Trauma Experiences in Kids and Teens: What You Need To Know
Some people go through life without ever experiencing a traumatic event, while many others have at least once in their lifetime. And although each person is affected differently, trauma experiences in young people can significantly impact their emotional and physical well-being.
What is Trauma?
A traumatic experience can be any event in life that causes a threat to our emotional and/or physical safety and potentially places our own life or the lives of others at risk. For example, if a young person was physically, emotionally or sexually abused or suddenly lost a loved one, they have experienced trauma.
Although not every young person who experiences a traumatic event will be traumatised, others can become psychologically traumatised, impacting their ability to cope and leading to difficulties in the future.
How Does Trauma Impact Young People?
When young people have experienced trauma, they often feel like their life has become unpredictable and are left vulnerable, powerless, and helpless. Young people lack skills around emotional regulation due to their brain development, and therefore, their minds and bodies may form a constant state of hyperarousal that negatively impacts their wellness. Exposure to trauma can impact a young person on three levels - physically, cognitively, and emotionally.
Physically – When a young person has experienced trauma, it can impact their body’s natural state of functioning, from a calm state to an emergency state. During this state, their heart beats faster, their blood pressure increases, and their muscles tense.
Cognitively – Young people's minds are not equipped to handle a traumatic experience. Thus, such circumstances will often shift how they think about the world. Their thoughts become more guarded, and they wait for the worst to happen.
Emotionally – Young people might find themselves in a constant state of anxiety without even knowing why there are feeling this way. Therefore, they may become more easily annoyed, struggle with concentration, and function less effectively.
Trauma Symptoms
A traumatised person may feel a range of emotions both immediately after the event and in the long term. Immediate effects of trauma may include shock and denial and lead to short-term symptoms such as fear, anxiety, or anger. For many, the negative effects will begin to diminish over time, for others, these symptoms may be long-term.
Young people who suffer from the long-term effects of trauma may develop further emotional disturbances such as mood swings, changes in behaviour, guilt or shame, and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder).
Physically, they may experience sleep disturbance, restlessness, body aches and pains, and appetite changes. The combination of emotional and physical symptoms can become debilitating and continue to worsen. Therefore, it is essential to learn effective coping strategies.
Coping Strategies for Trauma
It takes work, but there are many coping strategies young people can use to manage the effects of trauma in their life, some include:
1. Learning about Trauma
Knowledge is power. If young people learn about what they are going through, it might help them to understand their experience, normalise their emotions and feel less alone.
2. Practicing Mindfulness
Bringing oneself back to the moment is an excellent way to distract the mind from disruptive thought patterns. Providing young people with tools around meditation, grounding, breathing techniques and various potential hobbies or interests can give their mind a break. It's about learning what works best for them.
3. Reaching out for support
Living with trauma can be frightening. That's why finding a safe adult, mentor, or professional to talk to can be helpful, particularly a qualified counsellor or therapist.
4. Spending time with friends and engaging in positive activities
It may be hard to imagine doing anything positive after a traumatic experience. However, being around friends, moving the body through physical activity, laughing and connecting - both with others and oneself can be incredibly liberating.
How to Recover from Trauma
It can be hard for young people to believe that it is possible to recover from their circumstances. However, through appropriate coping skills, building resilience, and finding the right support, not only does post-traumatic growth exist; but so does greater purpose and meaning in life. Young people can grow to form deeper bonds with friends and have a greater capacity to reach their goals.
I have developed a range of resources that are available at Make Life Rosie that support young people to understand trauma and its effects on the mind and body. I also have an array of resources to further support coping strategies, mindfulness and self-care. Check them out through the links below:
I’ve linked just a few of the many resources I have available at Make Life Rosie, so please explore further and get in touch with me via email at hello@makeliferosie.me if there is something in particular you are looking for. Please feel free to share your thoughts on this blog in the comments below!
Rosie 🌹
Trauma Resources For Kids and Teens