This weekend's classes were good. Parents and Children we're smooshed together and Child Development was in the afternoon. Child Development was fun - I always enjoyed my psych classes in High School and College and this gave an interesting view of the development of a foster child and how that differs so much from a "typical" child.
Parents and Children was a lot to take in. We arrived a few minutes late because of traffic from a lane closure that wasn't closed (typical Pittsburgh). There were a lot more people there than I expected. All from different agencies, different goals, different child age range wants and needs.
The most astounding statistic from the class was that ABOUT 80% of children in "the system" have had sexual abuse. That ranges from someone watching a pornographic video or movie with someone to rape. A wide range, but the fact that 80% of children have this happen to them made my heart break.
There was a lot to take in otherwise. But nothing that made me say "No, I can't do this" I know our future child is going to have special needs of some kind - be that they need psychological care, extra patience, extra care, I know this. I know my child won't be "normal," especially at first, maybe forever. But who is? I struggle with my own history sometimes, we each have our own journey. Someday we will hold future child's hands as they take their own journey.
It is heartbreaking. With the population I work with, that statistic is actually probably higher. I think you really hit the nail on the head with the word 'patience.' So many kiddos in the system are so used to having people give up on them, they will engage in sometimes very extreme behaviors to push people away so that they don;t have to go through that. It takes time, and a LOT of patience and understanding, for them to see that there are good folks in the world who won't give up on them, and who believe in them.
ReplyDelete