The article focuses on the consequences of US President Donald Trump's decision to separate illegal migrants from their children, which made the world move against the decision.
The full-text of the article follows:
Ignorance creates more pain in a society. As a psychologist, I make it my duty to present my opinion on the recent move by the Trump administration to separate children from their parents. This wrong move has a dangerous and very concerning future for these families, specially the children.
The separation anxiety starts in an early childhood and it reaches its peak at the age of seven. It is during this period that children develop the worst symptoms and future effect.
The physical symptoms include, stomach pain, headache, nausea, anxiety and fear especially from busy public environment. Their biggest fear is to be alone. Being alone at bedtime feels like torture to them. They experience sadness in the beginning period. They start to reveal extreme reactions which turn in to a trauma as this period prolongs.
Separating children from their parents by force or by any reason makes no sense to a child what so ever. This unknown and prolonged factor to a child, causes disappointment and turmoil which leads to loss of self-confidence and guilty conscience. The children develop a sense of distance with their own identity because they feel that they are just as guilty as their parents by breaking the law. This feeling exasperates their separation anxiety.
Separation anxiety, at a minimum, causes loss of intelligence. Eventually, this trauma leads in to seizures. At this period, the children will need to start taking medication. On the other hand, at the worst-case scenario it may lead to a suicide.
A child is innocent by any reason. Separating children, portraying them as criminals, is the worst kind of torture to a child. Every night a child goes to sleep without having a parent, delivers a huge blow to the child’s physical and mental condition. In my opinion, this condition will become almost permanent in a child’s long-term memory and it becomes more pronounced in the future.
As a resident of this country, I cannot go to sleep without thinking about these families specially the children who put themselves to sleep every night with tears in their eyes. These same feelings will also remain in the parent’s memory specially a mother.
Forgiveness is the best form of therapy and the most humane way of dealing with psychological problems. It is also the best gift that any one person can give to the society.
Let us help to prevent these innocent children from developing psychological disorders such as addiction and suicide by spreading the information on the effect of separating children from their families.
I strongly urge President Trump to immediately bring these families together and facilitate this reunion.