To the Editor: Diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are often debated. Definition of Psychological Trauma and Threshold for Functional Impairment in PTSD Some children may be more susceptible to developing traumatic stress reactions than others.To learn more about this click here. They may also continue for days, weeks, or months after the traumatic experience and/or may resurface at different periods throughout a young person’s life. The difficulties or stress symptoms can present immediately or show up later. When these stress symptoms develop, they happen automatically (i.e., are not in your child’s conscious control) as your child attempts to manage negative emotions (like fear) that emerges in response to memories of the event. The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) states, “Child traumatic stress occurs when children and adolescents are exposed to traumatic events or traumatic situations that overwhelm their ability to cope.” These reactions may show up in different ways, such as changes in your child’s behavior (such as more being irritable, withdrawn, or acting younger than his/her age), difficulties in interactions with others, problems or changes in sleeping or eating patterns, or school performance. If your child has reactions that impact his/her daily life after a traumatic event, these responses are called child traumatic stress. For more information about ACEs, please visit . Since the original study, the list has expanded to include additional types of adverse experiences. The original ACEs study included the following 10 adverse childhood experiences heart and lung disease, alcoholism, risk for initimate partner violence, drug use, poor academic or work performance, depression, suicide) ACEs include many traumatic experiences, but are broader in nature. Results show that approximately 65% of children experience at least 1 adverse event during their childhood and that nearly 40% of children experience at least 2 or more ACEs.This study further has repeatedly found that the greater number of ACEs a child has been exposed to, the greater he/she is at risk for developing physical and mental health problems throughout their lifespan (e.g. The ACE study is an ongoing research study that explores the relationship between childhood trauma experience and long-term medical health and social consequences. It is also important to remember that all youth in foster care, independent of why they might have entered foster care, have experienced changes in caregivers and living situations, and it is important to take into consideration how these events may have made an impact.Īnother term that you may hear a clinician use when referring to difficult or scary experiences is Adverse Childhood Experiences or ACEs. While these are fairly common occurrences for some families, they could have a lasting traumatic impact. For example, many families might need to relocate due to job changes, financial hardship, or military involvement. While many of the examples listed above may be more easily thought of or identified as traumatic, other events might be less obvious when thinking about the potential of traumatic impact. Additionally, for more detailed descriptions of different traumatic events, click check out the NCTSN’s Definitions of Different Trauma Types document. But remember, not all events may be considered traumatic for each individual.įor this list and more information about traumatic events check out the NCTSN’s Resources for Parents and Caregivers webpage. Your child or a child you know may have experienced something that is not on this list, but the event could still qualify as or feel traumatic. The image below illustrates some potentially traumatic events. This is not a comprehensive or complete list. Reactions to a traumatic event can also have lasting effects on the individual’s daily functioning including possible changes in a child’s mental, physical, social, emotional, and/or spiritual health (See traumatic stress below for more information).

Sometimes people experience these types of strong negative emotions in reaction to the experience or because the person may not have the ability to protect or stop the event from happening. When this happens it can cause emotions such as fear, loss, or distress. An event can be traumatic when we face or witness an immediate threat to ourselves or to a loved one, and it is often followed by serious injury or harm ( NCTSN Parents and Caregivers Website). A traumatic event is a scary, dangerous, or violent event.

Trauma meaning