Invisible Wounds of War

Children need to feel safe, loved, and to have their basic needs met in order to be healthy. In the chaos of war, the cornerstones of a child’s well-being are often uprooted entirely. Living with the stress of bombardments, airstrikes, and gunfire causes great fear and uncertainty. Furthermore, any potential separation from their families or caretakers causes grief and exasperates the feeling of insecurity. Even when the child manages to survive the devastation of war, they are left with trauma and toxic stress that can have an adverse effect on their brain development and their overall sense of well-being.

A new analysis by Save the Children estimates that approximately 24 million children are living with high levels of stress and potential mental disorders. Another 7 million children are living with severe mental health disorders. Yet, mental health and psychosocial support services only accounted for 0.14% of global development aid funding between 2015-2017. To avoid a mental health epidemic, the international community must systematically step up the support allocated towards children’s psychological recovery. Learn more within the report below.

As we enter our 100th year, we re-commit ourselves to our founding mission: to hold ourselves, as well as others, to protect children in conflict. The time to act is now.