By Stacey Steinberg
Children may be processing the disruptions in their lives right now in ways the adults around them do not expect: acting out, regressing, retreating or even seeming surprisingly content. Parents need to know that all of this is normal, experts say, and there are some things we can do to help.
“Our natural response to scary things is biologically to release stress hormones,” said Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, a pediatrician and surgeon general of the state of California, and the author of “The Deepest Well: Healing the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Adversity.” The release of stress hormones activates our fight or flight response. Our bodies, in responding with the release of stress hormones, are doing exactly what they should be doing.
But in some cases, exposure to stressful events — which right now might include the absence of routines, a parent’s job loss and economic hardship, or the serious illness or death of someone a child cares about — can leave children feeling traumatized.
Share This Post!
The Link Between ADHD and Trauma
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here By Medical News Today Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that often begins in childhood. Studies have found [...]
5 Reasons Why We Blame Ourselves After Trauma
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here By Kaytee Gillis, LCSW-BACS As a therapist who works with survivors of childhood trauma, I find that self-blame is a common part [...]
Child-Parent Psychotherapy Resources
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here By University of California, San Francisco Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) is an intervention model for children aged 0-5 who have experienced at least [...]
Caring for Caregivers Experiencing Secondary Trauma
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here By Heather C. Forkey, MD, Elaine Schulte, MD, MPH, and Luanne Thorndyke, MD Secondary traumatic stress (STS) is the emotional duress caused [...]
How to Talk About Mental Health
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here By SAMHSA Mental health is essential to a person’s life in the same way as physical health. Hesitation to talk about mental [...]
Prioritizing Minority Mental Health
CSF written article Your Content Goes Here By CDC Office of Health Equity Mental health matters! Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, [...]