I get excited whenever I talk about ‘Infant Mental Health’. My colleague shared an article, and in it, the authors uncovered new findings.
We have been taught that the first 1000 days of life, from the time of conception until the child turns two years old is a window of opportunity for neurodevelopment. Thus, depending on the kind of experiences that an expectant mother or baby goes through, the impact on the baby’s brain could go either way; positive or negative.
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) would change the brain anatomy, alter the gene expression, affect the child’s overall developments and eventually, take a hit on their health and well-being as he or she moves across the lifespan.
Nothing new.
However, what is fascinating is that the findings in this article seemed to suggest that the absence of childhood adversities (ACEs) does not guarantee optimal child development and adult health and well-being. Instead, it is the presence of Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs) that has a more significant influence on it, even as it co-occurs with ACEs (Bethell et al., 2019).
There are several examples of PCEs, but having a ‘Secure Attachment’ between an adult and the child is by far the most important. When a child feels emotionally and physically safe, they learn to trust the adults around them; they feel safe to explore the world and know that they could fall back on them when the need arises. In short, ‘Secure attachment’ is knowing that someone has your back.
So what does all this information mean in layman’s term? Put simply; it doesn’t matter if your child is growing up in an environment that is free from adversities or not. What truly matters is that you continue to be that safe and secure figure for your child in good and in bad times and he or she will grow up, surmounting obstacles and flourish in life.
Reference: Bethell C, Jones J, Gombojav N, Linkenbach J, Sege R. Positive Childhood Experiences and Adult Mental and Relational Health in a Statewide Sample: Associations Across Adverse Childhood Experiences Levels. JAMA Pediatr. 2019;173(11):e193007. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2019.3007
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2749336