- Around 140,000 children in the US lost their primary caregivers or parents during the pandemic.
- Children who lose a caregiver are more likely have mental health problems.
- Experts are now questioning the long-term consequences of children losing their parents.
Nearly two decades after the COVID-19 epidemic, experts have begun to think about the long-term impact that the virus may have on the mental health the current generation.
“I thought, ‘It’s my fault that my dad died.’ ‘Cause I was, like, if you would have talked to him or be there for him, he would probably be alive,” Natasha Beltran, a 12-year-old, CBS News.
Beltran’s father, Julian Peña, died of COVID-19 at just 50 years old in a Bronx, New York, hospital in 2020. Her family has been dealing since then with the complex emotions of grief and trauma that comes from the loss of a primary caregiver in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Although much attention has been given to the effects of Social distancing and the wearing of masksIn schools, there were fewer studies that tracked the number of children who died from coronavirus-related causes and how they coped with their grief.
One recent study estimatedAccording to the United States, 140,000 children have lost a parent or primary caretaker to COVID-19 from April 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021. The losses were more severe for Native American, Black, and Hispanic kids. A global study estimatesWorldwide, this number is greater than 1.5 million.
“Adverse childhood experiences are associated with increased risks of every major cause of death in adulthood,”Susan Hillis is an epidemiologist at Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and was the principal author of the US study. NPR.
Hillis’ research found that losing a parent is linked to mental health problems, shorter schooling, lower self esteem, sexual risk behaviors and higher risks of suicide, violence and sexual abuse.
Beltran and her family have received support from a non-profit organization called The Children’s VillageNew York-based Behavioral Health Services for Children ( ) Similar nonprofits have also been established in other statesAs a result of such losses, practitioners are focusing on creating safe spaces for children so that they can let go and not be worried about being resilient.
“Resilience doesn’t take away the trauma,”Daphne Torres Douglas is The Children’s Village’s vice-president of behavioral health services. CBS News. “We still have to address the fact that they’re hurting.”