Category: Unit 2

Research Topic:

COVID-19 Pandemic and it’s Mental Health Impact on Children and Adolescents.

INTRODUCTION:

I am interested in this topic because, first and foremost, I am mom; I have two boys in elementary school who have not seen inside of a classroom since March of 2020. Although I am very thankful that as of now, my boys seem alright; they are happy and seem well adjusted, I often worry about their lack of interaction or socialization with friends and other close relatives and whether that can have a negative impact on their wellbeing in the future. I also cannot help but think about many other kids out there that are having a hard time adjusting and has no support system at home. This does worry me a lot. Secondly, as a Human Services Major student, this topic is especially important to me. These kids and their families that are having a hard time right now could very likely be the exact ones that I get to work with in the near future. My hope is that if these kids and their families can get the help that is needed right now then they could soon be on the right track to recovery and live productive lives.

SOURCE 1:  

Imran, N., Zeshan, M., & Pervaiz, Z. (2020). Mental health considerations for children & adolescents in COVID-19 Pandemic. Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences, 36, S-1-S-6.

According to Imran, Zeshan and Pervaiz, although the number of children affected by the COVID-19 Virus is small and most of the affected children only experience mild symptoms, they explained that “the disease and containment measures are likely to negatively impact the mental health and well-being of children”. They highlighted the fact that children are vulnerable because they have limited understanding of the event and that school closures and separation from friends can cause stress and anxiety. Imran, Zeshan and Pervaiz point out that some of the symptoms of stress and anxiety include disturbances in sleep and appetite and impairment in social interactions. The authors used research study to support their claim; one of the research studies was from China where children and adolescents were screened for behavioral and emotional distress due to the Pandemic. In this research they found that clinginess, distraction, irritability and fear of family members contracting the virus were the most common behavioral problems Identified. They also pointed out that screen time of children and adolescents has increased significantly since the start of the Pandemic. They express that excessive exposure to media coverage of the pandemic itself can cause stress. They highlighted a research that was done after 9/11 and found that excessive television exposure led to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and other mental health disorders. They also highlighted the fact that the Pandemic has brought about financial losses to many families and that too can heighten the stress levels in these households. They went on to say that during the pandemic, there were increased reports of suspected child abuse, neglect, and exploitation in the State of Texas. Such behaviors are very traumatic and detrimental to children.

Imran, Zeshan and Pervaiz used recent studies and research to support their claims and these claims appear to be plausible. In this review article, they present a strong argument that The Pandemic is indeed affecting children and adolescents’ mental health. The authors suggested a few ways of connecting with loved ones during the pandemic and one was through video chat. My thought about this is that unfortunately, many households cannot afford internet or even telephone service and can make it difficult to connect via these means. During the start of the pandemic and prior, many low-income American families could not afford internet or phone service and the kids of these households were not able to connect with their peers for school or neither with other family members. I can see how these families seemed even more isolated than those who were able to use technology to connect.

The authors are all in the Psychology field and they corroborated to write this highly informative scholarly article.  They have presented extraordinarily strong arguments to support their claim and they have presented ways to help children and adolescents cope with stress and anxiety during and after the pandemic. I believe the author’s main audience is Parents and to some extent health care professionals.

 

SOURCE 2:

KLUGER, J. (2020). The Kids Are Not Alright. TIME Magazine, 196(5/6), 64–67.

In this Article, Kluger highlights the fact that COVID-19 affects various age groups differently, with 65 and older being the population who is more likely to get hospitalized and even die from the virus. Just like Imran, Zeshan and Pervaiz, Kluger seems to suggest that “although the virus seems to spare most kids bodies, it’s not being as kind to their minds”. In this article, Ezra Golberstein, a health-policy researcher at the University of Minnesota said, “I worry that kids will get a double wallop”. She explained that kids are having to deal with the disease itself and the fear of it. She then added that, moreover, they have to deal with the lockdowns and being removed from the school environment and their friends. Kluger used a study out of China to further support his claims. This study examined a sample group of 2,330 school children for signs of emotional distress. The kids had been locked down for an average of 33.7 days and found that even after that single month 22.6% of the children reported depressive symptoms and 18.9% were experiencing anxiety. Like Imran, Zeshan and Pervaiz, Golberstein found that job lost and economic strain during the pandemic causes mental health problems in children – she states that “when the economy is in a bad place, kids mental health gets worse”. Goldberg and his co-authors studied economic conditions in the U.S. from 2001 to 2013 and found that during the Great recession, a 5-percentage-point increase in the national unemployment rate correlated with an astounding 35% to 50% increase in “clinically meaningful childhood mental health problem”. Kluger added work of another psychologist, Mary Alvord who is also the co-author of “Resilience Builder Program for Children and Adolescents”. She points out that kids are saying about COVID-19, that they are afraid for themselves and for their parents and they feel helpless and out of control and that can cause increased anxiety in those kids. Another important point highlighted in this article is that children who were already using mental-health services are at higher risk and that it is especially important that these services are not disrupted even during the pandemic.

In Klugers article, Silver said that, “If there is one thing that’s certain about the impact of the pandemic on young mind, is that it’s not going to stop until the spread of COVID-19 itself does”. I strongly disagree with silver on this point; I believe that the impact will be less once the spread of COVID-19 stops but I do believe that there will be some children and adolescents who would require mental health services well after the pandemic ends. Except this point I believe that this article used lots of studies and statements from Psychologists and they posed exceptionally good arguments and research studies to support Kluger’s claim. I do believe that the pandemic has had and will probably continue to negatively impact children’s mental health. Some families are better equipped to handle changes and challenges while others not so much and those are the families who will be mostly affected.

The author is a writer for Time Magazine and have used recent studies, health researcher to help come up with plausible arguments to support his claims and as a result I find this article very credible. I believe his main target audience is parents and health officials and hopefully government agencies.

 

SOURCE 3:

https://www.ama-assn.org/delivering-care/population-care/patrice-harris-md-ma-discusses-pandemics-impact-children-teens

Patrice Harris MD, MA, discusses the Pandemics Impact on children and Teens. February 2021

In this video interview, Todd Unger, AMA Chief Experience Officer in Chicago asks Patrice Harris, MD, MA, a variety of questions regarding the Pandemics impact on Children and Teens. Dr. Harris argued that although there’s good news regarding vaccines being administered to people and the overall number of COVID-19 cases are decreasing, there have been increasing number of children and adolescents experiencing symptoms of anxiety and depression and that there has also been an increased in the number of suicides. She also highlights that the suicide rate increased in far greater numbers for African American male youth. Dr.Harris pointed out that some families have had to deal with the loss of family members due to COVId19 and went on to say that these families are not able to grieve or say goodbye to the people they love because of COVID-19 restrictions. She said that all these stressors are causing more incidences of depression, anxiety, and suicide. She believes that support services need to be available when needed. She also argues that collaborative care and integrated care is particularly important in helping young people achieve better health outcomes.

In the interview Dr Harris mentioned that suicide rates were far higher among young African American males, I was hoping she would go into more details as to why this is the case and what programs or policies are available or being implemented to help reduce the suicide rate in young African American males. I agree with Dr. Harris when say said “After we get over the acute phase of the pandemic, I think we will be talking more and thinking more about perhaps post-traumatic stress disorder”. I believe this is true because many families are still having a hard time getting access to quality health care services and another reason is the fact that many jobs have left the economy and may not come back even after the pandemic and this contributes to continued stress and anxiety for many families.

Dr.Patrice Harris is an American psychiatrist and the first African-American woman to be elected president of the American Medical Association. I think that Todd Unger asked really important questions and Dr.Harris’ information from this interview is very credible and that she has presented strong arguments supporting the claim that the pandemic has and may continue to have a negative impact on Children’s mental health.

 

CONCLUSION:

To conclude, I have found that based on research, surveys there is a strong correlation between the COVID-19 pandemic and mental health issues in Children and adolescents.  There are increased cases of depression and anxiety in young children and an increased in the rate of suicides in that population as well.  I have discovered that these could be presented in many different forms such as clinginess, disturbances in sleep and appetite, irritability and impairment in social interactions.  The articles above suggested a few ways that we can help lessen these effects. The articles suggested that providing a safe, loving environment is especially important as well as keeping kids away from tv news and other social media news coverage can help lessen their worry and anxiety. The authors also believe that kids with mental health issues should seek the medical attention that they need even though accessing these resources during the pandemic might be difficult at times. Imran, Zeshan and Pervaiz said that” ignoring the immediate and long-term psychology effects of COVID-19 pandemic would be disastrous, especially for children”. They emphasize that parents also need to look after their mental health in order to better support children and adolescents to get through this difficult time.

I think this information is immensely helpful for parents but also for healthcare professionals and government agencies. For Parents, these articles could help them better spot the symptoms that are associated with depression and anxiety and it provides parents with many tools and mechanism that can help support kids who are having difficulties adjusting. For Healthcare professionals this could help them do further research about the issue of mental health and in turn could better support these patients and their families. And Lastly, government agencies could implement policies to help families better access health care services and provide better support for these families. I believe that when school do reopen fully, some kids will need all the mental service support that they can get through their schools – this is another way that local government can help.

Research Question: Why was cannabis made illegal despite objections from the American Medical Association?

Why: The purchase, sale, consumption, and possession of cannabis was made illegal in the 1930s despite objections from the American Medical Association. The AMA was advocating for the drug’s benefits on and its medicinal use so why did it ever become illegal? Like many of our country’s laws at the time was making cannabis illegal rooted in racism, sexism, or classism? This is a topic that I’m genuinely interested in because there are far more harmful things like alcohol or cigarettes that aren’t illegal so what prompted our government to ban it?

Introduction:
Marijuana had been used in America dating back as early as the 1800s. Americans used it for seizures, stomach aches, vomiting, and for pain relief. The drug that can now put someone in jail for several years was once used in America as an over the counter pain relief medication. During this time Americans never even thought twice about the drug, and viewed it only as kind of medicine. However, all of that changed after the Mexican Revolution. In Mexico marijuana was a big part of their culture. Mexicans used it for spiritual and relaxing benefits. After the Mexican revolution there was a large influx of Mexican Immigrants into the United States. When they came into the United States Americans were introduced into a new way of consuming the drug and for different reasons. Instead of appreciating the culture or rather just letting them be, American politicians used it to further their own anti-immigration, xenophobic agenda. This decision fueled by hatred is something we are still reaping the consequences of to this day. Without the medicinal benefits of marijuana there have been countless people who have suffered unnecessarily, simply because they live in a country where everything is related back to the color of your skin. Not only has it caused unnecessary physical pain for people it has furthered racism and built it into our judicial system even more than it already was. By making marijuana illegal America stripped away a very vital piece of Mexican culture from Mexican immigrants. Today the criminalization of marijuana has been used as a way to lock up and even kill African Americans and other minorities. When an African American is caught with marijuana by the law, statistically they are punished harsher than any other race or ethnicity. America uses it as a way to put young black boys behind bars or in a casket. For this reason, many people have been fighting for the legalization of marijuana both recreationally and medicinally. And while it has been working slowly it is still something that is very controversial today.

Source 1:
Burnnet, Malik, and Amanda Reiman. “How Did Marijuana Become Illegal in the First Place?” Drug Policy Alliance, 8 Oct. 2014, drugpolicy.org/blog/how-did-marijuana-become-illegal-first-place.

This article written by Dr. Malik Burnnet and Amanda Reiman who work for The Drug Policy Alliance discusses the history of marijuana use in America while simultaneously explaining why it is was made illegal. The Drug Policy Alliance is a non-profit organization based out of New York City that works to fight for the end on the war on drugs. In this article Dr. Burnnet and Amanda Reiman explain how marijuana got into the states and why politicians were so against its consumption. The history on how and why it became illegal begins when the Mexican Revolution ended in the early 1900s. During this time there was a large wave of immigrants coming into the United States from Mexico. Like with most immigration they brung with them their culture, including the healing plant marijuana. Before people knew what the plant was they didn’t know they were actually consuming it themselves. Since the 1800s marijuana was used as an over the counter pain relieving medication in America. They weren’t aware that the plant they had been consuming for years was the same plant that they looked at so negatively simply because it was being used by Mexicans in their own culture. As a result, politicians made it their mission to criminalize marijuana, so that they can force Mexican immigrants to assimilate more into American culture. While politicians were shifting the public opinion to support their own agenda they were completely disregarding the opposition of the American Medical Association. In this article, Dr. Burnnet and Reiman were exploring the racial bias that prompted them to want to make marijuana, a significant part of Mexican culture illegal. They talk about how politicians used the Mexican’s consumption of marijuana as a way to make them seem “disruptive” and as trouble makers. This source helps me answer the question of why marijuana was made illegal in the first place. Evidence shows that it was not for the safety or wellbeing of the American people but it was actually because of the extreme racism and xenophobia that was in America at the time. Dr. Burnnet and Amanda Reiman claim that protests pushing for marijuana’s legality have been taking place since the 1970s due to the fact that the only reason it was ever made illegal was because of racism and xenophobia. By criminalizing marijuana Americans set back the clock on progression in solving racism in this country. Something that is still being fought to over come today.

Source 2:
Little, Becky. “Why the US Made Marijuana Illegal.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 4 Aug. 2017, www.history.com/news/why-the-u-s-made-marijuana-illegal.

This article written by Becky Little discusses the history of marijuana and its legality in the United States. Becky Little is a well known journalist from D.C. She has written articles for people like history.com, NPR, The Washington Post, The Smithsonian, and more. In this article she talks about marijuana’s benefits. She then proceeds to explain how the drug was largely used for its healing and pain relieving effects. However, when they saw Mexicans using it for spiritual and calming purposes they tried to demonize the drug, eventually making it classified as one of the most dangerous drugs on the list of federally controlled substances, meaning drugs that are illegal under federal law. Furthermore, Little also tells her theory about marijuana’s future in the United States. Her belief is that with continuing efforts on shaping society’s views on the drug it will eventually become legalized. I agree with Little. During the 1970s protesting for the legality of the drug became very popular. With more and more people using and advocating for the drug it helped shed light onto the real reason it became illegal in the first place. Since then states have one by one been legalizing the consumption of marijuana both medicinally and recreationally. Many people are viewing this as progress however it ties back to Becky Little’s claim that the legalization of marijuana has been becoming legalized because the consequences of being caught with marijuana was effecting more and more white Americans. I agree with this claim as well because when the recreational consumption of marijuana started gaining traction in the 1970s more and more white people were using it. This because known as hippie culture. When hippie culture became more and more popular people started to see the benefits of marijuana and didn’t want to see their people suffering the consequences that come as a result of the criminalization of the drug. With that being said, the legalization of marijuana was rooted from the same reasons it was made illegal in the first place, racism. Once white people saw their people facing the consequences that people of color were facing it made them realize that marijuana shouldn’t be illegal in the first place.

Source 3:
Tikkanen, Amy. “Why Is Marijuana Illegal in the U.S.?” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/story/why-is-marijuana-illegal-in-the-us.

Amy Tikkanen, the author of this article is the General Corrections Manager of Britannica. In this article Tikkanen is telling the history of how marijuana became a federally controlled substance and why it had remained a federally controlled substance for so long. Tikkanen’s claim in this article is that marijuana was illegal and remained illegal for so long because of racism. I agree with Tikkanen because after extensive research on the history of the plant’s legality and benefits my opinion is that the criminalization of marijuana was nothing but a tactic to keep white Americans on a pedestal while trying to demonize minorities and people of color. Tikkanen also explores the theory that the criminalization of marijuana wasn’t actually rooted in racism but rather that it was just a way for the head of the brand new Federal Bureau of Narcotics to gain popularity and public support. However, this theory can be quickly debunked once one notices all of the mean and racist things that was said about Mexicans, simply for engaging in their culture. This theory can also be disproven when one takes into account that the drug had been being used by Americans since the early 1800s as an over the counter pain relieving medication. The hatred for the drug had only started when Mexicans brought it over when they immigrated along with their other parts of their culture, which were just too much for Americans. This article further answers the initial question of why America made marijuana illegal in the first place. With the answer to the question being racism. The criminalization of marijuana started off as a way to keep Mexicans from bringing their culture into the United States and force them to either assimilate to American culture or to just show them their culture is not actually welcome then. This article supports my claim and the author’s claim that the only reason America ever made the sale, consumption, and possession of marijuana illegal was because of racism. It also supports the claim that the reason it continued to be illegal despite research showing the consumption of marijuana was stemmed from racism as well.

Conclusion:
In conclusion, the question of why marijuana was ever made illegal in the first place has only one answer, racism. It has never been a secret that America has a racist past, however many people don’t know exactly how racist and how deep the racism went. The criminalization of marijuana was a prime example of that. Despite the fact that marijuana was already being consumed by the American people for its medicinal benefits, everyone was completely against its consumption when they saw Mexican immigrants consuming it. Mexicans introduced it into the states under a different name however, it was known that it was the same drug. When advocating for the criminalization of marijuana, politicians tried to justify it by claiming that marijuana was making Mexicans disruptive and rowdy. Politicians also told the public that consuming marijuana was going to make teenagers addicted and making bad decisions like hanging out in jazz clubs. Jazz clubs were mainly used by African Americans and hispanics. White Americans did not want to associate their children with Mexicans and African Americans because they did not like them for no other reason other than they were Mexican and black. However, the United States’ racist history with marijuana does not stop there. Since the 1900s, marijuana has been used as an excuse to lock up black men and women. Before marijuana was so heavily restricted the punishment for when you’re caught with it was so much harsher, with years behind prison. Cops took this as a way to lock up young black men and keep them off the streets. To this day that is still true, with millions of black men behind bars for marijuana possession when the only reason it was even illegal was to keep them locked up behind bars. As a result, the reason that marijuana was ever made illegal in the first place was not for the safety of the American people, not even for economic reasons, but rather because of nothing other than the ignorance, racism, and xenophobia that embodied Americans and still continues to embody some Americans today.