A POTENTIAL LOSS OF CHILDHOOD: TRAUMA, ITS EFFECTS, & THE ELEMENTS OF HEALING

Trauma is likely to be experienced by many children in many different ways. Through an exploration of the current literature, this thesis, unearths a detailed look into four different trauma types: unaccompanied migrant youth, manmade disaster, natural disaster, and the domestic child welfare system. Regardless of how the child experienced trauma there were similarities amongst consequences and symptomology of the trauma. Many of the effects of trauma being evident through Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression, behavioral issues, poor educational achievement, and poor relationship skills. Six current and well-established interventions were analyzed for their efficacy amongst the four trauma types studied. This author found there were many gaps in the research, including but not limited to: length of follow up times, diversity of countries, and implementation methods. There is a great need for trauma informed care, as evidenced by the linkage between trauma and symptomology and life long effects. Unfortunately, much more research needs to be done