US watchdog: Separated migrant children suffer trauma

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) - Migrant children who were separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border by the Trump administration suffered increased post-traumatic stress and trauma, a government watchdog report said Wednesday.

Separated children exhibited more fear, feelings of abandonment and post-traumatic stress than children who were not separated, according to the report by the Inspector General’s Office of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Children "experienced heightened feelings of anxiety and loss as a result of their unexpected separation from their parents after their arrival,” the report said.

It is the first of its kind study to reveal how family separation under the Trump administration’s "zero tolerance" policy has impacted the mental health of children.

Children who believed their parents abandoned them were angry and confused. "Other
children expressed feelings of fear or guilt and became concerned for their parents’ welfare," said the report.

One medical director said physical symptoms separated children felt are manifestations of their psychological pain and they made statements such as “my chest hurts,” “Every heartbeat hurts,” or “I can’t feel my heart.”

The report relied on discussions with about 100 mental health clinicians who had regular
interaction with children and medical coordinators across 45 facilities during August and September of 2018.

The facilities are operated by the Office for Refugee Resettlement (ORR), a division of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.