Psychological Support for Children with Intellectual Disorders in War Conditions

Abstract

The article reveals the problems of psychological support for children with intellectual disabilities in wartime. As children with intellectual disabilities are one of the most difficult categories of children with special educational needs due to their difficulties in communication, behavior, sensorimotor functioning, environmental orientation, social adaptation and socialization, they become the most vulnerable and need maximum assistance in crisis situations.

The empirical research was carried out using the following methods: a conversation was conducted with parents / guardians of children with intellectual disabilities to determine the traumatic events that children experienced during the war, then used a questionnaire "General reactions of children after the war / war events" and the diagnosis of stress disorders in children was carried out with the help of Luscher's abbreviated method of color choices, as well as the projective drawing technique "What scary dreams I have  and what I am afraid of during the day". The study involved 26 parents (legal representatives) and 26 children aged 7 to 15 years with intellectual disabilities. Respondents included both local families and internally displaced persons.

According to the results of the parents' survey, it was established that virtually all respondent children witnessed and participated in certain traumatic events related to hostilities in our country: children remained in shelters for a long time during air alarms and shelling, experienced severe hunger and cold. , felt the fear of their own death, etc. According to the parents, they noted in their children problems with memory, thinking, concentration, social services, frequent mood swings. In fact, the diagnosis of children with intellectual disabilities also revealed high levels of stress disorders and unfavorable emotional states. The article also offers recommendations and areas of psychological support and assistance to children with intellectual disabilities in wartime.