Psychiatrist reveals the psychological toll of losing a parent in childhood – and how it can lead to problems in adulthood, such as substance abuse and poor relationships
It has been known for some time that grief exceeds the emotional toll and can cause physical health problems.
But what about the very specific grief caused by the loss of a parent in childhood?
Dr. Sohom Das is a forensic psychiatrist from London, who also shares mental health and other related content on YouTube.
In a recent video on his channel A Psych for Sore Minds, he addressed the topic of what can happen to children who lose a parent to death.
He said in his video that this type of sadness can lead to a range of negative emotions, including anxiety and depression.
About five percent of children lose a parent before they reach adulthood, according to psychiatrist Dr. Sohom Das (stock image)
The video is titled The Effect of Losing a Parent Before Parenthood and also includes statistics on how many children lose their parents.
“About five percent of young people lose a parent before they reach adulthood, which is actually surprisingly high, higher than I expected,” he said in the video.
The psychiatrist continued: ‘Early parental loss is associated with negative outcomes.
‘[These can include] tension, depressionprolonged grief response and negative effects on self-esteem and sense of self.”
The negative effects can last into adulthood, he explained.
Dr. Das said, “There is also an increased risk of suicide in the future and substance abuse.”
He explained that it can also affect relationships in the future.
According to Dr. Das in the video, “It can even affect the way a child approaches relationships with adults in terms of bonding and emotions.”
His video ties in with a March 2023 study in which researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden looked at grief.
According to Dr. Dang Wei, an epidemiologist at the Karolinska Institute who was involved in the study: ‘We found that individuals who lost a close relative (for example, a child, partner, parent, brother or sister) had a higher risk of atrial fibrillation, heart disease , myocardial infarction (heart attack), stroke and heart failure than those who had not lost a close relative.’
Likewise, he said parents who lose a child are at risk for many of the same negative health outcomes.
The scientists looked at data from the parents of more than 800,000 children born between 1973 and 2016 and concluded that grieving parents “could benefit from more support from family members and health professionals.”
Dr. Dang Wei said his simple conclusion is: ‘[A] broken heart breaks heart.’
Other conditions he listed included an increased risk of conditions from heart disease and cancer to memory problems, digestive problems and autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.
Dr. Sohom Das can be found at Tweet, InstagramAnd TikTokas well as YouTube.