Perhaps you’ve heard of trauma-informed care within addiction and mental health treatment facilities. It’s a key aspect of our treatment programs here at Integrative Life Center. But have you heard of trauma-informed parenting?
No parent anticipates or wants trauma to happen to their children. But when your son or daughter experiences childhood trauma, trauma-informed parenting can help you create an environment that addresses their immediate needs while supporting their long-term healing, shares the Massachusetts Adoption Resource Exchange (MARE). At the same time, understanding how trauma impacts your kids may cause you to reflect on your own past—including the childhood trauma you may need to heal within yourself.
Trauma and Parenting: When Trauma Happens to Your Children
Trauma can occur at any time and affect anyone. But when it happens to children, it can leave a substantial impact. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) describes childhood trauma as a moment when a child (0-18 years) feels intensely threatened by an event or experience they witness. In other words, the trauma can happen directly to your kid, or your kid can become traumatized from something they see happen to someone else.
Believe it or not, around two-thirds of children report experiencing at least one traumatic event by age 16, shares SAMHSA. Many of these traumatic events are referred to as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), which can include:
- Physical, emotional, or sexual abuse
- Emotional or physical neglect
- Witnessing your mother treated violently
- Divorce or separation
- Substance use in the home
- Instability due to family members in prison
- Mental health problems in the home
When ACEs trauma happens to your child, its effects are often more severe due to the simple fact that their brains are still developing. Childhood trauma specifically targets areas of your kid’s brain responsible for memory, logical thinking, and emotional processing. Severe and long-term stress from trauma can put the brain into survival mode for too long, shares the Cleveland Clinic, weakening those areas of the brain and influencing how they react to situations as an adult.
Trauma-Informed Parenting Skills: How to Help Your Kid Heal
When trauma and parenting collide, you as mom or dad play a critical role in helping your kids heal. After all, the combination of proper caregiving and access to trauma-informed therapy from mental health professionals can help your child recover and ultimately thrive. And this is where trauma-informed parenting comes in.
Trauma-informed parenting is a holistic parenting approach that recognizes the profound impact of trauma on a child’s behavior and emotions, shares MARE. It’s about creating an environment that not only addresses their immediate needs but also supports their long-term healing. It involves connecting with our kids and helping them understand that they are not alone in navigating their trauma. With that said, here are some trauma-informed parenting skills you can utilize in the process:
Provide a Safe, Consistent Environment
Kids who’ve been traumatized need a safe home and family environment to heal. They’re often very sensitive to changes in life, so consistency is key right now. With that said, it’s a good idea to be “boringly predictable,” explains The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). This may mean having regular daily routines and communicating changes in advance. As your kids feel safe, they have the space to express their emotions and develop their well-being, shares MARE.
Empathize
Showing empathy for your children’ s struggles allows you to connect with them more deeply. Instead of correcting their emotions, empathizing means taking time to be present and understand why they’re feeling the way they do. By walking around in their shoes so to speak, you can often relate better to their situation.
Teach Emotional Self-Regulation
A key aspect of trauma-informed parenting is helping your child learn how to regulate their own emotions. Often trauma can get in the way of them learning how to do this well—and cause problems later in life if they never learn. You can teach your child how to self-soothe, stay calm, and realize that they don’t always have to expect the worst, shares NCTSN.
Play Together
Navigating unresolved trauma and parenting doesn’t mean you have to be serious with your kids all the time. Don’t forget to play together! Playtime remains very important through this process, as it gives you the chance to nurture your child, according to NCTSN. Not only does play help your child form healthy attachments, but it also gives them space to process their emotions and learn resilience.
BONUS Trauma-Informed Parenting Tip: Take Care of Yourself
Trauma-informed parenting can be emotionally and physically draining at times. That’s why it’s important for you as a parent to pursue your own self-care in this season, whether that’s getting good sleep, exercising, doing something you enjoy, or eating well. Taking care of yourself helps you take better care of your children, too.
And part of taking care of yourself as a parent may mean taking steps to heal any unresolved childhood trauma in your own life. After all, past trauma is often the root cause of any addictions or mental health struggles you may be experiencing right now. At Integrative Life Center, our trauma treatment (as well as dual diagnosis treatment for any co-occurring disorders) can help you heal. If you’re ready to reclaim your life and be a good example for your own kids, take our free childhood trauma test as a first step or call our team now to learn more about your treatment options.
The post Trauma-Informed Parenting: Navigating Childhood Trauma in Your Kids appeared first on Integrative Life Center.
source https://integrativelifecenter.com/mental-health-treatment/trauma-informed-parenting-navigating-childhood-trauma-in-your-kids/
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