INSTITUTIONALIZED CHILD CARE IN URBAN SOUTH AFRICA

them who could be on a similar trajectory. While the center also saw some children who
would move in later in life, and then move out only a year or two later, the children who
spent the majority of their upbringings there experienced more normalization of their new
setting. Buzwe had gone through different stages of development and experienced major
life events. These included an ear operation, placement into a special education school,
and the treatment of his anxiety and depression. He also experienced recent physical
growth, with many of the long-time staff members still adjusting to his recently acquired
bulky upper body. Rugby was his newfound interest and he spent much of his spare time
staying in shape for the sport. My observations of Buzwe raised a new question: after the
process of transitioning into the center has taken place and a child has gotten settled, what
next? What are the upcoming challenges that children must deal with while growing up
within an institution?
Further psychological processing
“Many times we have to process through the same event several different times in
different ways while growing up,” commented Xolani. “You might not have thought
about your mother’s death for four, five years, then all of a sudden, you remember it, but
you’re a teenager now, and have to deal with the reality of becoming an adult yourself
without somebody to help you get there.” For many of the children, psychological
challenges persisted throughout childhood and the teenage years. Although the majority
of the interventions coordinated by Nancy were targeted towards younger children, she
made sure that each of the kids were individually screened and evaluated. About half of
the teenagers manifested some form of reported anxiety, depression, or low self esteem.
106