Children are amazingly resilient and adapt to changes in their life whether it's adjusting to a different school, or spending the weekends with a parent following a separation or divorce. However, recovering from a traumatic event is not as easy as parents would hope. Children don't just "get over" trauma; as much as we would like to wish otherwise, they often live with the consequences as an emotional scar for the rest of their lives. Many parents ask questions like, "How does it affect them if they don't even remember it?" or "They seem fine and are acting like they did before, are they really OK?" It helps to take a closer look at how trauma can affect children and what can help them.
If a four year old boy witnesses a traumatic event like his mother passing out due to overdosing on drugs, then his sense of safety is likely broken by the scary images of what he's seen. The terrifying images he remembers are likely to show up in nightmares and developing into new fears that may indirectly involve a situation similar to what he experienced. Children often have strong belief that their thoughts, fears, and wishes can become real and happen due to not fully understanding the relationship between cause and effect. Younger children around ages five or six may also interpret traumatic events differently than an older nine or ten year old child would, and can blame themselves or their parents for not preventing what happened. How a child perceives an event or misunderstands the reality of what happened can add to the negative impact on their developing mind.
Rewiring the Brain
There are a lot of theories and research being done that is looking at how experiences can rewire the brain, and affect how a child's brain forms and functions. Although children can adapt in order to survive abuse or an unexpected life changing event, they are still emotionally overwhelmed. When faced with an intense or life threatening event the brain switches into survival mode, and even long after the event has passed a child may begin to sense a vague feeling of threat everywhere. If trauma in children isn't treated then stress that comes along as they grow will causes their brain to overwork itself for, which can lead to serious mental health issues in their adult life.
Research is showing that children who experience abuse or extreme stress have higher rates of depression and anxiety in addition to other emotional problems than other children do. New studies are looking at how early experience becomes embedded in the body and brain, changing how the brain functions.
Knowing how trauma effects how children grow is important as a first step. The next decision that parents need to carefully consider is: "How do I help my child?" There are many evidenced based approaches in mental health that can make a big difference in how children can recover from trauma.
Trauma Focused Play Therapy
A therapy that is a structured and goal-oriented form of therapy that uses both directive and non-directive approach to help children in using play as a natural way to process the trauma and for them to re-enact what happened through art and storytelling in which a child can process and express their thoughts and feelings while building their self-esteem and ability to cope.
Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT)
TF-CBT is an approach in which a therapist works with a child or teen in learning skills to help process and manage the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors related to the traumatic event that occurred. This approach includes working with the parent in developing family communication and support.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
Working with a therapist in an EMDR session would include using bilateral eye movements, taps or tones, which effects the way that the brain processes the traumatic memories. EMDR is effective in a child no longer reliving the memory and feelings when the event is brought up. While the memory of the event would still be there, it will be less upsetting to them.
Working with childhood trauma can help prevent or reduce the odds of children developing future emotional and mental health problems. It is crucial for children to receive some form of therapy so that they don't develop unhealthy ways of coping with memories by self-medicating with drugs and alcohol. If you are the parent or caregiver of a child who has experienced a traumatic event, then seek a consultation of a therapist. Children can be amazing resilient, and it is possible for them to heal and thrive.
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