Consequences of an Abusive System and Possibilities of Breaking the Cycle.

The totalitarian system in Romania survived for 45 years through generalized and repeated cycles of physical and mental abuse directed towards the population as a whole. Today's parents show all the signs of abuse, from denial, minimizing, rationalizing and selective memory to anger, fear and shame. They are also experiencing the aftereffects of abuse, such as suspicion, resentment, hopelessness, low self-esteem and the tendency to continue the abusive cycle, The parents and educators, who represent the essential part of a child's small universe and who should be able to shelter them from the effects of economic depression and lack of certitude and security which characterize the transition period, have all been victims of abuse. The abusive cycle is difficult to break, because one of the ways of survival and self-protection during the past communist regime was acceptance, compliance and lack of change. The paper presents some of the positive steps which could break the abusive cycle, such as: confession, physical and mental separation from the past, designating the guilty and a positive attitude towards oneself and towards society. These steps could help the adult to handle more easily the sad realities of the transition period and to reduce the impact of its unhealthy climate on children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]