Children who experience physical, cognitive
or emotional neglect, say because their mother was sick and their father was busy, often
face anxiety. As a result, their body produces stress hormones. If this happens a lot, these
hormones become toxic for their developing brain, which then later can repress emotional
and cognitive well-being for life. The real story of Daniel Rucareanu, who spent
part of his early childhood in a Romanian orphanage, shows the full impact neglect can
have. The story began in 1966 when Romania’s then
leader, Nicolae Ceaușescu, wanted to make his country a world powerhouse and came up
with laws to increase the country's population. Abortion and contraception were declared mostly
illegal. While the law led to a rapid rise in birth rates, many of the poorer families
were unable to take care of all their children and Daniel, and around half a million others,
were sent to state-run institutions. In most orphanages there were no toys, no
books, or anything else to stimulate cognitive development. Many kids just stared at the
bare ceilings, waiting for their next meal. Due to the lack of human contact, some babies
developed strategies for self stimulation, such as rocking back and forth. The cognitive neglect often led to lower IQ
scores, delayed language development and a lack of creative thinking. This happens because
our brains build connections with every new experience and stimulation. If there are no
rich experiences during the first years of life — the period in which the brain develops
the fastest — children cannot build the foundations necessary for optimal future learning.
They miss out for life. Daniel lived with over 400 other children
and their shared bedrooms were hardly ever cleaned. The meals were mostly tiny portions
of boiled cabbage, which the staff would sometimes steal to eat themselves. Some supervisors
used violence to control the orphans. Others encouraged the older kids to beat Daniel to
humiliate him and exercise authority.. The consequences of physical neglect and lack
of basic nutrients caused most orphans to suffer from stunted growth. Some children
contracted HIV and Hepatitis B as a result of the reusing of medical supplies. The physical
abuse caused severe bruising and other injuries. The overworked and under-trained staff hardly
ever soothed the crying children. In fact they barely spent any time with Daniel at
all. Some children were left completely alone with their worries, others hid their feelings
from the very people who ought to protect them, since they feared being hurt. Emotional neglect and anxiety lead to an excessive
production of the stress hormones known as adrenaline and cortisol,which is like poison
for the developing brain.But the experience also distorted the children’s understanding
of love and human relationships. They learned to trust nobody and as adults, often suffered
from depression, insomnia and social anxiety. When Ceausescu's regime was eventually overthrown
and the conditions inside the orphanages were shown on television, researchers from around
the world came to examine the nameless children. MRI scans later showed that some had smaller
volumes of brain mass. The resulting research made a strong case that not only is nutrition
vital to a child's development, but so is human contact. To help the children, a large
number were adopted into foreign families. But even after being adopted, many had problems
forming loving bonds to their new parents. This aligns with the attachment theory and
the notion that a child needs to establish a loving relationship with at least one primary
caregiver early in life. Daniel was quite lucky with his family. While he continued
to experience trauma and anxiety, he went on to have a university education, started
a family of his own and later he founded a non-profit organization for neglected children. If you grew up in a loving environment, count
yourself really, really lucky. If you experienced forms of neglect, try to internalize the idea
that it was never your fault and maybe not even your parents' fault either. To read what we think can be done if you have
ever experienced neglect, read the descriptions below. One way is to share your thoughts about
neglect and how you think it affects you today. This and all other Sprouts' videos are
licensed under the Creative Commons. That means teachers from all around the world
can use them in classrooms, online courses or
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