A CHILD'S ROAD TO RESILIENCE

While an infant is born with the majority of the brain cells they will have for the rest of their life, it is the connections (or synapses) between these cells that really make the brain work. Whether or not these synapses form is dependent on numerous factors, including: physical touch, stimulation and responsive relationships, positive childhood experiences, adverse childhood experiences, stress, and even the stress of the mother while in utero.

Attachment theory posits that children are biologically predisposed to form emotional bonds with their caregivers. “Secure” attachments are formed as a result of consistent love and support and often lead to positive outcomes later in life. These can include enhanced learning capacities, better emotional regulation, the ability to form healthier interpersonal relationships and increased resilience in adulthood.

Those who have experienced “insecure” attachments in their early years are not so fortunate: they face an increased risk of mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, lesser social competence during childhood, difficulties with romantic relationships, substance use, and challenges in parenting their children, who are in turn more likely to develop similar insecure attachment patterns.

A wealth of neuroscience research confirms the value of responsive relationships. Experts refer to these relationships as serve and return, and they are crucial to language acquisition and cognitive development. The “serve” begins when a child observes something and makes an utterance, and the “return” is when the parent notices the child doing this and responds.

When a child does not get a response, the body’s stress system is activated. According to the Harvard Center for the Developing Child, the ongoing disruption or significant absence of caregiver responsiveness can cause more lasting harm to a child’s development than overt physical abuse.

There is a strong body of evidence supporting the importance of parental mental health in child development, particularly during a crisis. A study by William R. Saltzman investigated the efficacy of a family-focused intervention designed to improve family functioning and decrease trauma symptoms among children living in highly stressful and potentially traumatic circumstances. It found that children in families where the parents were equipped with strategies to manage stress and improve family communication showed a significant reduction in child trauma symptoms compared to the control group.

From a behavioural perspective, the cycle of neglect, abuse and abandonment is well documented – children who lack nurturing parenting may struggle to provide this to their own children, or when abuse happens it is often the case that the caregiver was themselves abused as a child. But recent research is increasingly showing that intergenerational trauma may go even deeper, right down to the genetic level. A recent study (Yehuda and Lehrner, 2018) found that a parent’s traumatic experiences may cause changes in a child’s gene activity before the child is born.

The Bucharest Early Intervention Project studied children who had faced severe neglect. Some of these children were placed in high-quality foster care. The results were remarkable. The children in foster care developed secure attachments and improved cognitively. This shows that even children from the most challenging backgrounds can build resilience and change their life paths with nurturing relationships.

Therapeutic interventions and trauma-informed care, provided in conjunction with a stable, nurturing environment like high-quality foster care, can further enhance the development of secure attachments and cognitive improvement.

There is a growing body of research around how to build resilience to mitigate the harm caused by adverse childhood experiences. For example, protective childhood experiences – having friends, experiencing unconditional love, being part of a community – can have just as much cumulative impact over time as adverse ones. One study (Bethell, 2019) shows that the odds of depression or poor mental health can be up to 72% lower among adults who report many protective childhood experiences versus those who reported few.

According to another (Bartlett and Steber, 2019), the overall “strongest protective factor linked with resilience to childhood trauma is the reliable presence of a sensitive, nurturing, and responsive adult.” What is most important is the availability of at least one stable, caring, and supportive relationship between a child and an important adult in his or her life, be it a parent or relative or teacher.