Children under too much pressure says mental health expert

TYRELL GITTENS

"We are pressuring our children too much." This was the point made by Professor Wendel Abel at an open lecture hosted by the University of the West Indies (UWI), at the St Augustine campus, and the Guardian Group on Friday.

Head of the Department of Community Health and Psychiatry at the UWI Mona campus, Abel spoke on the topic of tackling mental health issues in the education system.

Noting that the education system is an ideal catalyst for youth intervention and positive development as it relates to mental health, he lamented, "There is a need to balance the scale of academic achievement and mental wellbeing."

To achieve this, he said the education system needs to place just as much attention on personal wellbeing as it does on academic success given that the pressure at school to do well can exacerbate existing pressures faced at home.

"The more trauma children experience, the greater the impact." This statement came as he highlighted that, "We (psychiatrists) are now beginning to recognise the effects of trauma on brain development." With this in mind, he said, "Children who are exposed to chronic trauma experience major academic problems with some showing decreases in IQ."

These traumas, according to Abel, stem from numerous sources with the most prevalent originating from social issues such as environments with high levels of violence and children facing repeated sexual abuse. When traumas are coupled with the pressures of the education system, he revealed, children face toxic stress.

To add to the list of pressures being faced by children, Abel took the opportunity to address the methods used by parents to discipline their children. Speaking on the issue, he said, "A lot of it is abusive."

"The reality is, in the Caribbean, the way we discipline our children is harsh, brutal and a lot of the times traumatic." He said there is a need for parents to re-evaluate the way they discipline their children.

On what can be done to improve the education system and reduce the pressures faced by children, Abel said proper communication, a greater emphasis on mental wellbeing and the provision of safe spaces in schools can be effective.

He also warned, "We are not giving young persons enough skills to cope with pain." This came as he highlighted a lack of child psychiatrists in TT and across the Caribbean.