SYMPTOMS OF TRAUMA: AGES 6-12
Every child has difficulty concentrating or gets angry sometimes. The following symptoms might indicate the child has experienced a traumatic event if they are excessive or interfere with the child’s or family’s lives.
- Unusually high level of anger/excessive temper
- Aggression towards family and others
- Verbal abuse towards others
- Overly bossy or controlling
- School problems
- Difficulty concentrating
- Suicidal thoughts or actions
- Stomachaches, headaches and other physical complaints
- Withdrawal from friends and family
- Fear of being separated from caregiver
- Acting out in social situations
- Imitating the traumatic event
- Fear of adults who remind them of the trauma
- Eating problems such as loss of appetite, low weight or digestion issues
- Nightmares
- Sleeplessness
- Irritability
- Inability to trust others or make friends
- Lack of self confidence
- Loneliness
- Confusion
- Drug or alcohol use
- Clinginess
- Sexual knowledge beyond the child’s age
- Overreaction to situations
- Re-creation of the traumatic event during play
- Hoarding of food
More about symptoms:
13-18 (middle and high school)
