Part 1: Overview of Trauma
What is TrAuma?
Although "trauma" has been around since the beginning of human existence, trauma education in communities is relatively new.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMSHA) describes individual trauma as resulting from:
"an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or life threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual’s functioning and mental, physical, social, emotional, or spiritual well-being." (SAMSHA, 2019)
“Trauma is an actual or perceived danger, which undermines a child’s physical or emotional safety, or poses a threat to the safety of the child’s parents or caregivers — overwhelming their coping ability, and impacting their functioning and development.” (Mathur Kalluri, 2018)
Main Point:
Experiencing a trauma causes a child (or adult) to feel that they are not safe physically and/or psychologically.
Video (Formed Families Forward, 2018)
EXAMPLES of TRAUMA
Abuse (physical, sexual, emotional) Neglect/Abandonment Natural Disasters
Terrorism Domestic Violence Community Violence
Sudden or violent loss of a loved one Substance abuse in family Serious Accidents
Life threatening or serious medical illness Victim/witness of a crime Bullying
Military family-related stressors Mental illness in family Violence to caregiver
Family member in prison Historical trauma/injustice
(National Child Traumatic Stress Network, n.db)
reSPONSE TO Trauma
A child's response to trauma or even whether a specific child will view an event as traumatic, depends on many different variables:
Characteristics of child (age, developmental stage, personality)
History of trauma and relationship to the perpetrator
Severity of event/proximity (closeness) to event
Type of supports (family, school, community)
(McInerey & McKlindon, 2014)
SYMPTOMS of TRAUMA
Although many of us experience reactions to stress, when a child is experiencing traumatic stress, these reactions interfere with the child’s daily life and ability to function and interact with others.
Below are some examples of children's reactions to trauma. A child will not exhibit every symptom and every child's reactions can be unique.
Emotional responses: terror, helplessness, fear, anxiety, depression, difficulty controlling emotions, difficulty calming down
Physical reactions: heart pounding, vomiting, problems with bladder or bowel control, feeling aches and pains, digestive upsets, difficulty sleeping, changes in eating habits, having nightmares, fatigue
Behavioral: Withdrawing/isolating, difficulty controlling impulses, anger outbursts, defiance
Social: Problems relating to other children and adults, difficulty forming attachments, inability to process social cues
Learning: Regression or loss of previous skills, difficulty paying attention or concentrating, forgetfulness
(Gunn, 2020; National Child Traumatic Stress Network, n.da)
Video (Levine, 2013)
Summary:
OVERVIEW Of TRAUMA
(Developlay, 2019)