Adult Development

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in Children and Adolescents

Most people who are exposed to a traumatic, stressful event experience some of the symptoms of PTSD in the days and weeks following exposure. The National Center for PTSD states an estimated 7.8 percent of Americans will experience PTSD at some point in their lives and women twice as likely as men. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder can occur after experiencing or witnessing of life-threatening events such as military combat, natural disasters, terrorist incidents, serious accidents, or violent personal assaults. People who suffer from PTSD often re-live the event through nightmares and flashbacks, have difficulty sleeping, feel detached, alienated, or have increased anxiety. These symptoms can be severe enough and last long enough to significantly impair the person’s daily life.

Trauma comes in various forms in various intensities. No two children will experience trauma the same way. There are three factors that have been shown to increase the likelihood that children will develop PTSD. These factors include the severity of the traumatic event, the reaction of the parent to the traumatic event, and the distance to the traumatic event. Children and adolescents may be diagnosed with PTSD if they are the survivors of a natural disaster or man made disaster. Also, if a child has experienced a number of traumatic events in the past, the risk of developing PTSD increases. Studies show that children and adolescents with greater family support and less parental distress have lower levels of PTSD symptoms.

The National Center of PSTD states that children often have problems with fear, anxiety, depression, anger and hostility, aggression, sexually inappropriate behavior, self-destructive behavior, feelings of isolation and stigma, poor self-esteem, difficulty in trusting others, and substance abuse. School-aged children may exhibit post-traumatic play or re-enactment of the trauma in play, drawings, or verbalizations. PTSD symptoms in adolescents look more like PTSD in adults. They may engage in traumatic re-enactment that becomes part of their daily lives. Additionally, children who have experienced traumas often have relationship problems with peers and family members, problems with acting out, and problems with school performance.

Although many children will experience trauma in their life, they may only experience the symptoms of PTSD for a brief time. All children have an unexplainable, natural resilience when coping with stress or trauma. Furthermore, research shows that the better a parent copes with a trauma, and the more they support their children, the better their children will function in life. If you want to create a safe healing environment, consider the following elements: information, predictability, structure, patience, compassion, physical activity, and hope.

Something else to consider is the media. The media clearly plays a critical role in providing needed information to victims and their families in the aftermath of a disaster. However, too much trauma-related media coverage can be harmful to children and have a negative impact. Parents may want to consider limiting the amount and the type of media coverage that children are watching. For example, if a child is allowed to watch news coverage of a terrible event, it should be explained this was a single event despite the repetition on the news. Children need to be reminded that what they see on the news does not represent the way things are elsewhere. Experts suggest, that parents should watch the news with their children and talk about what they are seeing. If a child seems to be watching too much news coverage of a traumatic event, the parent may redirect the child’s attention to more productive and positive activities.

To find suggested Troop/Group Activities in helping girls understand and cope with family crises go to on our website under Leader Resources. For more information on this topic or child trauma, please visit the following Web sites: National Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder www.ncptsd.va.gov; National Child Traumatic Stress Network www.NCTSNet.org; Child Trauma Academy www.childtrauma.org; FEMA for kids www.fema.gov/kids; U.S. Department of Education www.ed.gov; American Psychological Association Help Center www.APAHelpCenter.org; International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies www.istss.org.