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Comparing this with 1945, I find that there has been
an increase in enuresis cases, and this is very probably
due to such environmental causes as the housing problem,
and the return of fathers from abroad (often strangers
to their children who have either never seen them or who
were too young to remember them). In the latter case,
the matter can generally be dealt with very satisfactorily
and parents are as a rule very glad to be able to discuss
the difficulties and strangeness of these longed for—but
often unexpectedly difficult—family reunions. The
housing problem presents something rather more difficult
to tackle. However, one has at any rate been able to
help the mother cope with the worries of overcrowding,
and to give her some practical advice on how to counteract
as far as possible the harm which this situation may
have on a normal, lively, healthy child.
The mothers have been extremely co-operative and
have shown a lively interest in their children's mental
development, and an enthusiasm to learn; and the results
have been gratifying. In a very few cases some playtherapy
was necessary, but the great majority of mothers
have finally been able to handle their children's problems
without the children having to have any treatment whatsoever.
The number of interviews with each mother
naturally varies very considerably; some mothers will
only need three or four visits before their own anxieties
(the usual cause of the child's emotional disturbance)
begin to be relieved and, as a consequence, she is able to
cope ably with her child's difficulties. Other mothers,
however, may need regular visits for some months. This
depends entirely on the psychological make-up of the
mother. For example, the more obsessional type of
mother, though often the most intelligent, may be the
most difficult to help.
To my mind, one of the most important things about
this work is that it is prophylactic. I think that by
tackling these behaviour problems in their early stages
while the children are under five, we are preventing, in a