Trauma
What is trauma?
Trauma is powerful emotional response to a terrible event.
What are some types of abuse?
Physical: Non-accidental physical injury of a child.
Sexual: Any act of a sexual nature upon/with a child for the gratification of the perpetrator
Emotional: Chronic attitudes/acts that interfere with the emotional & social well being of a child.
Neglect: Parenting practices which are inadequate or dangerous.
What is your nervous system?
Your nervous system is part of your body. It includes your brain, spinal cord, and all your nerves.
You can have physical and emotional/psychological symptoms of trauma: true or false?
True. Trauma can affect your whole body and the symptoms can manifest in all aspects of your life.
What is TF-CBT?
TF-CBT stands for Trauma Focused-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. It is an evidence based treatment approach shown to help children, adolescents, and their parents (or other caregivers) overcome trauma-related difficulties.
Trauma can be both mental and physical: true or false?
True, trauma can impact both our mental and physical health.
How many kids experience abuse each year in the US?
More than 600,000 children experience abuse each year in the US.
What happens to your nervous system during trauma?
Flight/Flee, Fight, Freeze, Fawn/Collapse
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What are some physical symptoms of trauma?
*Pain-such as stomach aches, headaches, or other chronic pain
*Fatigue-feeling tired all the time
*Excess startle response
*Trouble falling asleep
*Bedwetting
Who can participate in TF-CBT?
TF-CBT is designed for children and teens ages 3-18.
Trauma only happens once: true or false?
False, trauma can happen over long periods of time like child abuse or war, or can be a single sudden event like a car accident or natural disaster.
What is the most common form of abuse?
Neglect. Three-fourths (75%) of abuse cases with children are because of neglect.
It is normal not to fight back: true or false?
True, your nervous system makes an instantaneous decision to keep you safe. Fighting is not always safe for your nervous system.
What are some emotional symptoms of trauma?
*Depression
*Anxiety
*Nightmares/flashbacks
*Trouble controlling your emotions
*Feeling on edge
*Feeling numb
*Decreased concentration
*Hopelessness
*Shame/guilt
*Loss of interest
How does TF-CBT help?
TF-CBT helps children address the negative effects of trauma, including processing their traumatic memories, overcoming problematic thoughts and behaviors, and developing effective coping and interpersonal skills.
Who does trauma happen to?
Everyone! Anyone can have traumatic events in their lives from a car accident, to abuse, to a natural disaster. You are not alone!
Who investigates allegations of abuse?
Child Protective Services (CPS), the police, and the courts.
After the trauma is over my nervous system goes back to normal: true or false?
False. Often the nervous system experiences heightened arousal after trauma, but with therapy the nervous system can heal.
Symptoms never go away: true or false?
False. You will learn relaxation and coping skills to help you reduce the effect of the physical and emotional symptoms.
What will I learn in TF-CBT?
You will learn about trauma, relaxation skills, about feelings and emotions and how to regulate them, about thoughts, feelings, and actions and how they work together, about boundaries and how to stay safe in the future.
You can never recover from trauma: true or false?
False, recovery is possible! Coming to therapy and utilizing the skills you learn in TF-CBT will help you heal from trauma.
What is foster care?
Foster care is a place for children to go when their parents can no longer care for them. Foster care can be another type of trauma.
What is neurodivergent?
Someone who is neurodivergent has a nervous system that works differently than most people. People who are ADHD, Autistic, or have mental health conditions are neurodivergent and can process trauma differently than neurotypical people.
Is it normal to have symptoms after trauma?
Yes, it is perfectly normal to have symptoms after you experience trauma.
What is a trauma narrative?
A trauma narrative exposes you to memories of the traumatic experience in a safe environment and helps you reframe the experience so you can reclaim your power and autonomy. Creating this narrative helps you to overcome the painful memories associated with the experience through the power of storytelling.