Questions About Trauma

A trauma may be any event that an individual has directly or indirectly experienced or perceived as instilling a sense of helplessness, powerlessness, fear, hopelessness and/or a loss of safety, whether physical or emotional. Traumatized children often exhibit symptoms similar to attention deficient hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder or bi-polar disorder.

Two experts in the field of trauma counseling offer these additional descriptions:

• Beverly James (1989) defines trauma as “overwhelming, uncontrollable experiences that psychologically impact victims by creating the feelings of helplessness, vulnerability, loss of safety and loss of control”
• Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D. (2001), states that trauma is a psychologically distressing event that is outside the range of usual human experiences

Following are some of the more common causes of trauma in children. Details about each are given in this chapter.

• Physical or sexual abuse
• Neglect
• Parental depression
• Moving
• Placements (foster care, group home, residential)
• Loss of a loved one (person, pet, etc.)
• A school climate perceived as unsafe
• Lack of friends or support/self-esteem issues

Children generally feel bad about behavior that is antisocial. They often feel guilt, shame and blame and see themselves as the problem. Their focus is on survival rather than being a victim. They don’t want to lose their sense of control. Basically, they are functioning from a state of hyperarousal.

The misperception regarding traumatized children who are labeled as such is that they choose their behavior because of their anger and mistrust. Based on neurological research, traumatized children do not choose their behavior; rather, whenever they perceive their sense of safety as being threatened, they automatically react with a “fight, flight or freeze” response.

A teacher may observe the following actions that could indicate trauma in a child:

• The student who routinely asks to go to the office or see the school nurse because he or she “doesn’t feel well” (somatic complaints, fatigue)
• The student who often goes unnoticed in class (avoidance, helplessness)
• The student whom you are certain eats a lot of sugar and drinks caffeinated soda before coming to school (hyperactivity)
• The student who is either sleeping or daydreaming (fatigue, “zoning,” inattention)
• The student who is thought of as a loner or perhaps a bully (isolation, aggression)
• In students who are perfectionists, there is fear of having to try new tasks (hopelessness)
• The student who has difficulty keeping or maintaining friendships (poor social skills, poor attachments, heightened irritability)