7.5: Perspective Shift

Perspective Shift

As we work with children who have experienced trauma, we must be willing to ask "What happened to you?", rather than jumping to the more traditional "What is wrong with you?". There is nothing "wrong" with the child... it is the circumstance that they have encountered. The trauma is impacting them. We must avoid the Band-Aid or white wash approach, and must help the child where he/she needs the help... dealing with the trauma.

In working with children who have experienced trauma, adults are cautioned to use trauma-informed language. We must work with them from a trauma-informed perspective. Let's examine some differences:

Regulation

An adult must be a healthy functioning individual to be able to help a dysregulated child.

Children who have experienced trauma must learn to adapt. They may become dysregulated.

• Their body and brain response becomes driven by their experiences.
• Their fear/stress response or safety/calm response kick in... which one depends on the person and the situation.
• When fear/stress response or survival mode become themes in a child's life, it neurologically and physiologically changes the child.

The human brain develops from the bottom-up. How we react to something might not be a choice but may be dictated by brain reaction. All functioning of the brain is state-dependent. Examine this table, showing how the brain reacts over time:

Dr. Bruce Perry is one of the leading experts on State-Dependent Functioning. He teaches that the human body is composed of thousands of systems; depending on one’s circumstances at any given moment, some of these systems may be turned on and others may be turned off. Fear mobilizes some networks and capabilities, while shutting down others.

When we focus on the most basic level of brain function, we concentrate on the Brain Stem. The lower part of the brain controls blood pressure, heart rate, and body temperature; the most basic functions of living. As we move up the brain function to the Diencephalon, we work into sleep, appetite, arousal and motor regulation. Continuing up, the Limbic system is responsible for emotional reactivity, sexual behavior, and attachment. Finally, we arrive at the top of the more complex brain functions… the Cortex, responsible for affiliation, reward, concrete thought and abstract thought.

When working with children who have been under prolonged stress, teachers and others must understand that the activation of the body’s stress response systems requires emotional and physical energy. Imagine, a person is walking in the woods and sees a bear charging after them. They may run to get away from that bear. Once they arrive at safety, the danger is gone, and their body systems begin to return to normal. The person may be left feeling absolutely exhausted from the extreme stress and rush of adrenaline and oxytocin. Now, imagine a child who lives in a prolonged stress situation. They are likely to be exhausted much of the time. A key consequence of prolonged stress is more fatigue, less capability to focus, more irritability and some unpredictability in moods. Adults working with these children must remember to be gentle and patient.