Children and teens are more vulnerable to trauma than adults. They can be traumatized by the coronavirus pandemic, any disaster, or a violent crime. What these children need is the right support to help them cope with trauma and recover faster.

The effects of trauma on children are varied, and being involved or witnessing violence, a disaster, or a serious accident can be overwhelmingly stressful. The array of confusing, frightening, and intense emotions can be too much for them to handle.

How to Help Children Cope with Trauma:

Today’s podcast is very different from the other topics we have discussed before. We will be talking about how to help children cope with trauma. Today’s special guest is Dr. Tamera Foley. She supports people in dealing with children with trauma.

In this episode, we will discuss at length what Tamera does, why her work is so important, and why everyone needs to care about these children. Tune in and see what Tamera and I talked about.

In This Episode You Will Learn:

• What Tamera does to help children cope with trauma. Her work involves providing support to teachers, parents, and childcare providers in finding strategies and ways to work with traumatized children. 50% of children in the United States have experienced trauma before they are 18, and we must support the people who are dealing with them.
• The definition of trauma. We explore the definition of trauma from organizations and people who worked with individuals facing traumatic events. Simply put, a child trauma is described as a scary, dangerous, or a life-threatening event that happens to children under 18 years of age.
• The difference between children experiencing trauma as compared to an adult. Children are more resilient and depending on how they are handled and helped; they can cope with it better than adults.
• Types of coping mechanisms that children exhibit when they experience trauma. Some children can turn to fight by displaying aggressive behavior, or flight where they run away or freeze where they stop engaging or building relationships.
• The system of support Tamera developed was based on her work with professionals who are dealing with children in trauma.
• The Seven Steps Tamera developed to cope with children with trauma. These include:
  • Self-awareness
  • Unconditional love
  • Patience
  • Perseverance
  • Organized environment
  • Knowing the children
  • Taking time to learn the techniques

• Reasons why you need to support the people who are working with children with trauma. It is important to ensure that these people are healthy, and they practice self-care because they need it when they work with the children through healing.
• Symptoms of trauma and how it affects the dropout risk factor. Behaviors like withdrawal from relationships, low academic performance, unhealthy behavior, and many more are some of the reasons why traumatized children are dropping out of school.
• Community violence and how it impacts children.
• What we can do to help children with trauma. Being a mentor or a volunteer can be a big help for the children in need.

Links Mentioned in This Episode:

• Education 4 All Now LLC
• Twitter
• Instagram

Do you want to volunteer or be a mentor for children in trauma? You can go to education4allnow.org/trauma or email Tamera. 

Be on the look out for Tamera’s upcoming book about COVID19 and Children!