Saturday, June 21, 2014
Chapter 4 Skin Hunger
Many people believe women have an instinct in knowing how to care for and raise children. Read Chapter 4 and share what you learned most about the brain and the body in this story. Feel free to ask questions and voice ideas that should be considered in this story. You may also link stories you find in the paper that relate to any part of what you are reading at any time. The idea to ask yourself before reading is what makes us grow and be healthy human beings. Is a mother's nurturing an instinct or something that needs to be taught?
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Laura is a four year old girl who weighs only 26 pounds. No one can seem to figure out why the little girl will not gain any weight. Her mother Virginia was a foster-home child and never developed lasting relationships and was never taught how to love a child. This chapter is about the importance of a normal relationship of children and their caregivers.
ReplyDeleteInfants develop a positive association between human contact and stress relief. If a parent responds to their baby when they cry and help them with what they need in a loving way a positive bond is created. But if the parent does not hold the baby the child's emotions will not develop properly. Babies are genetically made so that a parent wants to help their infant whenever possible.
I find it interesting that how your parent acts when you are an infant can have such a lasting impact on your life. Babies who do not receive proper care will never develop normal human relationships and will never get the same joy out of the ones they do form. It also makes me angry and sad at how the Foster Care System used to treat those children, they were setting up thousands of children for failure.
I agree. Not only will they never develop emotions or relationships properly, but they won't physically grow properly. Without the physical and emotional signals, their growth hormones will stop, causing them to stop growing. This is why Laura cannot gain any weight. When Laura was diagnosed the first time with "failure to thrive", why didn't they take any precautions and teach Virginia how to nurture Laura properly?
DeleteUnderstand, most people Virginia grew up with did not realize her lack of skill or knowledge with other people. Also at this time in her life she is very hard to retrain... it is frustrating... it may be best to consider having Laura adopted into a loving home.. but there too trauma could result.
DeleteIn this chapter, Laura, a four year-old little girl, is not receiving proper nurturing from her mother Virginia. She weighs only 26 pounds and is not able to gain any weight. She was neglected as an infant. When Virginia had Laura at the age of 18, she knew she was suppose to love her and care for her, however she was lost emotionally. Virginia was abandoned at birth and put into many different foster homes throughout her childhood. Because of this, she was never really taught how to love, or show affection towards someone. She did not know how to love and nurture her daughter through physical contact. Eventually, if an infant does not receive physical or emotional contact, such as nursing, being held, rocked, or touched, they will stop growing. This is what happened with Laura.
ReplyDeleteLaura was diagnosed with “failure to thrive” and was put on a feeding tube diet. After a couple visits, Dr. Perry decided to see if Virginia would be willing to stay with Mamma P., who was a foster mother. Mamma P. used to bring some of her maltreated and traumatized foster kids into see Dr. Perry. As time progressed, he learned some important parenting styles from her that he knew could help Virginia and Laura. Virginia agreed and lived with Mamma P. for about a year. Virginia, by observing Mamma P., had begun to learn how to properly nurture Laura. Great improvement was made, and Laura gained 10 pounds in one month! Even though, Virginia and Laura’s relationship will always have a small emotional disconnection, it improved tremendously, and they were able to move out. Later, Virginia had another baby (a baby boy) and because of Mamma P.’s teachings, Virginia was able to nurture him properly from the start.
From this chapter, I learned that without love, one will physically not grow. I find it interesting how the brain will stop growth hormones if physical or emotional signals are not met. All the little things a mother does to nurture her child are actually extremely important, and we do not realize this. It’s also hard to imagine how someone could be emotionally disconnected (like Virginia and Laura).
I like how you conveyed how Mamma P was able to teach Virginia the proper way to show physical and emotional compassion. The affection Mamma P showed really helped Laura grow as a child and I think you showed that really well.
DeleteA an experiment to review would be Harry Harlow's monkey experiment.
DeleteIsn't it crazy how fragile the brain really is as a child? If one doesn't get brought up the correct way, their whole lives could be changed for the worse. The brain is a crazy organ,
DeleteLaura is a four year old girl who has an eating problem and only weighs 26 pounds. She is not able to gain weight even with the high calorie feeding tubes. Her problem is that her mother did not give her proper care and love when she was very young. Dr. Perry notices the disconnection between Laura and Virginia right away. He learns that Virginia was moved around from foster home to foster home, and did not have the proper nurturing care that Laura is not getting now too. That is why Virginia does not know how to properly love and care for Laura.
ReplyDeleteDr. Perry relates this case back to one of his other cases, and calls Mama P. to help teach Virginia how to care for Laura. Virginia was able to learn from Mama P. and develop a better connection with her daughter. Laura was even able to gain weight just by feeling love from her mother and others. Virginia was also able to nurture her next child without any issues. Even though Virginia learned how to care for her kids, she and Laura are still damaged from their past experiences.
This chapter sort of relates to an article I read about how a mother brought her child back to life after the doctor had pronounced the baby dead. The mother just held the baby, and from her warmth, smell, and touch, the baby starting breathing again. I think it's interesting how the brain reacts to love, and how babies and young children need love to develop into a healthy person. If a baby does not receive this kind of care, it can ruin the way they develop and how they act in the future. In Laura's case, she was not able to gain weight because of her mother's lack of affection towards her.
I like how you included the info about an article you read. It fascinates me how powerful a mother's love can be for a small child, strong enough to bring them back to life after being pronounced dead.
DeleteI think this information is good for teens to know because it gives us females an insight of how to respond to and care for our children in the future, regardless if we had a connection with our mothers as a child or not.
Including the last paragraph shows how interesting nurturing can affect a child or an infant. It's crazy how something like that can make such a huge impact on someone physically not just emotionally
DeleteMost people never even realize how much just being loved can have such a profound effect on physical and emotional growth, it really makes you appreciate your family and the care they've given
DeleteThat's very interesting that the baby came back to life. Love, nurturing, and care create such a strong feeling in someone that it can bring them back to life, that is crazy, but awesome at the same time. I really want to go read that article, I'll go find it. Thanks for sharing!
DeleteThe story I had the pleasure of reading is about a 4 year old girl named Laura. Laura has been in the hospital for the past few weeks.(page 81) Her problem was her weight, at 4 years old she was only 26 pounds. Nobody was really sure why she wasn’t gaining weight. Doctors had her on a high calorie diet via tube for the last few weeks. Laura had been to several doctors including specialists like endocrinologists,gastroenterologists, and several nutritionists, but still nothing changed .(page 81) After nothing seemed to be changing, her doctor decided to seek help from a psychiatrist. Dr. Perry after some time was able to diagnose Laura with “failure to thrive”, which was causing her inability to gain weight. Laura’s mother Virginia was the key to unlocking this mystery. Virginia was raised in many orphanages, so she moved around a lot as a child. This caused her to never have a set caregiver, so no permanent parent figure. This lack of permanent affection caused her to not really show this affection with her child Laura . Dr. Perry knew exactly how to treat her. Mamma P., was a friend of his and was a caregiver at an orphanage in Chicago. She took in Virginia and Laura and was able to show Virginia the proper way to show affection, emotionally and physically to Laura. One thing I was able to take away from this that there is a strong connection between emotional and physical health. You need to receive both in order to thrive. I find knowing this information very useful in other situations in my life. My fathers friend Tom was also raised in orphanages as a child and he always seemed a little disconnected from everyone else. He was always in the spotlight, but seemed a little lacking in emotion. Because of this disconnect he always had bizarre theories possessing a desire to live forever, and dislike for most people he didn’t deem worthy. Tom never had children and was killed during his middle age of life, but I’m sure there would have been a lack of emotion to his kids as well.
ReplyDelete"Virginia was the key to unlocking this mystery" I like how you said it like this. I find it very true because that is exactly where Dr. Perry had to start to find out what was wrong with Laura. I also find your story about Tom very interesting. It saddens me deeply to hear about his passing but it still can be something to learn from. Had he had children it would be interesting to see that emotional disconnect. At least he is in a better place now.
DeleteAs a teacher I appreciate you being able and willing to share a real experience. I am sorry for Tom, what a hard life to endure.
DeleteWeighing just 26 pounds at the age of four, it was evident Laura had an eating problem. After being in the hospital's research unit for a month and being fed from a feeding tube Laura's doctor's believed she had the first known case of "infantile anorexia." This type of anorexia is said to be very common among animal litters it is referred to as "runt syndrome". When Dr, Perry was referred to Laura's case he was told she either had to be secretly purging or vigoriously working out at night without her mother knowing.
ReplyDeleteOnce Dr. Perry got to know more about Laura's single mom Virginia, he finds out that Laura has received little to no physical affection and because of this her brain did not function properly for healthy physical development. He also learns that Virginia herself had no parent figure in her life and as a result grew up jumping from one foster home to another. As a form of treatment, Dr. Perry encourages Virginia and Laura to move in with Mama P, who is known for nuturing malnutritioned foster children to health. This reccomendation helps Laura reboound from her below average weight and also helps Virginia learn how to be a better parent by showing affection to her daughter.
Something I was able to take away from this story is how important the type of parenting is that a child receives. Good or bad, it not only affects a child emotionally but physically too. For Laura, poor parenting was life threatning and without love it was very difficult to function properly. There is a big difference between having a baby and raising one.
I love how you said "Good or bad, it not only affects a child emotionally but physically too," that is so true, the fact that Laura received the parenting she did it affected her in ways that even she had no idea she was affected it. Her lack of ability to gain weight as well as her problems emotionally show us that all parenting types have an affect on how a child will grow and flourish or if they will. Some children will not even be able to survive due to lack of knowledge on how to.
DeleteI think the way that you worded your summary is perfect. You said that no matter if it is good or bad it will affect a child both emotionally and physically and I think that you are so right. If Laura had been raised with a mother who had shown her love she may have turned out as a very different child and the lack of love she was given proves that those children who are raised in homes without basic love and care are more apt to survive and not thrive.
Deletea horrific concept to that you point out is bad... even with bad parenting a child will be more apt to survive and in a different way love the parent... the attention children receive is a big part of brain development.
Deleteit is amazing how big of a factor parenting is. Good or bad everyone needs some sort of parenting. This chapter truly shows how much of an impact being loved at a young age can be and the affects that can happen without it.
DeleteYou need to fully understand the job you are taking on as a parent. You need to care and love for the child and not just do the basics. Without those specific quality anything can happen to the child.
DeleteThis was an awesome summary. I really liked how she explain in detail some of the events. It's truly incredible how the brain can be affected. I also believe that if Laura was raised by a mother that gave her more emotional care she would have developed normally.
DeleteIt's weird to think the brain is so affected by missing one thing. Laura's situation shows how kids can develop wrong without love and proper care. I like how you said it not only hurts them emotionally, but physically also.
DeleteIt is so interesting how much of an effect emotional care can have on a child emotionally and physically. I agree that there is a huge difference between having a baby and raising one. You could have a baby and not care for it leaving emotional scars, but you could also love and care for your child giving it a better chance at a stable, healthy life.
DeleteChapter 4 is about a 4 year old girl name Laura. Laura is having issues with her weight . She only weighs 26 pounds despite being on a high calorie diet. She has been in the hospital for several weeks and some of those weeks being fed via tube. Nothing her doctors did would improve Laura’s lack of growth.(page 81) After seeing several specialists, Laura’s doctors decided to seek help from a psychiatrist. Dr. Perry was interested to get to the root of the problem. He wanted to start by learning about the family. Virginia is laura’s mother, and she was important part to unlocking why poor Laura wouldn’t grow. Virginia was raised at an orphanage as a child during a time where it was common to move children to different orphanages every 6 months. The lack of permanent affection caused serious damage to Virginia’s emotional health. It made her foreign to the common mirror effect that parents have to their kids. When kids smile towards their parents most parents will smile back at them, but when Laura would smile Virginia would never smile back. It wasn’t a normal response Virginia would have at Laura. Virginias lack of consistent caregiver was the reason she never experienced the particular relational repetitions a child needs to associate human contact with pleasure.(page91) While Laura didn’t receive these emotional responses from her mother it caused emotional damage that affected her physical growth. Dr. Perry diagnosed Laura with “failure to thrive”, which was all caused from lack of affection. The treatment was easy, have Laura raised in a place where this affection was made possible. Mamma P. was a leader of an orphanage nearby where Dr. Perry worked. Mamma P. was to take in Laura and Virginia to give immediate affection to Laura, and to teach Virginia how to give this sort of affection.The treatment was a success as Laura gained 10 pounds in 1 month. I learned from this chapter that their is a very strong relationship between emotional and physical health. That if one is affected the other one is too.
ReplyDeleteI like the point about physically and emotional health being interconnected, with one affecting the other. It's true because even in older children and some adults, if they don't form relationships with other people, they can be sick more often or feel the affects of lack of attention or affection.
DeleteIf you dont have the right relationships with people anything can happen. That is why when a young child is being raised it is good to do all the correct things when forming a bond with the child.
DeleteVirginia willing to do anything to get help for her daughter is amazing. Not everyone can admit something is wrong with their child. How willing she is allows others to figure out how to help Laura.
DeleteAn important question posed in this chapter is whether maternal instinct is naturally occurring in women or if it is a learned trait. Laura is a 4-year-old girl Dr. Perry was called in to meet with that was diagnosed with "infantile anorexia". Infantile anorexia takes place between the ages of 6 months and 3 years old. The refusal of food is used to get attention from the child's mother or caregiver unlike typical anorexia nervosa, which happens most often due to underlying issues with body dysmorphia.
ReplyDeleteLaura's mother was not neglectful or abusive like many other mothers of malnutritioned and unresponsive children. Her mother had simply only done what she thought she should do as a mother. She didn't naturally have a loving instinct toward her own child because she hadn't received the essential physical contact needed to mature emotionally as a child.
I think maternal instinct has been naturally inherited throughout history up until recently. While it's common for young girls to seem to be inclined toward being motherly (playing with dolls and such), it's also becoming more common for girls to grow up and decide they don't want children. Societal pressures to have children have lightened on women in the U.S. as of recent years. Social pressure may not be the only reason as to why this is the case: evolutionary influences may also play a role. With the population of the world is drastically increasing very quickly, people may biologically only be able to produce one or two children in the future due to the decreasing amount of space we have. These changes may already be showing up in accordance to how mother and child interact.
Virginia unknowingly was emotionally neglectful. I do like your ideas of a changing society... perhaps we are all becoming more socially delayed or incapable with increase media use and the very busy life styles and more parents working endless hours is perhaps creating a generation of people who do not how to parent or nurture as well. We rely on television, media, and instant gratification. We want quick and easy... do we want those ideas within the concept of parenting and if we can't we are choosing not to have children?
DeleteWhat makes us the humans that we are today? It's not what we eat or what we wear, it's something as basic and small as a touch from a loving parent. In this chapter I explored how one thing, love, can affect the fate of a human life. Laura, a gaunt four year old girl, was the first case of infantile anorexia. What could the reason for this be? Why would someone so young, still growing develop such a disorder? That was the big question and to answer it the doctors had to go to where it started, Laura's mother Virginia. Virginia had Laura at a very young age and was not taught how to love and care for a child, so like anyone would do she relied on instinct. Women are born with instinctual behavior on how to raise a child, though it is very basic and almost primitive. Virginia responded every time she knew that her child was in need and gave her the necessities that she needed to thrive, however she did so without love. Though this seems like something so small it impacted the way Laura would grow and survive. It is mind boggling to me that women are born knowing what they must do but they may lack the basic knowledge on how to show they may care.
ReplyDeleteIf you are not shown love and compassion when you are young you will not know how to show it to your child either. For some reason what happens to people tends to rub off on how they raise their children and that is very fascinating to me. Without love and care we can not grow to thrive or in some circumstances survive. What would you be like if you were not raised in the same household you were raised in? Would you be the you that you know, or would you be someone totally different? That is an interesting question.
That's very interesting to think about Emily. Will Virginia have strain on other relationships? I feel that she had learned so much from Mama P about loving and caring for someone and they had become very close throughout the process of living there but that's an interesting question to think about.
DeleteIts strange to think about how the foundation of who we are today is based on how we were nurtured as a baby. What if this process couldn't be even slightly reversed? Imagine what Laura's life would be like if what happened to her physically couldn't be undone or fixed. She would be malnourished for the rest of her, ultimately, short life. She would never have been able to experience things such as playing outside, riding a bike, or simple things kids her age could. All of this due to an unintentional lack of nurture. Its crazy how one choice the CPS made regarding Virginia, impacted situations out of their control. And, there were factors that won't be able to be changed or reversed; such as the relationships Virginia and Laura will have with others. Not to mention that they won't be able to get back the first four years of Laura's life or erase all of the impacting doctors visits, tests, and hospitalization.
DeleteEmily, your questions are very interesting to think about. Another question I was trying to figure out was, would it be different for a boy than a girl? Also, would the boy have a different way to react to something like this?
DeleteLaura is a four year old girl who weighed only 26 pounds. She was on a high calorie diet and had been in the hospital for several weeks on feeding tubes, but she did not gain any weight. Her mother Virginia grew up in foster care and never received the love and care that a baby needs, and she did not know how to care for Laura. She gave her the necessities she needed to survive, but did not hold her or give her love and this greatly affected her growth. Dr. Perry calls Mama P. who is one of his other cases. He wanted Virginia and Laura to move in with Mama P. so that Virginia could learn from her. She learned how to care for children from Mama P., and Laura gained weight just from being held and loved, but they both still suffer from these experiences. I think it is amazing how this can effect a child so much. Even with the right nutrients, a baby still cannot grow if it is not held and touched. A mother's nurturing is definitely taught and does not come automatically.
ReplyDeleteI agree completely, it is absolutely astounding how important physical nurturing is to a child's development. Too often, experts in the medical field seek to attribute disorders to physiological problems while the underlying cause proves to be much more complex - as in the early case of Laura, when doctors accumulated a file on her case which was nearly as tall as Laura herself. The problem proved to have physiological as well as psychological aspects; the relevance of psychology to medical issues is clearly not to be undermined.
DeleteI agree and disagree with a mothers love being completely taught. A mother who has to carry a baby for nine months is bound to love for her child. It is just in the nature. I think it is whether how little or how much love she is able to show is what is taught. It is unfortunate that this happens to children and even more sad that it is commonly looked over.
DeleteThough chapter 4, I learned that a child's body develops as it is loved. Four year old Laura, for example, had not received proper nurture or affection as a baby. She hadn't been held or cared for when she cried. As a result from the emotional neglect, Laura did not gain weight or grow. Doctors blamed it on infintile anorexia and digestive disorders, they did not realize that it was because of a lack of care.
ReplyDeleteMothering is a learned trait. We have done foster care in my home since I was in 1st grade, so I know firsthand that a child develops differently as a result of lack of affection when they were younger. Some moms do not want the child in their home, therefore not wanting to give them the emotional care they thrive off of.
Virginia, Laura's mother, had gotten pregnant quickly after leaving her own foster home because she had gotten the attention she still desired from men. When Laura was born however, she did not know what to do to take care of her. Virginia loved Laura, but not in a way that she needed to. She needed to hold Laura and rock her to sleep, not leave her aside when she got annoying.
Virginia never learned the right thing to do until she moved in with Mama P.
Mama P. is a foster parent who knows how to nurture children no matter their age. She said they all desire to be held and loved even if they are no longer babies. She was able to show Virginia what it's like to be a mother and not just a mom, therefore concluding that motherhood is a learned behavior.
It's interesting that the doctors did not find Virgina and Laura's serperation a little odd, and that they did not think it could have affected Laura. I think it's great that there are foster homes out there that give their kids attention and love. Unfortunately, in Virginia's case she did not get that attention and then carried it on to Laura.
DeleteI wonder how different Laura would have been if Virginia had been introduced to Mamma P a year earlier? At what point does the damage from neglect become irreversible?
DeleteThis also makes me anxious for our generation due to the increasing amount of teen pregnancies. The more and more of them, the more children probably get put into foster homes. And the more they are put into foster homes (to reverse the lack of comforting love), the more and more children will grow up having been damaged from neglect in some form. What will that result to in our society? It is a scary thought.
DeleteLaura is a four year old girl who only weighed 26 pounds. She had been in the hospital on a high calorie diet and with feeding tubes. She had been there for quite a while but did not gain any weight. Virginia, her mother, grew up in foster care and switched homes every six months. Therefore she never received the love and care that a young child needs. When she had her baby Laura she didn’t know how to give her proper affection. She gave her the necessities she needed to survive, but that was it. Soon after Dr. Perry evaluated their family history he calls Mama P., a mother with many foster kids from a previous case. He wanted Virginia and Laura to move in with Mama P. so that she could learn from her on how to be a mother. Virginia learned how to care for young children and how to show them affection. Within a month Laura gained weight just from being loved. This illustrates how the mind and body cannot be treated separately it reveals what infants and young children need for a healthy brain development and demonstrates how neglecting those needs can have a profound impact on every aspect of a child’s growth.
ReplyDeleteIt was intriguing to see the difference one factor can have on a child's growth and development. Virginia did give Laura all the necessities to survive except love. Without that one element, A child's growth can be stunted or stop all together. Once love was introduced to Virginia and Laura, Laura was finally able to grow and gain weight.
DeleteI agree. It's crazy to see how the brain knows to stop the growth hormones when this element is not met. I think people overlook this because they don't think it will affect their future. They don't realize the huge impact it has on their overall growth and development.
DeleteLaura was a four year old girl who only weighed 26 pounds. Her mother Virginia was in foster care as a child. Virginia had Laura when she was only 18, and because of her being in foster care she didn't know how to have a loving, stable, relationship with her daughter. If a child is not held or loved especially at such a young age, they do not develop emotions properly. Laura was diagnosed with the "Failure to Thrive", which means that she did/does not grow and develop normally as compared to other children who are her same age. It is caused by medical problems or factors in the child's environment, such as abuse or neglect. Laura was then put on a special diet by eating out of a feeding tube. After Dr. Perry understood the situation that Laura and Virginia were in, he suggested that Virginia stayed with Momma P. who was foster mom. Dr. Perry knew Momma P. very well because she had fostered some children who were very traumatized and brought them to Dr. Perry.
ReplyDeleteVirginia lived with Momma P. for a year to learn how to properly nurture and love and take care of Laura. Living with Momma P. was very successful and Laura gained 10 pounds in one month. Virginia's relationship with Laura will always have an emotional disconnection, but it improved greatly and they were able to move on with life and move out of Momma P.'s house.
A while later Virginia did have another child, and since Momma P. helped her so much, Virginia was able to care and nurture her new son right from the start.
I found it very interesting that since Virginia was in foster care as a child, it effected her as an adult and how she treated people. I'm glad that Virginia was able to grow emotionally and care for not only Laura as best as she could, but now her son too the proper way.
The dual nature of this chapter - the focus on both mother and daughter and the relationship their respective developmental issues - is interesting to me as well. Dr. Perry's investigation of the mother's own childhood was key to discovering the source of Laura's problems. This really exemplifies how important it is to understand a child's environment in order to treat them properly.
DeleteIt was interesting to see the difference one factor can have on a child's growth and development. Virginia did know how to take care of Laura, but she didn't give her love. Without that one element, Laura's growth was stunted. Once Mama P taught Virginia how to love, Laura was finally able to grow and gain weight.
DeleteThis chapter was about a four year old girl named Laura, who weighed just 26 pounds, despite the nutrients being pumped into her body every day. Her stack of medical files was taller than her from multiple stays in the hospital and various diagnoses. One doctor even theorized that Laura was the first case of infantile anorexia. Dr. Perry began working with them and soon discovered that the correct diagnosis was "failure to thrive". It all started when Laura's young mother, Virginia, was young. She was passed around to several foster homes and shelters during sensitive periods when she should have learned how to love. Since she missed those sensitive periods, Virginia didn't know how to properly love and care for Laura. In turn, Laura's body stopped growing and she was very underweight. After persuading many people, Dr. Perry had the mother and daughter move in with Mama P. so Virginia could learn how to properly raise and love Laura. Laura rapidly gained weight and was getting healthier. After a year, Virginia and Laura moved into a different house in the same neighborhood as Mama P. so they could stay in touch.
ReplyDeleteThe thing I found most interesting in this chapter was the cause of Laura's "failure to thrive". It's astonishing that it all began because Virginia didn't receive the love and nurturing she needed when she was young. Although she turned out to be a nice young woman with strong morals and good intentions, she couldn't give the love that Laura needed due to the fact that she never learned how during those sensitive periods. Another thing that really stuck out to me was the study done during the forties in orphanages. The results showed that about one-third of the infants who were placed in these facilities and received little individualized attention died by age two. The ones who survived had many emotional, social, and behavioral problems later in life. One last thing that caught my attention was Mama P.'s way with the kids. She out-smarted all these highly knowledgeable doctors and knew exactly what to do. She called her foster children her babies and helped to make up for some of the sensitive periods they may have missed.
At the end of the chapter Dr. Perry talks about them wearing masks and if you watch closely, they let them slip sometimes. I'm wondering if they will, in some ways, grow into their masks rather than just using them to hide what they are really feeling. Will their accents in the language of love slowly fade with time as they grow farther away from their tragic childhoods? Or have they made as much progress as possible?
I thought it was odd how the foster care system worked. It doesn't really make sense to not let an infant get used to somebody so they can have stability in their life. By rotating the children every six months, there is no way for them to ever form human bonds and learn things such as love while that part of their brain is developing.
ReplyDeleteI think it's fascinating that you got to experience "failure to thrive" first hand. Although it's sad and I'm sorry to hear you lost one, I still think it's neat that you have a better understanding of what was happening in this chapter.
I really liked this chapter because it didn't just specifically focus the child and it's problems, but instead focused on the mother and how her life impacted her child's life. I also liked how the author focused on nurturing and the role it plays on not only the mental and emotional well-being of the child, but also the physical well-being and how the three are interconnected. Nurture is a topic that isn't commonly understood by mainstream society. Most people think that if you feed and change a baby, it will grow, but this chapter explain how and why that is wrong,
ReplyDeleteI can't help but wonder what would happen if Laura had been given growth hormones that mimic the ones that occur naturally. I assume that her body would mature at a rate that could be described as normal, but her mental and emotional levels would be that of an infant. She would be perceived as distant and wouldn't be able to establish relationships with people.
Something that worried me about this chapter was the first psychologist's diagnosis of infantile anorexia. I don't blame him for trying to come up with a conclusion, it just worries me that the idea that a four year old has a body image issue made more sense to him than trying to figure out the relationship between the mother and the child in the sense of nurturing. I think this speaks volumes of our society, that we see body image as a catalyst in mental health.
Great thinking in this chapter... I appreciate your insight and questioning! I agree the idea of a four year old having issues with body image is troubling... we do see signs at 9 years, but infancy anorexia is not so much the child having body image issues as it can be the parents fear and therefore starve them, also anorexia is to be below weight, where the metabolism may be at play... some children with swollen glands, thyroid issues, or even perhaps some adhd can result in anorexia...
DeleteI agree with you on the topic of administering growth hormone as an alternative treatment; although the damage done to Laura's endocrine system was seemingly pervasive, it would be interesting to see if a simple dose of hormones could have helped her physical growth.
DeleteChapter four was about a young four year old girl named Laura, who only weighed 26 pounds and had to be fed high calorie diets to try and help her gain a healthy a weight. This poor girl has been through everything and yet no one could figure out why she was such under weight and not growing. Dr. Perry came in and started working with Laura and her mother Virginia. After talking to Virginia and finding out that she had a rough childhood, moving from foster home to foster home, never really having a loving, stable family environment to live in Dr. Perry put the clues together. Laura's diagnosis was "failure to thrive". Virginia had never learned to love and that is affecting Laura now that she is a mother. Virginia does not know how to love her little girl like she should be loved. She's given Laura the necessities to live such as food and water, but not the key ingredient to growing, which is love. A little later Dr. Perry had Virginia and Laura move in Mama P. Moving in with her was the best thing that could have happened for the little family of two. Virginia watched and learned from Mama P, seeing how she handled and cared for the other children living there. Virginia soon started loving Laura how she should have been loved from the time she was born and she very quickly started growing. Laura gained ten pounds in one month of staying at Mama P's. She finally was receiving the physical nurture her brain needed to release the appropriate hormones needed for growth. Virginia and Laura stayed in that house for about a year and than started living in the same neighborhood and Mama P so that they could stay in touch.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that interested me the most was how just by showing love and the nurture Laura grew! Not nutrients being pumped in to her body, but love. It is just astonishing that it is that important to be there and provide the right amount of love to an infant so that when they become older they know how to love and care for there children. Just one key ingredient to having a healthy child or having to sit in the hospital not knowing what is wrong. Just as Virginia had done. It's not that she didn't love her daughter, she just didn't put it into action and actually hold or rock Laura. But Virginia had no idea she was doing something wrong. Mama P was the best thing that could have happened for Virginia. from being in a hospital drinking from a tube to now knowing that Laura is growing mentally and physically and doing very well in school is just amazing.
I like that you pointed out that Virginia did still love her daughter. It's always assumed that when a child is in a state such as Laura's that the mother neglected them.
DeleteLaura was a four year old girl who only weighed 26 pounds. Her mother Virginia was concerned and didn’t understand why she wasn’t gaining weight. Virginia would have done anything to get her daughter help. Soon they found out that the reason she wasn’t gaining weight was because Laura wasn’t getting the loving, stable, and nurturing relationship she should be getting. Virginia grew up in foster care where she didn’t get the loving relationship she should be giving to her daughter. Laura was diagnosed with "Failure to Thrive", which means that she did/does not grow and develop normally as compared to other children who are her same age. After Dr. Perry understood the situation that Laura and Virginia were in, he suggested that both Virginia and her daughter stayed with Mama P. who was a foster mom that was very nurturing. After living with Mama P. for a year she understood how to take care of Laura. Soon after Virginia had a son and was able to nurture him properly because of the help from Mama P.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that how nurturing and love can affect how you raise your child. Also, the effect it can have on a child. It was amazing how Virginia was able to learn and get help so that she could raise both her children to become happy and well adjusted.
I was also very surprised that a mother's nurturing of a child can affect the way the child grows. It's also interesting that Mama P. knew about this, but the doctors did not.
DeleteChapter 4 tells an incredible story that explains the importance of understanding the brain. A young girl is being medically cares for because she is significantly underweight. Four. years old she only weighs 26 lbs. she has been observed and many tests, invasive and noninvasive, have been taken to try to solve this medical phenomenon. She is put on a high calorie diet and nothing seems to make advances. Later they find that Laura's condition may be connected only to physical disease, but something involving the brain. As we know, much of the brain develops at a young age, and a child's ability to love starts at an extremely young age. Dr. Perry learned that Laura's mom, Virginia, grew up in multiple foster homes. This means she never learned how to love through physical stimulation, and all the necessary attention an infant needs. Laura suffered from "failure to thrive" meaning although Virginia loved her child, she did not feel compelled to respond naturally to her infant as normal mothers do. Dr. Perry suggested that they go live with a caregiver of a former client of his. Mama P. taught dr. Perry that no matter how old a child is, it's never to late to teach them how to love through physical contact.The mother and daughter agreed to live with Mama P. and lived there for a year. The conditions of their relationship advanced greatly along with Laura's medical condition. Within one month I living with Mama P.'s love and affection, Laura gained 10 pounds.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think Laura is like overall? do you think there was enough time to train her brain to be different and learn to be nurturing?
DeleteI find it interesting how much your brain is affected when you are younger. Infants need that compassion from there caregivers in order to thrive. When Laura was given that affection she had been missing out on she immediately gained weight. Parenting can be very difficult and it is not the right thing for everybody.
DeleteAt four years old and 26 pounds everyone could tell there was a serious problem with Laura. Even after being fed through a tube with a high calorie diet she was barely able to maintain her weight. Despite being seen by several specialized doctors and undergoing numerous tests nobody could find a cure for her stunned growth. They soon diagnose Laura with infantile anorexia. This condition is caused by the child wanted more attention from her parent or caregiver.
ReplyDeleteWhen Dr. Perry is asked to come in to try and help her he is given background information that helps him understand the situation in a different perspective. Laura's mother Virginia grew up in foster care and never had a stable relationship with any of the families she lived with. Virginia never stayed with the families for more then a couple months and did not grow up with the love and affection a normal infant receives. After going over this information, Dr. Perry suggest Virginia and Laura go live with Mama P. She is well known for taking care of abused and neglected children by giving them the affection they need.
I find it interesting that after living with Mama P for only a month Laura was able to gain 10 pounds. Mama P also taught Virginia the proper way to give love and affection to her daughter. What happened to Virginia as a child affected the way Laura was raised. Every child needs to feel the love from a caregiver in order to grow mentally and physically.
We take for granted how much love and touch help our brains develop and the right words and touch also make an impact.
DeleteIn Chapter 4, we encounter a child named Laura who suffers unintentional neglect at her mothers’ hands. Virginia, Laura’s mother, was raised as a ward of the state according to contemporary theories about child-rearing in the context of foster care – she spent her early years changing caretakers after the span of only a few months, never long enough to form deep attachment (Perry 86). This affected her long-term ability to form relationships and ultimately, to provide loving care for her own child. Laura, therefore, was raised without the affectionate, direct, mother-to-child contact that the majority of infants experience (87). At four years old, she weighs only 26 pounds, and a clinically administered high-calorie diet, as well as regular meals, is insufficient to even prevent weight loss (96).
ReplyDeleteDr. Perry, initially puzzled by Laura’s case, almost immediately suspects Virginia’s upbringing as a potential cause of her daughter’s condition. He draws an analogy to “runt syndrome,” commonly seen in mammalian species in which the mother gives birth to a large litter; the smallest is often physically neglected as a result of his small stature, which prevents weight gain and ultimately causes his death. For Laura, the physical neglect resulted in hormonal dysregulation (91) – her brain [pituitary gland] failed to secrete sufficient growth hormone, and thus Laura’s frail body could not absorb the nutrients it needed to grow. This syndrome is known as “failure to thrive” (92).
A key insight on human development that can be taken from the story of Virginia and Laura is the importance of human interaction early in our lives. It is clearly vital to our development, directly implicated in many aspects from our physiological growth to the beginnings of interpersonal relationships. While a maternal instinct cannot be taught, per se, it is clearly influenced by the context of our own infancies.
When Laura was four years old, she weighed only 26 pounds. Her mother, Virginia, never had permanent parents as a child. Because of this, she was never nurtured as a child. When she had a child of her own, she didn't know that she was supposed to nurture her child physically in order for the child to grow. Laura was correctly diagnosed with "failure to thrive". The problem was that the doctors didn't know how to properly deal with a child of Laura's background. They tried to get her to eat more calories, and when that didn't work, they even fed her though a tube to ensure she was getting the proper amount of calories. However, she still remained at 26 pounds. Dr. Perry suggested that they live with Mama P. for a while. Mama P. was a foster home mother who taught Dr. Perry that children need to be physically nurtured in order to grow. Virginia, willing to do anything to help Laura, agreed to go. Mama P. taught Virginia to nurture Laura, and after only one month, Laura gained 10 pounds. I think that mothers learn to nurture their children when they themselves are being nurtured by their own mothers. After that, it becomes instinct.
ReplyDeleteCan you learn instinct? Do you think it is learned or are we born with it?
DeleteChapter 4 is about this four year old little girl, Laura that is emotionally neglected by her mother Virginia. Doctors thought Laura was another case of "Failure to Thrive." Dr. Perry found out that Virginia didn't get the right emotional attachment because she was in a new foster home every six months, so she never got the right constant emotional attachment. Virginia knew how to be a mother but she didn't know how to give the emotional support she should have given to Laura. Once Dr. Perry found this out, he decided to send them to Mama P's house to live, so Virginia could learn how to give the right emotional attachment that every baby should get. I learned that the "motherly instinct" is taught not "programmed" into us, and that if you don't get that attachment in your early years of life, you either won't have it all together or you can learn it but it'll still be a foreign thing to you.
ReplyDeleteInstinct isn't taught. We have instinct in order to survive. Like for example, throughout our evolution, females have had to have been programmed to find things (most notably their offspring) as cute and attractive. If this weren't the case, they wouldn't feel obliged to care for and nurture their children. It's like when we find animals cute, we pick them up and play with them.
DeleteI agree that mothers have to be taught by their own mothers how to nurture their children. If it was instinct, Virginia would not have had a problem raising Laura.
DeleteLaura is a four year old girl that weighs just 26 pounds. She has gone through multiple test, diagnoses, surgeries, and even had part of her small intestine cut out for further examination. Nobody could figure out what was wrong with this poor toddler until one day, a psychologist suggested that it could be "infantile anorexia," something that has never been documented. Dr. Perry found this to be very unlikely. He went to go talk to Virginia, (Laura's mother) to see if anything abnormal could be from the mother. After talking with her and researching her past, Dr. Perry knew it had to do with what she had dealt with as a kid. Her biological mother was a drug-addict and her father was unknown. She was put in foster care early in childhood and never stayed in the same foster home for more that two months at a time. This was because the foster people did not want Virginia to become too attached to a certain caregiver. She was finally given to a foster family, and they wanted to adopt her and she wanted to be adopted, but due to legal reasons, she could not be adopted, so when she turned 18, the agency and state told the family to not have any further contact with Virginia. This hurt her severely. She had no one to look up to anymore, so she got quickly pregnant and the father left her. Virginia knew all the basics of parenting: feeding, clothing, bathing. All of the normal stuff that are just natural. However, she never knew how to nurture a baby or how to be affectionate towards one. This is why Laura has never grown past 26 pounds. The brain needs affection not just for happiness, but for development and growth as well.
ReplyDeleteBefore the meeting with Virginia, Dr. Perry met a lady name Mama P. She was a foster caregiver who had a lot of experience in the area. The first patient she brought in was a boy named Robert. He was a very kind child from a very tragic background. Her mother was a prostitute who abused and beat him. He also witnessed his mother's clients beating her also. He was taken from his home at an early age and put in foster care. He was a very kind kid and very polite, but he had random outbursts and rages that affected more than just him. The way to cool down his rages was that Mama P. held him and rocked him like a baby. Robert was 7, but he never got the affection he needed to develop as a regular child.
This is the same thing that happened to Laura. Not meaning Virginia is a prostitute, she is a good woman, she just doesn't know the correct way of raising a child. Dr. Perry called Mama P. and asked if she would be willing to house Virginia and Laura for some time so they can both learn what it means to be affectionate. She agreed happily. Virginia agreed also because she wanted the best for her daughter.
After the first month with Mama P, Laura gained 10 pounds and had a consistent 35% weight gain per month. Virginia also learned how to be nurturing to her daughter and how to raise a child correctly. This helped Virginia and Laura greatly, but they will always have the scars from their past childhoods. The brain is a very fragile creature, and needs to be treated with care and compassion, or it's not going to respond the way it is meant to.
What would be your predictions about Laura and Virginia??? What do you think they would be like today?
DeleteThey have a much stronger bond than they would have if they wouldn't have met Mama P., but they still have a rocky relationship due to their pasts.
DeleteIn chapter four we met Laura, a four year old girl who weighs only 26 pounds. The doctors can't figure out why Laura is unable to gain weight, until Dr. Perry looks into the past of Laura's mother, Virginia. He found that she was in the foster care system at a very young age and was moved around so much that she was never able to create a real emotional connection. Virginia's foster parents taught her that she should love her baby, but because Virginia was emotionally neglected at an early age she wasn't able to emotionally connect with her own child, and as a result her daughter Laura was emotionally neglected. It turned out that all Laura needed to grow was physical and emotional love. I found it interesting that emotional neglect at the very beginning years of life can have still have such a profound effect on a person so many years later, and I wonder if it effects all of Virginia's other relationships, such as friendships, as well?
ReplyDeleteI can't help but compare this story to the first story that we read and how Laura is lucky that she got helped just like Tina. There is so many people that suffer from neglect or abuse and never get the help they need which results in them not living a normal life.
DeleteIt is very interesting how early on caring or neglect can have a big impact on a person. It's amazing how we don't recall events from ages 1-4 but it is one of, if not the biggest emotional/physical impacting times of our lives and we can't even remember it.
DeleteIn this chapter a little girl named Laura is very malnourished and under her weight limit for her age. Many doctors think that Laura is anorexic but Dr. Perry thinks other wise. He believes that something is psychologically wrong with her. Laura's mother, Virginia, was raised in a foster home and around her first years of age she was passed from foster home to foster home. These years are crucial in development. After being passed around of awhile Virginia was put into a foster home until she was 18. The foster parents wanted to adopt her but the state wouldn't allow it so when she was 18 she was kicked out of the foster home. Shortly after she became pregnant with Laura and was put into a home for woman that were pregnant but unfortunately she was kicked out when Laura was born. This meant that Virginia and Laura were on their own and Virginia was by herself trying to figure out how to care for Laura. She knew the basics how to feed her and change her diaper but she didn't do things like sing to her and talk to her which is crucial in the first years of development. Because Virginia didn't nurture her Laura was unable to develop mentally and physically. Dr.Perry decided to put the mother and daughter into a foster home with a lady named Mama P. Mama P. helped Laura gain 10 pounds within the first month and taught Virginia how to care for her child more. Mama P. helped both of them. It's crazy how being emotionally neglected as an infant cane effect a person physically. It's also crazy how one person's view is so different from another person's in raising and nurturing a child
ReplyDeleteTo me this story proves that there is so much more to raising a child than just giving birth and providing food and shelter. It is so important to have a network of people that can help you because it is scary and the hardest job you will ever take on. A happy childhood can last forever and this story proves that a bad one can too.
DeleteI agree with Gena, there is so much more to raising a child than just the basic survival steps. Raising a child can be metaphorically represented as an intricate machine: all parts artfully contributing to the final outcome. If a child is missing even the tiniest contributing piece during childhood, the outcome will be slightly than "normal." Without each part contributing, in this case the motherly contact, the child's persona won't be comparative to what our society defines as normal.
DeleteLaura is an underweight four-year-old whom weighs only 26 pounds. Virginia, Laura’s mother, had grown up at a time that it was common for the child welfare system to move infants and toddlers to a new foster home every six months to avoid attachments (page 83). Little did they know, the first years of a child’s life are crucial to development and need to contain a nurturing and constant caregiver. Virginia had the best intentions towards Laura and in no way wanted to neglect her. Even though Virginia knew how to be a mother, since she did not receive a nurturing figure during her early years she did not form the chemical bonds needed to feel a natural connection to her daughter and to be able to naturally differentiate when Laura was sad, hunger, tired, etc. Mama P. had to teach Virginia how to pick up on little cues that Laura gave, rather than have already naturally acquired this ability.
ReplyDeleteWho knew that the solution to Laura’s weight problem was to feel nurtured and be held by her mother? This was the critical aspect she missed out on while developing, which is why being held and rocked was the key to her health. Normally when you see a mother rocking their eight-year-old child you’d believe that she was infantilizing them or stunting their growth. Mama P. discovered that you need not treat a child by their age but what they need, or what they may have missed during their “sensitive periods” of development (page 95).
The doctors at this time had been encouraging Virginia to ignore Laura during meal time because they believed that Laura’s malnourishment had been a form of “infantile anorexia” and it was a plea for attention from Laura. Another example regarding how inexperienced our medical system once was. Pediatric doctors need to be educated on the development of children in order to properly treat their patients. The extensive and numerous tests could have been avoided had one of the many doctors on the team designated to treat Laura picked up on how in the majority of cases regarding underdeveloped children the main cause is psychological or refers to the brain and its processes.
The doctors weren't necessarily uneducated. At the time, there most likely hadn't been many cases such as Laura's. Their first diagnosis actually made quite a bit of logical sense. Many cases of underdeveloped children are also due to birth defects and other physical problems, so it makes sense that they didn't think to examine her psychological well being.
DeleteComment from Erin D.
ReplyDeleteLaura is a four year old girl in this chapter who was experiencing a lack of physical touch and therefore motherly comfort. She was only twenty-six pounds at the age of four. (pg 81.) She did not get the necessary physical comfort
t from her mom due to the fact that her mom hadn’t been cared for in this way as a child as well.
This lack of touch impacted her growth immensely. She could not gain weight no matter how much food or nutrients were fed to her. Since she could not gain weight, she could not physically develop correctly.
The changes in the brain included the hormones that control growth were not able to be released into Laura’s body. They were not able to be released because physical touch is needed for them to be put into the body. Therefore, without touch, Laura did not get those hormones and did not grow like she needed to.
The first few attempts at diagnosis were “intestinal epilepsy” and “infantile anorexia” (pg 82). But those were incorrect and finally Dr. Perry discovered the correct diagnosis: “failure to thrive” (pg 88). The treatment was to have Laura’s mom start physically comforting Laura. And Dr. Perry had her learn how to do this by having her live with Mama P. for a year. Due to this, Laura was gaining weight and growing emotionally as well.
I found it interesting that so many things are passed down through generations. The actions we perform are a result of what we grew up with and remember. And therefore Laura was brought up in the way that her mom had been brought up: without much physical touch. (pg 83). Parents also demonstrate to their children what relationships are like, therefore setting them up to act certain ways in all the relationships they will have. So the relationships children have often mimic their parents’. (pg 89). I learned that “sensitive periods” are very critical in the fact that during that time, children either gain or lose skills. (pg 86). Therefore, it is so very important to be able to be a parent that can support and expose them to certain skills that will be necessary for their life. I also thought it was interesting that, without touch, Laura’s body treated food like “waste”. (pg 92). That is such a drastic word but is true. This “failure to thrive” syndrome is probably not very well known, but it should be, due to its effects. And the more and more children that are being put into foster care these days are susceptible to this syndrome. This is a serious and most likely overlooked syndrome.
I think women have a slight instinct on how to raise children but your whole heart has to be in it. I don't think anyone can prepare themselves enough to raise a child because you never know how things with actually turn out. We need love and affection to row and develop appropriately. Our brains demand affection all of our lives and it is essential that we receive it. Mother's nurturing is both an instinct and it needs to be taught. We learn by example and we tend to raise our own kids the way that we were raised.
ReplyDeleteI think you have a good point. In the story, it seemed like Virginia wanted to nurture Laura, but she didn't know how. All she needed was a push in the right direction from Mama P. to become a good and loving mother.
DeleteLaura is a four year girl who weighs an astonishing 26 pounds. She is thought to have the first ever case of infant anorexia. Dr. Perry thinks otherwise. He notices how distant the mother and child are and soon learns of the mother, Virginias past. She was in a terrible foster care system growing up, jumping from home to home frequently. When she finally was in a loving home with people who showed her compassion, she turned 18. The foster care system forbid contact between the home and Virginia. She had almost no stability and as a child she had no one to show her love, to hold her or be her typical mother most have. Virginia loved Laura as much as any other, she just was unsure how to show that to her. She knew the basics of caring for a child but not the emotional side. Dr. Perry thinks that living with a loving lady he knows named Mama P would help. Mama then shows Virginia how to talk to her baby and hold and rock her. They end up living with Mama for a year and Laura starts to gain weight only after a month.
ReplyDeleteTo add on this, I found it so interesting that a huge impact on our emotional and physical lives is from ages 1-4 which is a time no one can remember. It's amazing to me that so much can happen in that period of time, the most important time of our lives and we can't even remember what happened.
DeleteI think that's amazing that "failure to thrive" even exists outside of humans; that most likely every living animal on Earth needs the comforting love of a mother. Love, therefore, is a necessity for survival.
ReplyDeleteLaura is a four year old girl in this chapter who was experiencing a lack of physical touch and therefore motherly comfort. She was only twenty-six pounds at the age of four. (pg 81.) She did not get the necessary physical comfort
ReplyDeletefrom her mom due to the fact that her mom hadn’t been cared for in this way as a child as well.
This lack of touch impacted her growth immensely. She could not gain weight no matter how much food or nutrients were fed to her. Since she could not gain weight, she could not physically develop correctly.
The changes in the brain included the hormones that control growth were not able to be released into Laura’s body. They were not able to be released because physical touch is needed for them to be put into the body. Therefore, without touch, Laura did not get those hormones and did not grow like she needed to.
The first few attempts at diagnosis were “intestinal epilepsy” and “infantile anorexia” (pg 82). But those were incorrect and finally Dr. Perry discovered the correct diagnosis: “failure to thrive” (pg 88). The treatment was to have Laura’s mom start physically comforting Laura. And Dr. Perry had her learn how to do this by having her live with Mama P. for a year. Due to this, Laura was gaining weight and growing emotionally as well.
I found it interesting that so many things are passed down through generations. The actions we perform are a result of what we grew up with and remember. And therefore Laura was brought up in the way that her mom had been brought up: without much physical touch. (pg 83). Parents also demonstrate to their children what relationships are like, therefore setting them up to act certain ways in all the relationships they will have. So the relationships children have often mimic their parents’. (pg 89). I learned that “sensitive periods” are very critical in the fact that during that time, children either gain or lose skills. (pg 86). Therefore, it is so very important to be able to be a parent that can support and expose them to certain skills that will be necessary for their life. I also thought it was interesting that, without touch, Laura’s body treated food like “waste”. (pg 92). That is such a drastic word but is true. This “failure to thrive” syndrome is probably not very well known, but it should be, due to its effects. And the more and more children that are being put into foster care these days are susceptible to this syndrome. This is a serious and most likely overlooked syndrome.
I agree that it is probably an overlooked syndrome, in fact, I had never heard of it until I read about it in this book. Its sad how many cases of this syndrome probably go unnoticed.
DeleteLaura is a young 4 year old girl who is suffering from what doctors believe to be the first ever case of "infantile anorexia". She does not seem to be growing or making any progress physically despite being fed by a feeding tube for weeks. Dr. Perry is skeptical, however, and decides to look around her mother's past. Virginia, Laura's mother, was a child of foster care. She often switched foster homes around every 6 months, and because of this never developed a motherly bond with any of her foster mothers. When Virginia herself became a mother, she did not know how to act or form a bond wither her child. Laura ended up suffering because of this. Dr. Perry then knew Laura's correct diagnoses, "Failure to Thrive". With this new information at hand, Dr. P has Mama P move in with Virginia to teach her how to correctly form a bond with Laura. Laura improved dramatically, gaining weight within just a month.
ReplyDeleteI found this chapter interesting because "Failure to Thrive" is a syndrome I had never heard of before. I knew that if failing to form an emotional bond with your child would definitely hinder them emotionally, but never thought it could do so much damage to them physically.
The foster care system especially when at such a young age should be able to let children stay with one family for long periods of time in order to insure the child is comfortable and shown love. "Failure to thrive" with Humans can be 100% preventable if only everyone knew the seriousness of how fragile children's minds are when they are so young.
ReplyDeleteLaura a 4 year old girl weighing only 26 pounds has been in countless treatments to try to discover what it is with her body that is not allowing her to gain weight. The doctors at the hospital diagnose her with what the believe is the first ever case of "Infantile anorexia".(pg. 82)
ReplyDeleteDr. Perry is contacted with the case when the hospital can still not find any medical attention that will help this poor suffering girl. He finds the case interesting if anything and like most childcare cases first evaluates the people closest to her in this case the only one being her mother Victoria. Victoria was in and out of different foster homes as she grew up never really spending more than six months with one family. With such lack of love from an adult or really anyone Victoria never really learned the well needed skill of how to long another person.
Dr.Perry discovers that the real meaning behind all of the problems is that Victoria shows a lack of physical love towards her child and doesn't have the motherly connection that most mothers automatically have because she was never mothered by her own. This physical love at such a young age is the most important thing for a child to have.
Dr.Perry then diagnoses Laura with the correct diagnoses of "Failure to thrive", with the correct diagnoses he is able to give her the correct treatment in which she needs. Laura needs the physical love from her mother, so they are bothe sent to live with mama P. where Victoria learns what it means to be a mother and to show her love for her daughter. With in a month Laura gains 10 pounds and continues to become a healthy young girl.
The concept of "Failure to thrive" and the relation it has with humans and animals really interests me. With animals the runt in the litter often dies and I had always thought that it was because they were born with something physically wrong with them. The fact that this can also happen with humans is astonishing and brings out the true meaning of love. Love is often thought of as just a word but with this is shown to be so much more powerful then the feeling itself.