Essay On Early Childhood Trauma

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When young children experience trauma the aftermath is far greater than when an adult experiences trauma. With their brain still developing these traumatic events will have a huge impact in reducing their brain cortex. This ultimately can affect and ruin six complex functions. These functions include their memories, being able to pay attention, their perceptual awareness, the ability to think, their language and consciousness. These changes may also affect their IQ and the ability to regulate emotions. Children who are traumatized will often feel unsafe and not protected, especially when it is their parent or caregiver who is the one causing these experiences. This will cause them to be stressed and loose their ability to communicate effectively (Early Childhood Trauma, 2010).
Traumatized Children’s coping skills …show more content…

The first is hyper-arousal continuum meaning fight, flight, vigilance, resistance, defiance, and aggression (Understanding the ways children cope with threats, n.d.). When a child begins to use the hyper-arousal skills they will at first look for an adult to save them. If an adult does not come to save them they will then “freeze”, being quiet or motionless means that they are less likely to be seen or heard. The threat might go away then go away, allowing the child to decompress. The second is dissociative continuum this means avoid, comply or faint. The younger the child is the more likely they will begin to use the dissociative method verses the hyper-arousal responses. This is because infants can’t fight the danger nor can they flee from it. The dissociative method is when the child begins to block things out. During the abuse they will imagine being in a different place or being someone completely different. This method helps them to become numb and not to feel the pain as much. It also helps them to forget these

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