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Living in Shadows: The Innocent Victims of Meth

NCJ Number
227647
Date Published
2008
Length
0 pages
Annotation
Based on the sharing of personal experiences by children whose parents have been addicted to methamphetamine, as well as parents and stepparents who have been meth users, this DVD focuses on how the children of meth users are adversely affected by their parents' addiction.
Abstract
The adverse experiences of children whose parents use meth pertain to neglect, violence, difficulties at school, and having to assume responsibilities in the home that drug-using parents are unable or unwilling to assume. The neglect mentioned by the children includes both emotional and physical neglect. The physical neglect involves inadequate or no housing, and little or no food. Emotional neglect pertains to the parents' selfish obsession with meth. A stepfather, who had been addicted to meth commented that his desire for meth overwhelmed any desire to be a good parent. In addition to neglect, the children of meth-addicted parents also experienced violence in the home through being direct victims of parental physical abuse or being exposed to violence between parents. Schoolwork suffered because of the children's preoccupation with problems at home or an inability to develop positive relationships with schoolmates. Another common circumstance mentioned by both the children and their parents is older children becoming parents for their younger siblings, filling the vacuum created by parents who are not properly caring for the children. In addition to exposing the adverse impact of parental drug use on children, the DVD also presents the comments of parents and children regarding how life has changed for the better since the parents received drug treatment and have committed themselves to abstinence.