Trauma Resource Submenu:

• After A Stressful Incident
• Child Trauma Guide 0-1 Years
• Child Trauma Guide 1-3 Years
• Child Trauma Guide 3-5 Years
• Child Trauma Guide 5-7 Years
• Child Trauma Guide 7-9 Years
• Child Trauma Guide 9-12 Years
• Child Trauma Guide 12-18 Years

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Child Development and Trauma Guides

7 - 9 years

 

Parent/carer support following trauma

Encourage parents(s)/carers to:

• Seek, accept and increase support for themselves to manage their own shock and emotional responses
• Remain calm - Listen to and tolerate child’s retelling of event – respect child’s fears; give child time to cope with fears
• Increase monitoring and awareness of child’s play, which may involve secretive re-enactments of trauma with peers and siblings; set limits on scary or harmful play
• Permit child to try out new ideas to cope with fearfulness at bedtimse: extra reading time, radio on, listening to a tape in the middle of the night to undo the residue of fear from a nightmare
• Reassure the older child that feelings of fears or behaviours that feel out of control or babyish eg. Night wetting are normal after a frightening experience and that the child will feel more like himself or herself with time
• Encourage child to talk about confusing feelings, worries, daydreams, mental review of traumatic images, and disruptions of concentration by accepting the feelings, listening carefully, and reminding child that these are normal but hard reactions following a very scary event.
• Maintain communication with school staff and monitor child’s coping with demands at school or in community activities
• Expect some time-limited decrease in child’s school performance and help the child to accept this as a temporary result of the trauma
• Protect child from re-exposure to frightening situations and reminders of trauma, including scary T.V. programs, movies, stories, and physical or locational reminders of trauma
• Expect and understand child’s regression or some difficult or uncharacteristic behaviour while maintaining basic household rules
• Listen for a child’s misunderstanding of a traumatic event, particularly those that involve self-blame and magical thinking.
• Gently help child develop a realistic understanding of event. Be mindful of the possibility of anniversary reactions
• Remain aware of your own reactions to the child’s trauma. Provide reassurance to child that feelings will diminish over time.
• Provide opportunities for child to experience control and make choices in daily activities
• Seek information and advice on child’s developmental and educational progress
• Provide the child with frequent high protein snacks/meals during the day
• Take time out to recharge

Adapted from State Government Victoria Department of Human Services, June 2008