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Trauma and children
Traumatic experiences during childhood pose a threat to a child’s physical and emotional health. This can be towards the child themselves or may be where the child has witnessed a traumatic event. PTSD trauma is defined as any situation where actual or threatened death, serious injury or sexual violence occurs [Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 2014]. Typically, these are large “T” traumas whereby the individual is left feeling powerless (Barbash, 2017). Examples of these types of traumas include terrorist attacks, natural disasters, traffic accidents or sexual assault. The helplessness and lack of power distinguishes the difference between large “T” trauma and small “T” traumas. Generally, small “T” traumas do not lead to the development of PTSD; however, after experiencing multiple small “T” traumas, it is possible for an individual to develop a trauma response to the trauma which may decrease their quality of life. In other words, the individual’s increased psychological distress which may come with small “T” traumas can trigger the development of PTSD symptoms (Mol et al., 2005). Small “T” traumas are distressing events which may impact an individual’s emotional functioning but do not pose serious threat to life. Examples of small “T” traumas may include interpersonal conflict, the death of a pet, financial worries or bullying. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) refer to intense and frequently occurring stressors that children may suffer in their early life. These experiences include but are not limited to abuse, neglect and violence between parents or other household dysfunction such as alcohol or substance abuse (WHO, 2020). Therefore, these ACEs can be categorised as both small and large “T” traumas.
Children who experience an inability to protect themselves or who lacked protection from others due to trauma may also feel overwhelmed by the intensity of these emotional responses (The National Child Traumatic Stress Network, 2018). The World Health Organization (WHO) estimate that up to 20% of adolescents have one or more mental health problem (Pathak et al., 2011). Early onset of trauma exposure amongst children and adolescents has been found to be differentially associated with increased mental health outcomes and related risk factors among both males and females (Dierkhising et al., 2013). This includes elevated anxiety in older youths...