As war in Syria continues, children’s lives are also being changed in a way no child should have to experience. Save the Children reported, At least six children and teens — the youngest a 12-year-old girl — and seven young adults have attempted suicide in the past two months. These increasing numbers are a major sign of psychological damage that Syrian children are undergoing. A teacher in Madaya, a town in Syria heavily affected by the war, is trying to raise these children’s spirits up by using art therapy. In a common elementary classroom, you would most expect drawings of animals and rainbows, but not for the children of Syria. Since they have such psychological trauma from people dying and being pulled out of rubble, this is highly reflective in their work of art. Some examples range from paintings of guns being shot at civilians, buildings being blown up, and what they call “death boats”, carrying no passengers. These death boats has been the name to boats carrying people escaping Syria who have drowned. The Syrian teacher noted the irony of this situation by how normally, children are very shielded from what is going on in the world, but not these kids. They are in the midst of all this war and have been very exposed to the worst parts of it.

Clearly, the results have been absolutely detrimental. War has taken a huge toll on individuals, especially children, through psychological means. This has led to them attempting suicide at such a young age. Such horror isn’t normal for people to experience at such a young age. However, the circumstances they are in are not normal. You don’t normally see children pulled out of rubble and many not making it out alive. You don’t normally see tanks wiping out towns. Because of the series of abnormal events, these children are forced to cope with the unthinkable, which have led them to take most extreme measures.