How Does Early Childhood Trauma Affect Childhood

Our minds are at the most sensitive stage during our childhood. During this time, we are beginning to find a sense of self and creating a healthy personality based on our experiences. (Life Span 11.3) What would happen if a child experiences a traumatic event such as physical/ emotional abuse, the murder of a parent or a close family member, natural disasters, or was involved in an accident? Would it affect their later self? Studies have shown that traumatic experiences that occur during early childhood may affect several aspects of their lives, including relationships, behavior, and emotional responses. (NCTSN, 2009) This paper will focus on the effects caused by trauma experienced during childhood on the brain, mind, and personality and how it
Domestic violence is defined as the aim of one partner in an intimate relationship to exert control over the other partner in a violent behavior. Children may be exposed to or experience domestic violence in several ways. Many children are affected by threats between the parents/caregivers, observing a parent who is out of control and full of anger, seeing a parent/caregiver assault the other, or living with the aftermath of a violent assault. Children who live in a household with domestic violence have a high risk of becoming direct victims of child abuse. “Domestic violence poses a serious threat to children’s emotional, psychological, and physical well-being.” (2007) Early childhood trauma. Early childhood trauma refers to the traumatic experiences that occur to a child between birth and the age of 6. These types of events tend to have a profound sensory impact on young children. (2007) The child’s sense of safety may be disrupted by frightening visual stimuli, loud noises, violent movements, and sensations that can be associated with unpredictable frightening events. Young children then tend to recreate these situations in the form of nightmares, new fears, and actions that reenact the