Trauma
What Is a Traumatic Event?
A traumatic event is a frightening, dangerous, or violent event that poses a threat to a child’s life or bodily integrity. Witnessing a traumatic event that threatens life or physical security of a loved one can also be traumatic.
What Experiences Might Be Traumatic for my child?
Physical, sexual, or psychological abuse and neglect (including trafficking)
Natural and technological disasters
Family or community violence
Terrorism, mass violence, and school shootings
Discrimination, prejudice, and racism
Sudden or violent loss of a loved one
Substance use disorder (personal or familial)
Traumatic separation (including as part of an immigration journey or incarceration)
Refugee and war experiences (including torture)
Serious accidents or life-threatening illness
When children have been in situations where they feared for their lives, believed that they would be injured, witnessed violence, or tragically lost a loved one, they may show signs of child traumatic stress.
What Is Child Traumatic Stress?
Children who suffer from child traumatic stress are those who have been exposed to one or more traumas over the course of their lives and develop reactions that persist and affect their daily lives after the events have ended. Traumatic reactions can include a variety of responses, such as:
intense and ongoing emotional upset
depressive symptoms or anxiety
behavioral changes
difficulties with self-regulation
problems relating to others or forming attachments
regression or loss of previously acquired skills
attention and academic difficulties
nightmares, difficulty sleeping and/or eating
physical symptoms, such as aches and pains
older children may use drugs or alcohol, behave in risky ways, or engage in unhealthy sexual activity
Without treatment, repeated childhood exposure to traumatic events can affect the brain and nervous system and increase health-risk behaviors (e.g., smoking, eating disorders, substance use, and high-risk activities). Research shows that child trauma survivors can be more likely to have long-term health problems (e.g., diabetes and heart disease) or to die at an earlier age. Traumatic stress can also lead to increased use of health and mental health services and increased involvement with the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. Adult survivors of traumatic events may also have difficulty in establishing fulfilling relationships and maintaining employment.
Risk and Protective Factors & Key points for parents and caregivers:
Fortunately, even when children experience a traumatic event, they don’t always develop traumatic stress. Many factors contribute to symptoms, including whether the child has experienced trauma in the past, and protective factors for the child including family and community.
If a child reports any abuse, you are responsible for reporting it, no matter your relation to the child.
Ensure safety and address basic needs.
Be dependable and stick to routines.
Help them to learn to self-regulate and calm themselves also.
Encourage your child to talk and the most important part is to remember to LISTEN. Sometimes, we forget to actually listen, and we just prepare ourselves to “help” our kids by talking to them. Many times, they just need us to be available to listen to them and it is always best to ask if they would like your advice first.
Allow them to express their feelings through talking, writing, or drawing.
Let them talk at their own pace, take the discussion outside or chat while you join them at their favorite hobby. Don’t make it an interview or a lecture.
Limit exposure to repetitive news reports about traumatic events.
Use a trauma-informed approach, understanding the basics of trauma.
Seek professional counseling/medical services if necessary.
Identify signs of stress and respond with empathy. “That sounds like it was really scary for you, I am very sorry that happened.”
Useful Resources
Books
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma, by Bessel van der Kolk M.D.
The Deepest Well: Healing the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Adversity, by Nadine Burke Harris M.D.
Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving: A Guide and Map for Recovering from Childhood Trauma, by Pete Walker