A symptom of Stress and Trauma:
Post-traumatic stress
- What does "Post-Traumatic Stress" mean?
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Post-traumatic stress is ongoing mental health problems children may have after trauma. These can look very different in younger and older children.
In children aged 2-5 years
- Being easily startled
- Constant crying or whining
- Headaches or stomach aches
- Being scared of going to bed, darkness, loud noises, or certain places
- Nightmares
- Recreating traumatic events in play
- Having trouble sitting still
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Avoiding things that remind them of the traumatic events by
- Becoming very active
- Interrupting
- Running away
- Seeming distracted
- Becoming aggressive
In children aged 6-10 years
- Flashbacks or intrusive thoughts of traumatic events
- Looking out for danger and being easily startled
- Doing dangerous things without thinking
- Avoiding things or people that remind them of the traumatic event
- Negative thoughts about themselves and other people
- Nightmares about traumatic events
- Trouble sleeping
- Worrying a lot
