the failure of the child to resolve his or her sense of loss and in turn resulting in a long-term effect of emotional vulnerability. Most of the children who lose a parent or both of their parents at a very early stage tend to experience problems in relating with other people and developing social relationships. Further, the death of the parent and dealing with grief cases a child to be withdrawn thus experiencing problems in academic performance.
In conclusion, it is evident that loss of a parent or both parents has adverse developmental effects for a child. These range from problems in the physical, cognitive, and psychosocial development of the child.
Reference
Newman, B. M. & Newman, P. R. (2014). Development Through Life: A Psychosocial Approach . Boston: Cengage Learning.
