The Importance Of Affection In Children With Disabilities
Affection in children with disabilities is essential for them to develop their qualities and grow in a healthy and balanced way. Therefore, in these cases, it is especially important to create a secure bond between parents and children, that is, it is necessary that families know how to respond to the special demands of these children, in such a way that they provide them with love, trust and safety.
The difficult situation of having a child with a disability
Disability, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), is a concept that encompasses:
- Deficiencies or alterations in bodily functioning.
- Limitations when carrying out activities, actions and tasks of daily life.
- Restrictions on social participation.
It can be said that disability is a phenomenon that influences the personal and social characteristics of people. Thus, it can be classified, according to the affected area, as:
- Cognitive.
- Sensory.
- Motorboat.
When a baby with a disability is born, the parents must go through a stage of mourning, in order to later be able to assume the situation and deal with worries, doubts, stress, difficulties, negative feelings, etc.
Therefore, the experience of these families becomes, especially at the beginning, complicated and complex, since, in addition to taking care of the basic needs of any child, they have to learn to:
- Understand the behaviors of the child with a disability.
- Respond appropriately to the child’s signals and demands.
Thus, the parents of these children must have sufficient sensitivity to adapt and establish a secure attachment relationship.
To achieve this, early intervention services are essential. These services have the function of intervening therapeutically with children from 0 to 6 years old, with developmental disorders or who are at risk of suffering from them.
Likewise, these services also have the objective of attending and covering the needs of the family and the environment of these children, so that children with disabilities grow up in a healthy and loving environment.
The importance of affection in children with disabilities
Creating a base of affection and security is important to the development of all children. But, especially, for those who have some type of disability, since, as a result, they are more vulnerable and need more help and care throughout their lives.
In these cases, the fact of not receiving affection from the family can have a negative impact on maturational development and adaptation to various contexts.
On the other hand, if a relationship based on trust and respect is established with one of the parents, this will help the child to grow in a balanced way on a cognitive, emotional and social level.
In fact, achieving it will be essential for the little one to have enough confidence to overcome all the limitations, barriers and problems that will arise over the years. In this way, secure attachment relationships can be a protective factor against the difficulties of children with disabilities.
In this sense, it must be taken into account that, to establish this link, time is required to know, understand and accept the child with a disability.
