Childhood trauma creates a cycle that leads to kids being removed from their homes

AZStarnet.com reporter Patricia Machelor did a great overview of the cycle of trauma at the root of Arizona's foster care crisis. 

Whatever the reason for the trauma, its effects are insidious and difficult to address — and they can last a lifetime, even spanning generations. Children raised in dysfunction often grow up and raise their own kids in similar households, making trauma a key reason for Arizona’s recent spike in children’s removal from their families. Arizona ranks first nationwide for the number of children in out-of-home care, with 15,300 removed by Child Protective Services statewide and 5,000 in Pima County....

Arizona was deemed the nation’s worst place to be a child after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently completed its largest study on trauma.

Using data from the Centers’ Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACE, study, the National Survey of Children’s Health found last year that 44.4 percent of Arizona’s children ages 12-18, and 31.1 percent of all children 18 and younger, have experienced two or more traumatic childhood events. The national average was 22.6 percent.

http://azstarnet.com/special-section/fostercare/childhood-trauma-creates-a-cycle-that-leads-to-kids-being/article_63dc62c2-8579-5e08-8ec9-e18270f1f2e4.html