By Lashaunda Lucas PhD, MSW, LCSW
The journey for youth in foster care may include experiences marked by challenges and adversities that can leave imprints on their mental well-being. These not only include reasons for coming into care (abuse, neglect, and dependency), but might also include experiences while in care such as involvement with child welfare, reduced familial connections, and experiencing multiple placements. These experiences may lead to the onset of post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression, abandonment, rejection, and challenges with self-esteem. This could lead youth to develop a negative sense of self, plagued by invisible scars, wounds, and a brokenness that inhibits successful outcomes. However, when caregivers and professionals engage in mental health awareness and support youth through a culturally responsive lens, they can empower youth to change their narrative to one of resilience and strength.
It is imperative for anyone who supports youth in care to understand that their adverse experiences can create what I call “Beauty Marks.” Beauty Marks are the evidence of resiliency and strength. They reveal the beauty in the human experience: that we bend, but don’t break. This concept does not subscribe to the narrative that negative life experiences inevitably leave us with scars or wounds. It is possible that they leave us with Beauty Marks. Beauty Marks are the attributes that help shape our identities and forge paths towards healing and empowerment. Caregivers and professionals can support the development of Beauty Marks by offering support in navigating adversity, embracing mental health awareness, building supportive communities, cultivating self-compassion, and empowering youth’s voices.
Youth in care face several adversities, from the trauma of separation from their families to the instability of shifting placements. These challenges can significantly impact their mental health. Often, we misunderstand the capacity youth have to employ coping skills when facing challenges. It can be easy to become frustrated or discouraged when youth struggle to overcome.
However, when caregivers and professionals are aware of mental health challenges that impact a youth’s ability to navigate adversity (anxiety, helplessness, hopelessness, depression, etc.) and support youth through these challenges, they learn strategies and skills to navigate adversity throughout multiple domains of their lives. With support, what was previously perceived as hardships for youth, can now become areas of perseverance and strength. Navigating adversity can be taught through:
- Dialogue: Talk to youth about what it feels like to face adversity and how they perceive overcoming that adversity. Offer validation and empathy. Engage in these conversations often, including processing after facing adversities.
- Modeling: Use opportunities in your life to model how to navigate adversity. When you are experiencing a hardship, consider how you speak about it and the coping skills you employ.
- Coaching: Navigate adversity with the youth. Journey with them! Process each moment to gain an understanding of the youth’s challenges, offer praise and validation, and offer support and guidance along the way.
- Beauty Marks gained through this experience: Resiliency, determination, perseverance, strength, and hope.
Embracing mental health awareness for youth in care is vital to improving outcomes of mental and emotional well-being. By fostering an understanding of their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors, youth can develop the tools necessary to cope with the challenges they face. Mental health awareness empowers youth to recognize when they need support, whether it be through therapy, counseling, or peer networks, and to advocate for their own well-being. Similarly, to understanding cultural practices, mental health awareness should be a natural part of our thought process and conversation with youth in care. Caregivers and professionals should maintain an active role in continuously working to gain an understanding of mental health challenges as well as culturally responsive methods to promote socio-emotional well-being for youth. Embracing mental health awareness can be demonstrated by:
- Normalizing conversations about diagnoses, interpersonal difficulties (low-self-esteem, low self-worth, etc.).
- Encouraging culturally responsive information gathering on mental health and interpersonal development.
- Offering safe spaces, such as therapy, counseling, and support groups for youth to discuss mental health challenges
- Beauty Marks gained through this experience: high self-worth, high self-esteem, emotional intelligence, and validation.
At the heart of resilience lies the power of community. For youth in care, building supportive relationships with caregivers, mentors, and peers can be a lifeline during times of struggle. These relationships provide a sense of belonging and validation, offering a safe space for youth to express themselves authentically and receive the support they need to thrive. When considering supportive communities, it is important to incorporate how the youth perceives support and who the youth consider supportive. This may mean that consideration for culture, identity, perspective, and relationship are determining factors for who becomes a part of the youth’s supportive community. Supportive communities should foster inclusive and nurturing environments where resilience can flourish. Building supportive communities includes:
- Considering who the youth perceive as supportive.
- Ensuring the community fosters inclusivity and nurturance to promote psychological safety.
- Creating communities that are youth centered to allow for engagement and the
development of social skills.
- Beauty Marks gained through this experience: trust, healthy boundaries, relationship building, giving and receiving support.
In the journey towards resilience, self-compassion is necessary. Youth in care often grapple with feelings of shame, guilt, and self-doubt stemming from their past experiences. Cultivating self-compassion allows youth to embrace their imperfections and recognize their self-worth. Through self-compassion, youth can learn to treat themselves with kindness and understanding. When youth begin to understand themselves and their behavior, they can gain a deeper level of compassion for themselves. This can prevent patterns of self-harm and self-sabotage that often result from mental health challenges due to shame and guilt. Self-compassion promotes empathy which allows the youth an explanation for their behavior but also a healthy level of accountability that does not excuse the behavior. Cultivating self-compassion includes:
- Offering empathy and understanding during hardships, conflict, or challenges.
- Responding with kindness and forgiveness.
- Offering opportunities for introspection and self-reflection.
- Beauty Marks gained through this experience: self-awareness, empathy, reflection and introspection, self-love, and self-acceptance.
The power of resilience and mental health awareness does not only impact personal growth but also an increase in advocacy skills. Empowering youth in care to advocate for themselves as well as for systemic change amplifies their voices and creates meaningful impact. When youth are encouraged to share their thoughts and insights concerning mental health challenges, their needs then become central to the development of well-being outcomes. Their voices become established as vital sources of knowledge by caregivers and professionals who support them. By centering the voices of youth in care in conversations surrounding mental health and child welfare, we dismantle stigma, challenge inequities, and pave the way for a more inclusive and supportive system. Empowering the youth’s voice includes:
- Creating opportunities for youth to share insights on mental health challenges and supportive methods.
- Encouraging youth to share their thoughts, even if they are not congruent with yours.
- Ensuring the youth’s voice is represented in Child and Family Team Meetings, Permanency Planning Review Meetings, Team Decision Making meetings, and goal planning.
- Beauty Marks gained through this experience include: empowerment, advocacy, confidence, and courage.
In conclusion, youth in foster care often experience challenges that impact their social, mental, and emotional health. The power of resilience and mental health awareness can mitigate the scars of adversity and allow Beauty Marks to emerge shaping the identities and narratives of youth as they navigate the complexities of their experiences. By fostering resilience and promoting mental health awareness, we unlock the boundless potential within youth in care, affirming their self-worth, and igniting pathways towards healing, empowerment, and fulfillment.
Lashaunda Lucas PhD, MSW, LCSW has served as counselor for youth and families involved with the Department of Juvenile Justice, persons with mental health diagnoses, and as a supervisor in Foster Care, Adoption, and In-home services. Dr. Lucas is the Founder and CEO of Beauty Marks Counseling & Consulting LLC, where she counsels, educates, and supports others in personal and professional endeavors with a focus on interpersonal development. To learn more visit: https://www.drlashaundalucas.com/
