Chapter 11 — Current circumstances

Health

The following table provides an overview of the mental health status of the witnesses as described by them, either directly or indirectly, in the course of their hearings. Good mental health was less frequently reported than good physical health:

Mental health status	Males	%	Females	%	Total witnesses	%
Good	117	28	74	20	191	24
Reasonable	183	44	181	48	364	46
Poor	112	27	123	33	235	30
Unavailable	1	(0)	0	0	1	(0)
Total	413	(100)*	378	(100)*	791	100

One hundred and ninety one (191) witnesses (24%), 117 male and 74 female, described good mental health and well-being. These witnesses reported being reasonably happy and did not feel that their personal or social relationships were markedly affected by emotional or psychological difficulties. There was a notably larger proportion of male than female witnesses who reported good mental health, 28% compared with 20%.

Poor mental health was indicated by a constellation of current and debilitating mental health concerns including suicidal thoughts and attempts, depression, alcohol and substance abuse, eating disorders and treatments including psychiatric admission, medication and counselling. One witness gave the following description of the enduring effects of his childhood abuse; I used to sleep rough and I’d have to ask a garage “Can I clean your cars?” I tried to get back my dignity that I lost, I can’t get it back. They broke me, they did...the problem is still there when you wake up. I’m on tablets for the best part of my life, I’m in and out of hospitals, I took overdoses, I tried to hang myself. All the pressure builds up. I’m kinda seeing psychiatrists all my life. Doctor...named psychiatrist...is very good, I talk to her. Counselling was very disturbing for me. I couldn’t take any more of it ...I should not have been on medication all my life. There’s times I sat in my bedroom for 2 to 3 days without coming out.

Substance abuse was reported by 22 witnesses, 12 male and 10 female, who reported poor mental health and 10 other witnesses of this group, four male and six female, reported ongoing eating disorders.

Witnesses described as having reasonable mental health were differentiated from those who were described as having poor mental health by the degree to which they reported their lives to be currently affected by depression, alcohol and substance abuse. Many remarked that memories of past trauma were not easily forgotten and that they abused alcohol at times in their attempts to cope with painful memories and intrusive thoughts. A number of witnesses reported being assisted by mental health and other support services during stressful periods of their lives. Mental health indicators are shown in the following table:

Mental health indicators*	Reports by male witnesses	%	Reports by female witnesses	%	Total witness reports	%
Psychiatric admission	86	21	84	22	170	21
Suicidal thoughts & attempts	197	48	210	56	407	51
Counselling required	204	49	217	57	421	53
Alcohol abuse	217	53	90	24	307	39
Substance abuse	59	14	31	8	90	11

Alcohol abuse was reported to be a dominant feature in the lives of 307 witnesses (39%), 217 male and 90 female. One hundred and thirty eight (138) of those witnesses reported a history of alcohol abuse combined with suicidal thoughts and attempts. Of the 86 male witnesses who reported having been admitted to psychiatric hospitals for treatment, 63 also reported a history of alcohol abuse. There were 84 female witnesses who reported having been admitted to psychiatric hospitals for treatment, 35 of whom reported a history of alcohol abuse. By 17 or 18 I was an alcoholic. It ...(alcohol)... blocked it off for me, the orphanage ...(Industrial School).... I’ve had 5 operations on my arm and the doctors say it is muscle damage from the beatings, the one with a brush. I have 5 scars ...(scars on arm shown to Commissioners).... I have been in mental hospitals and tried to kill myself. The psychiatrist asked me what am I keeping in my head? I said “I can’t tell, you wouldn’t believe it”. You would be afraid to tell, the fear is still there. I am now in counselling and it took me an awful long time to say it ...(to describe abuse)..., a long time. • I went to England, I think I was about 34, not working, just drifting. I had a job on building sites but lost that through the drinking. I went to a lot of places for the drink, drying out, I’m still attending group therapy. I’m not working at all, I’m on disability because of health problems. I just drink away the day...The doctor says it has to do with what happened...(childhood abuse).

Substance abuse was a less common feature, with 90 witnesses (11%), 59 male and 31 female, reporting that either they were using or had used illegal substances or abused over-the-counter or prescription medication. Reports of substance abuse, both legal and illegal, were strongly associated with reports of alcohol abuse, in 47 instances for male witnesses and 22 instances among female witnesses.

Four hundred and seven (407) witnesses (51%) spoke about their own suicidal thoughts and/or attempts and the death by suicide of their friends and siblings. Forty three (43) of the 407 witnesses who reported a history of suicidal thoughts also reported having made one or more suicide attempts. ‘I tried to commit suicide a few times ... terrible depressed, no one knows about it.’ A further five witnesses, three male and two female, reported episodes of ongoing self-harm. One witness stated that 17 of the 39 co-residents in his class photograph had committed suicide over the years since they were discharged. Many others said they were prompted to speak to the Committee on behalf of a sibling or friend who had died by suicide and who shared the witnesses’ childhood experience of abuse in institutions.

Fifty one (51) witnesses, 29 male and 22 female, who gave evidence of abuse in Schools reported having disabilities that affected their overall health and impaired their functioning as follows: Thirty one (31) witnesses, 15 male and 16 female, were hearing impaired. Twelve (12) witnesses, seven male and five female, were physically impaired. Nine (9) witnesses, six male and three female, were visually impaired.

Many of the witnesses with impairments stated that their respective difficulties were the result of either illnesses or injuries in childhood that were neglected while residents in the Schools. Reported physical impairments included partial limb amputation, kidney damage and back injuries that, in one instance, necessitated the use of a wheelchair. Seven witnesses presented medical reports at their hearing that suggested their physical impairments were the result of childhood trauma. Other witnesses gave accounts of receiving medical treatments since they were discharged, including surgery, for conditions that they believed were associated with childhood abuse. I was an outcast because I couldn’t read or write, I couldn’t read because I couldn’t see the blackboard. I was always put back to the back of the class. I could never understand why they did not pick up that I had very bad sight. When I went to ...named city... I asked for my eyes to be tested I went to the eye and ear hospital... and the doctor said to me “where were you until now?” and I told him and he said “they have an awful lot to answer for”. • I have discovered ... from the files, from a year old the ear was weeping ... no treatment. I have a perforated eardrum. When I was an adult it started weeping. They brought me into hospital and they have tried to dry it up, they brought me down to theatre but the doctor said the wall is broken down and surgery could cause more damage. It is constantly at me. ... It drives me scatty ... things annoy me. I don’t know where that came from, whether it is from being slapped all the time.

Effects on adult life

Most witnesses reported life-long negative effects and damaging physical, psychological, and social consequences of childhood abuse in Schools. The legacy of alcohol abuse, depression, physical and verbal aggression, anger, lack of trust, and social isolation was evident in the accounts provided by many witnesses about their adult lives.

The negative effects reported are not mutually exclusive and were not prioritised by witnesses, who could report more than one effect. Table 53 lists the difficulties experienced by the 413 male and 378 female witnesses in their adult lives, in order of frequency reported.

Male witnesses	Female witnesses
Effects on adult life*	Number of reports	% of male witnesses	Effects on adult life*	Number of reports	% of female witnesses
Lack of trust	233	56	Lack of self-worth	250	66
Loner	224	54	Lack of trust	242	64
Alcohol abuse	213	52	Counselling required	217	57
Anger	207	50	Suicidal feelings or attempt	210	56
Counselling required	191	46	Abuse not easily forgotten	180	48
Lack of self-worth	157	38	Anxious and fearful	172	46
Abuse not easily forgotten	155	38	Feeling isolated	171	45
Depression	152	37	Loner	159	42
Suicidal feelings or attempt	151	37	Depression	140	37
Feeling isolated	145	35	Anger	136	36
Aggressive behaviour – Physical	126	31	Feeling different to others	135	36
Nightmares	121	29	Nightmares	121	32
Aggressive behaviour – Verbal	116	28	Tearfulness	120	32
Withdrawal	116	28	Withdrawal	118	31
Unable to show feelings to partner	107	26	Overprotective of children	117	31
Feeling different to others	102	25	Post-traumatic effect	116	31
Unable to settle	102	25	Sleep disturbance	101	27
Post-traumatic effect	93	23	Unable to show feelings to children	92	24
Sleep disturbance	84	20	Alcohol abuse	90	24
Unable to show feelings to children	83	20	Feelings related to being a victim	81	21
Feelings related to being a victim	75	18	Unable to show feelings to partner	75	20

The majority of witnesses reported multiple effects, as Table 53 indicates. A high percentage of both male (56%) and female (64%) witnesses reported being unable to trust others. There were some gender differences between the negative effects most frequently reported. For instance 50% or more male witnesses reported abusing alcohol, feeling angry, and being a loner. By contrast 56% or more female witnesses reported experiencing lack of self-worth and contemplating or attempting suicide and 24% reported abusing alcohol. In addition to the above-mentioned negative effects on their health and personality, 408 witnesses (52%) reported that they attended counselling either currently or in the past, and many commented on the beneficial effects they had experienced. A large number of these witnesses reported attending counselling through the National Counselling Service, which was established by the Government in 2000. The service was committed to working with adults who had been abused as children in Irish institutions. I won’t even go into the house some days. I was a right bastard ...(as a husband).... She’d ...(witness’s spouse)... find me facing the wall, she’d wake up in the morning and find me standing facing the wall ...crying.... It’s smashing to talk about it and the counselling is free. • I’ve had a stable life, but male pride stops me from saying I’m depressed. I get down, am a loner, don’t mix, have been on the drink in the past, but counselling has helped. • You can knock the walls down but can’t ease it from ...distressed.... I carried it in the pit of my stomach all my life.

Three hundred and twenty seven (327) witnesses (41%) gave evidence that the memories of the abuse they experienced remain with them to the present day. I wish I could get rid of all this, it’s in my head all the time. I used to have terrible nightmares, the only one I could see was this nun who used to hit me all the time. I did take an overdose, I did try to end my life. I was very confused. I never knew who I was. • He ...(Br X)... haunts me, I can smell him, I can see his gait ... not a week goes by, but I think of him. • The sexual abuse ... that’s irreversible. It’s the sexual behaviour that separates me from my family. I can’t work, I can’t go out, I’m nothing. Every day I want to kill myself. • I was not able to go to ...(children’s)... parent-teacher meeting because I didn’t feel I could talk ...crying.... I didn’t think I was able to speak like another ...(parent).... I wasn’t like another because of the way I was reared. I often cried when they were at school and he ...(husband)... at work.... I was afraid that if I told people, I was afraid I’d be locked up. I was afraid they would send me away. I always feel sad. • The other thing is, not being able to read and write was my downfall.... I didn’t tell my family until about 2 years ago. ... It can be very lonely ... even at Christmas time with my family there. I get lonely like remembering all the times I was on my own. I do have to go out for walks, I have to be on my own. • Thinking about it after I often wondered had we a right to complain, but we had no one to complain to. • Loss is the most significant word in my life. I lost my mother ... my childhood, my education and nothing will ever get them back.

Two hundred and nine (209) witnesses (26%) reported suffering from the effects of trauma and described themselves as constantly vigilant and anxious, having disrupted sleep and nightmares with little respite. I was going to take my own life, one of the other girls did, she took her own life. You are suspicious ... all the time, it’s always there, it will be there ’til the day I die.... You can’t put the clock back.... I’d like to have a childhood but I never knew what a childhood was.... That will be a nightmare ’til the day I die, I will bring that to the grave with me. • I hate anyone standing behind me, I still feel as if someone is going to go for me because I was beaten around the head a lot. • I was terrified with the beating I got. My ould mind went a bit that day I’d say. To me, I was never the same young fellow after that, I wasn’t the same young fella that went home. I wasn’t mental but when I went home I’d be looking under the bed and like that. I couldn’t be happy for years and years. I was squeamish and frightened everywhere I went.