Despite the growing public awareness of mental health, the impact of mental health conditions can be difficult to understand. One of these grey areas is the impact of parental mental illness on children, and the long-term effects for future generations. This article takes a closer look at the psychological impact of growing up with a parent experiencing mental health difficulties.
Key Takeaways
- The impact of parental mental illness on children often appears as a long-term increase in distress, rather than a single crisis.
- Research suggests that lived experience and prolonged exposure play a greater role than genetics in shaping future distress in children.
- Early awareness and access to support can reduce the long-term impacts into adulthood.
Mental health conditions can be equally crippling as they are baffling. If you’re living with someone who’s struggling with their mental health, you could find your own emotional stability being pulled from one extreme to the next. One moment you might be pulling your hair out at their behaviour, but the next you’re feeling guilty that you don’t have a miracle solution up your sleeve.
Why can’t I do more? Why aren’t they helping themselves? And why does nothing seem to work long-term?
Whether it’s you, or a loved one, there’s no denying that mental health conditions are a minefield. And unfortunately, they’re not exactly rare to come across either.
According to data released by the World Health Organisation, it is estimated that there are more than 1 billion people living with a mental health disorder around the globe. That leaves an average of one in seven people suffering, so the chances are you know of someone suffering themselves.
Mental health itself has become a buzzword itself in recent years, and rightfully so. With more research, and more awareness, those affected have more access to the support they need. Where once a mental health ‘issue’ would be ignored, or worse still frowned upon, there is a growing sense of urgency to fight back against the stigma that has left so many isolated inside their own minds.
But the fight back is still in its infancy, and many corners of the struggle remain untouched. One such corner, is the impact of one’s mental health on those around them. Particularly, the long-term impact of parental mental illness on their children, which is what we’ll take a closer look at here.
FAQ:
- What is the impact of parental mental illness on children?
- At what age does a parent’s mental illness have the biggest impact on the child?
- Do lived experiences or genetics impact children most significantly?
- Why do many children not realise the impact until adulthood?
- What support is available for children living with parental mental illness?
What is the impact of parental mental illness on children?
In the UK, 1 in 3 children has a parent who suffers from a mental health condition. This is a particularly distressing statistic, particularly when paired with the National Institute for Health and Care Research’s (NIHR) findings that children with a depressed parent are 3 to 4 times more likely to develop depression themselves than children of non-depressed parents.
From these statistics alone, it’s clear that the impact of parental mental illness on children can be severe, and more must be done to support those growing up in these environments. No, that doesn’t mean that the parent is incapable, or to be blamed. But, it is vital to minimise the feelings of isolation and emotional vulnerability adolescents experience during such a formative period.
The NIHR’s findings show that mental disorders can have compounding impacts on families, and consequently society itself. Of course, it is important to remember that the term ‘mental health disorder’ covers a broad range of conditions, and the impact of each on a child is incredibly difficult to compare. Whilst the data is revealing, with a topic so purely emotional like mental health, no two examples are precisely the same.
Across the Atlantic in the US, a study published by Health Affairs took a deeper dive into the topic. The main focus of the study wasn’t just the experience of one generation; it also looked at children living with a parent who had adverse childhood experiences (ACE) themselves.
But what is an ACE?
An ACE is a traumatic event one experiences between the age of 0 and 17 that significantly impacts health. Examples of an ACE include, but are not limited to:
- Physical abuse
- Sexual abuse
- Mental illness
- Emotional abuse
- Neglect
That mental illness itself is recognised as an ACE is especially important, as it reinforces the possibility that a mental health disorder can create a vicious cycle within a family across generations. In other words, intergenerational mental ill health. The study also found that in families with at least one adult with four or more ACEs, the risk of a child with a mental health condition was higher.
When does a parent’s mental illness have the biggest impact on the child?
It is no surprise that more severe cases of parental mental health problems, and longer exposure, typically corresponds to greater distress for the child in adulthood. And should both of the parents experience mental disorders, the severity of the distress increases further. Whether it’s one parent with a multitude of struggles, or both parents struggling in silence, each added complexity increases the potential for emotional scarring for the child.
According to Christina Kamis, children exposed to paternal health problems saw distress levels barely decline with age. Flip the script, and those who did not experience parental mental illness typically saw distress decrease with age.
The previous section explored how an increase in the number of parental ACE’s increased the likelihood of the child suffering from a mental health condition. Similarly, the more challenges a parent faces at once, whether it is depression, divorce, financial difficulties, or substance misuse, the more difficult it is for the parent to provide for the child. This in turn amplifies the possibility of isolation and neglect for the child, making their upbringing progressively more and more volatile.
In less severe cases of mental disorders, parents are often able to manage their condition and minimise its impact on their children. Parents that are open, and able, to access support, can further decrease the impact of their condition on their families.
But, the ease of access, or even the willingness to do so, is often not such a straightforward possibility.
Do lived experiences or genetics impact children most significantly?
Given children living with parents experiencing a mental health condition are 3-4 times more likely to suffer themselves, it is vital to understand whether this is caused by nature or nurture.
And whilst the answer is not certain, Kamis’ research suggests that ‘nurture,’ or rather the lived experiences, are highly influential. Why? Because their work revealed that children with non-biological parents also showed elevated adult distress, after living with a carer enduring a mental disorder.
The emotional burden this environment can place on a child should not be underestimated. Parental mental health problems can function as a chronic childhood stress through disengagement, a lack of emotional availability, and increased family dysfunction. The combination of these elements creates an emotionally insecure foundation for the child, during a developmental period that shapes both their present and future.
Why do many children not realise the impact until adulthood?
I have previously alluded to Kamis’ finding that those who are exposed to this childhood stressor remain at a consistently higher level of distress compared to their non-exposed counterparts, and this gap is stable across adulthood. But this does not explain why the impact is gradual, rather than instant.
The answer lies in the belief that the impact appears as a stable elevation in distress, as opposed to a dramatic crisis.
It is less like a sudden collapse and more like slow erosion: small fissures forming in a rock face, widened imperceptibly by years of wind and weather. Nothing looks catastrophic in the moment, yet the structure is steadily weakened. By the time the child reaches adulthood, they enter with a higher baseline of distress already built in.
Due to this gradual, compounding nature, many individuals do not recognise their distress as a consequence of their childhood experiences until later reflection.
What support is available for children living with parental mental illness?
Support is out there for those living with a loved one impacted by a mental health condition. The question is whether there is enough?
Charities such as Mind, Shout, and Place2Be, offer a wide range of opportunities for children in the UK to explore their mental wellbeing. Their work is vital to the fight against mental health, and they play a crucial role in supporting countless families up and down the country. In the US, the same can be said for the outstanding work of the likes of Mental Health America, Child Mind Institute, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
But in the specific context of support for children growing up within an environment of parental mental illness, the support on offer suddenly grows thin. In the UK, Our Time Charity play a crucial role in breaking the cycle of intergenerational mental ill health by working directly with children often acting as carers themselves.
A quick look at their homepage tells you in the UK, there is still no dedicated national support for children living in these environments. So whilst they can support all those who access their services, more must be done on a national scale to minimise the impact of parental mental illness on their children.
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