INFANTS: Tend to be irritable; have difficulty
sleeping; become ill; frequently suffer from diarrhea.
PRESCHOOL: Somatic (physical) complaints; regress
to earlier stages of development; irritable; fearful of being alone; reluctant to leave their mothers; fairly open about the
family violence; are sympathetic to mother's plight.
ELEMENTARY AGE: Vacillate between being
eager to please adults and make new friends, to being hostile and aggressive; verbal about home life;
CHILDREN 11 YEARS AND OLDER: Protective
of mother; guarded; secretive; often deny violence; may consider violence as a primary means to conflict resolution.
IN GENERAL: Somatic complaints---headaches,
stomach aches, diarrhea, ulcers, intestinal problems, asthma, enuresis.
Sleeping difficulties---insomnia, sleep walking,
bedwetting, nightmares. School related problems---eratic attendance, poor performance, distractibility, school phobia.
Other---excessive crying, estreme fear, withdrawal or extreme passivity and
dependency, aggressiveness and impulsivity, tantrums, anxiety, depression and self mutilation, confusion about feeling for
their parents (love/hate), may blame themselves for parents fighting.
This list is by no means complete nor will every child exhibit
all the listed behaviors.
