International reporting
War in Ukraine: exiled children psychologically affected
Audio 02:40
Yevgenia and her daughter took two days to reach the Slovakian border from kyiv.
© RFI/Alexis Bédu
By: Alexis Bedu Follow
3 mins
Fighting and exile are sources of trauma and anguish for Ukrainian refugee children in other countries.
About 300,000 people who fled the war passed through Slovakia, a country neighboring Ukraine.
At the border, the associations and the State have provided the means to provide psychological assistance to the families.
Between loss of bearings and guilt, children are particularly affected.
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From our special correspondent in Michalovce,
In Vyšné Nemecké, the border crossing is done on foot.
Yevgenia is dragging a wheeled luggage.
With her 14-year-old daughter, Alessia, they took two days from kyiv to finally leave the country.
Although they are safe now, Yevgenia is very worried about the future.
When you run away from death, you don't forget like that, she says.
“
My daughter talks to me, she tells her fears.
She's worried.
The rocket fell in the house right next to ours… Since then, we haven't slept a single night.
Alessia keeps saying the next rocket will be for our house.
»
►Also read: War in Ukraine, 1.4 million children have fled since the start of the Russian offensive
Psychological distress
As soon as they arrive in Slovakia, the refugees are looked after by humanitarian associations.
One of the first tents after going through customs is occupied by Doctor Marek Madro, psychologist for the Red Cross.
“
I've been here since the beginning of the conflict and really, the mental state of the children who arrive is deteriorating
,” warns Marek Madro.
“
Ukrainian mothers often collapse as soon as they take their first steps on Slovak territory.
They thought they had hidden their feelings well, but the children feel all their anxieties.
»
Marek Madro is a psychologist for the Red Cross, he supports exiles upon their arrival in Vyšné Nemecké.
© RFI/Alexis Bédu
Alona, mother of three young children, explains that these little ones see this exile as a journey, which they do not realize.
She thinks they accept the situation as it is.
For them, it's just an adventure, says this young Ukrainian mother.
But according to psychologist Marek Madro, it is a mistake to think that: “
It is obvious that children are like sponges.
They absorb all the anxiety from their parents.
They don't want to hurt them or weaken them so they pretend to be fine when they are in a lot of pain.
»
A schooling program for exiled children
Tamarka and Vicky are the new classmates of Diana, a six-year-old Ukrainian girl who has just spent her first days at school in Slovakia.
A schooling program for exiled children has been set up by the government.
For Macha, Diana's mother, it is a relief: “
She is in the first year of primary school, so of course it was very important that she resume as soon as possible.
And it's quite magical how languages impregnate children… In two weeks, she already speaks a little Slovak.
»
Another student from Ukraine will join Diana this week in her class.
A joy for her.
Even if her friends from Dnipro, her hometown and her father who remained in combat, she misses her a lot.
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