CHILDREN ARE INNOCENT VICTIMS IN DRUG EPIDEMIC

VIRGINIA -- Victims of drug crime include virtually everyone --
addicts beaten or killed for drug debts, robbery and theft victims,
neighborhood residents suffering the pollution of a nearby drug lab.

And children.

The most innocent and defenseless targets, children of drug users,
dealers and producers are also often the most compliant victims. From
abuse and neglect to worry and stress, kids sometimes don't know that
their situation is abnormal, nor where to turn for help.

"Kids are really affected" when a parent uses chemicals, Sue Neuttila,
director of the Range Mental Health Center, said. Even if neglect and
abuse aren't present, "they take on problems that are not their own."

Whether feeling responsible for "mommy and daddy" fighting or worrying
about them every time they go out, children internalize their
feelings, she said.

This keeps them from sleeping at night; affects their school grades,
whether from lack of sleep or worries clouding their minds; and keeps
them from bringing friends home, Neuttila said.

"There's always that worry of, what's a child going to find at the end
of the day?" Faye Beth Pingry, a St. Louis County social worker in
Virginia, said. "Is a parent going to be passed out because they just
shot up? They don't want to bring a friend home. There's no telling
what they'll find when they get off the bus. There might be a domestic
situation with yelling and fighting. Will they be embarrassed?"

Before abuse is even introduced, family situations can spiral downward
when drugs are involved.

Parents on meth, for example, rarely eat and can forget to feed their
kids, and are prone to yell at their children for no reason, Robert
McAllister, a licensed psychologist at the Range Mental Health Center,
said. "And both children and adults can become depressed after just
two weeks of stress."

He added that tense situations may not appear stressful to outsiders.
Stress is not an external stimulus, but rather the way that a person
internalizes their situation.

"And the parents don't usually know this is going on until in our
family sessions," Neuttila said. "That's when it comes out, when the
parent is sober or clean."

But, "by nature, most children are resilient," McAllister said. "They
roll with the punches."

When risk factors, such as genetics and environment, come into play,
though, kids can be highly affected by a parent's chemical use, he
said.

"The impact on a child can run a wide range, from no effect at all to
severe," McAllister said. "With crystal meth, there is a potential for
a child's basic needs not to be met, from food, clothing and shelter,
to loving support. If the parent's use goes on for a time, there are
also the psychological effects. They are more likely to scream and
yell and, in the worst cases, they can become psychotic. At the least,
they will be irritable."

o

St. Louis County Social Service workers are familiar with the effects
of parental drug use on children. They have seen chemical addiction
lead to physical, sexual and emotional abuse toward kids, along with
neglect.

"Looking at chemical usage, we're seeing alcohol, marijuana, cocaine,
prescription drugs or meth involved in most of our cases," Debra
Lawrence, social service supervisor at the St. Louis County Social
Service Department in Virginia, said. "About 50 percent of the cases
in the last six months have included some kind of meth use by the
parents in the report. It might not be the main reason we're there,
but it's present."

She said that chemical users are often confident in their parenting
abilities and don't realize how much of their lives are being
controlled by drugs, especially methamphetamine.

"It's a myth that you can use meth recreationally," Lawrence said. "It
directly affects a person's ability to parent, without a doubt. Any
chemical use does, but meth especially.

"It's not that a parent is purposefully neglectful, but an addict,
especially on meth, is dealing with paranoia, worried about where
their next hit is coming from or is crashing. There are so many things
for them to worry about that kids take low priority."

"The parents aren't there," Pingry agreed. "They might be there in
body but not in presence."

"You're not going to find them tucking their kids in at night or
reading them bedtime stories," Lawrence said. "They're not being nurturing."

But children often find ways to adapt to new situations.

"Kids are so resilient," she said. "It's amazing. There can be
siblings and one will come out of these situations and be functional,
whole beings. And the other one can come out with their own issues and
have problems as they grow up."

Many things can contribute to how children react to these
situations.

"Sometimes, the resilient child is successful (in dealing with a
drug-addicted parent) because one person or event helped them,"
Lawrence said.

It could be a youth group, reverend, coach, teacher, neighbor or just
the fact that the child excelled in karate, Pingry said. "They're
always looking for a sense of belonging."

An older child may also care for a younger sibling, protecting them as
a parent figure.

"Each family member takes on a specific roll in these situations,"
McAllister said. "One child might become the hero while another will
take on the roll of problem child."

These personalities take the pressure and focus off the addicted
parent and the true problem is often ignored, he said.

"The core problem is the parent with the addiction," McAllister said.
"But instead of addressing that, everybody in the family runs around,
trying not to rock the boat."

By ignoring the main issue, the family allows the problem to progress
and possibly become more dangerous or traumatic for the kids involved.

"There is certainly a lot of danger attached" to parental drug use,
Pingry said. "If a parent gets into dealing, people of questionable
character start coming to the door, guns can get involved."

And, she said, drug labs lead to a whole other set of dangers,
including toxic chemicals permeating walls, floors, bedding, clothing
and stuffed animals.

Pat Grahek, chemical dependency counselor at the Arrowhead Center,
said toddlers have been hospitalized for chemical burns on their hands
and knees from crawling around a home that hid a methamphetamine lab.

Such sites also run the risk of explosion during the meth cooking
process. Makers of the drug, called cooks, often set traps, which pose
another threat to children.

These situations can keep social workers from removing a child to
safety.

"Our policy, if a worker thinks a lab might be present when working in
the field, is that they leave immediately," Lawrence said.

The Social Service Department is forming an initiative to address the
best way to handle methamphetamine cases.

"It's so powerfully and quickly addictive," Pingry said. "It's hard to
address with users."

In the last year, they have also seen more situations involving
maltreatment and parents being incarcerated.

"There is always the possibility of an arrest at home," McAllister
said. "That can be very traumatic for a child."

The number of referrals to Social Services for younger families and
meth-using pregnant women has also grown.

In pregnancies, Social Services recommends removing a newborn rightfrom the
hospital. The mother can regain custody after getting
chemical dependency treatment, working a social service plan and
staying sober for a set number of days, within a time frame. If she
cannot maintain sobriety within the time limit, her parental rights
are terminated, Lawrence said.

"But we don't remove as many kids as the community might think we do,"
she said. "We look at the danger present in the home and try to help
the family. And sometimes that means keeping the children in the home
and getting the services they need in there."

Lawrence said that social workers aren't trying to be the "bad guys."
They only recommend removal of a child to the courts if the situation
is dangerous.

In such instances, "we promote visitation," she said. "We believe in
maintaining a relationship between parent and child, even if they're
apart."

The Social Services department also offers family outreach and
intensive programs, including free help with issues a family needs to
resolve on their journey toward recovery and a better life.

They provide daycare while parents attend rehabilitation sessions, and
counseling and health services to help children overcome their
experiences with an addicted parent.

"One message I would like using parents to know is that it's a good
thing to ask for help," Lawrence said. "We will try our best to help
and keep them out of the judicial system, as long as there is a safe
environment for the children and they can hold a job."