Trauma

Definitions and Key Concepts

  • Anxiety

    • A present-oriented emotional reaction to a current danger, marked by a strong escape tendency.
    • Characterized by strong negative emotion and bodily symptoms of tension in anticipation of a future danger or misfortune.

  • Fear

    • A present-oriented emotional reaction to a current danger, also marked by a strong escape tendency.

  • Anxiety Response Systems

    • The three interrelated anxiety response systems are:
    • Physical System
    • Cognitive System
    • Behavioral System

  • Children with Anxiety Disorders

    • Do not necessarily worry more overall, but they worry more intensely , consistently, and persistently than other children.

  • Separation Anxiety Disorder (SAD)

    • Has the earliest reported age of onset of anxiety disorders, typically around 7-8 years of age.

  • Specific Phobia

    • An age-inappropriate, persistent, irrational, or exaggerated fear that leads to avoidance of a feared object or event.

  • Agoraphobia

    • Marked fear or anxiety in certain places or situations where escape might be difficult.

  • Panic Disorder

    • Characterized by recurrent, unexpected panic attacks, followed by at least one month of persistent concern about having another attack.

  • Classical Psychoanalytic Theory

    • Explains that anxieties and phobias are seen as defenses against unconscious conflicts rooted in the child's early upbringing.

  • Obsessions in OCD

    • Persistent and intrusive thoughts, urges, or images.

  • Compulsions in OCD

    • Repetitive, purposeful, and intentional behaviors or mental acts performed to relieve anxiety.

  • Average Age of Onset for OCD

    • Between 9-12 years old.

  • Recurrent Depression

    • Many psychological disorders that did not use to be diagnosed in children, now recognized that children do experience recurrent depression.

  • Symptoms of Depression in Preadolescents and Adolescents

    • Indicators may include self-blame, low self-esteem, and social inhibition.

  • Bipolar Disorder in Young People

    • Difficult to identify due to infrequent occurrence, extreme clinical variability, and overlap with more common childhood disorders.

  • Early Onset of Bipolar Disorder

    • The earlier the onset, the more chronic and resistant to treatment it is, resulting in a poor long-term prognosis.

  • Infants in Emotionally Cold Environments

    • May exhibit depression-like reactions when raised in clean but emotionally cold institutional environments.

  • Child Maltreatment Types

    • Four primary acts of child maltreatment:
    • Physical Abuse
    • Sexual Abuse
    • Psychological Abuse
    • Neglect

  • Forms of Childhood Neglect

    • May take three forms:
    • Physical
    • Emotional
    • Educational

  • Definition of Trauma

    • Not the event itself but the experience, such as surviving a natural disaster.

  • Risk of PTSD

    • Children exposed to chronic or severe stressors have an elevated risk of developing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

  • Cultural Views on Children and Abuse

    • Historically, many societies viewed children as personal property to be managed, leading to condoned abuse.

  • Age Groups and Abuse

    • Younger children are at higher risk for abuse and neglect, whereas sexual abuse is more common among older youth (over 12).

  • Factors in Physical Abuse and Neglect

    • Relational disorders often play an important role in instances of physical abuse and neglect, frequently occurring during periods of stress.

Eating Disorders

  • Parent-Child Relationship

    • The most significant impact on fundamental biological processes related to eating patterns.

  • Pica

    • An eating disorder characterized by the ingestion of inedible, non-nutritive substances for at least one month.

  • Risk Factor for Eating Disorders

    • Being an adolescent female is the single best predictor or risk for developing an eating disorder.

  • Anorexia Nervosa

    • Characterized by refusal to maintain a minimally typical body weight and an intense fear of gaining weight.

  • Bulimia Nervosa

    • Characterized by episodes of overeating followed by compensatory behaviors like purging.

  • Binge-Purge Cycle

    • Purging is generally followed by feelings of shame and disgust.

  • Restrictive Dieting in North America

    • Prevalent even among elementary students.

  • Childhood Obesity

    • A chronic medical condition usually defined in terms of a body mass index (BMI).

  • Western Culture and Eating Disorders

    • In many cultures, self-worth, happiness, and success are often determined primarily by physical appearance, which is a sociocultural factor in eating disorders.

  • Healthism

    • A cultural phenomenon where health becomes a central, performance-oriented focus leading to potentially obsessive behaviors.

Research Measures

  • Incidence Rates

    • Refer to the number of new cases of a disorder that appear over a specified time period.

  • Prevalence Rates

    • Refer to all cases, both new and existing, of a disorder observed during a specified time period.

  • External Validity

    • If a research finding can be replicated and generalized to other groups and settings, it has high external validity.

  • Ratio of Depression

    • After puberty, the ratio of girls to boys with depression is about 2 or 3 to 1.

  • Gender Intensification Hypothesis

    • Suggests that gender differences in depression result from increased societal pressure for adolescents to conform to normative gender roles.

Therapeutic Approaches

  • Developmental Psychopathology

    • Helps provide age-appropriate diagnosis for children and families.

  • Treatment for Bipolar Disorder in Children

    • Often involves a multimodal plan that includes monitoring symptoms and educating the patient and family.

  • Characteristics of Childhood Depression

    • Associated disturbances include cognitive functioning issues, such as problems with attention and memory.

  • Masked Depression

    • Unlike the mistaken belief of masked depression, actual depression in children is often overlooked as it co-occurs with other more visible disorders.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

  • Key Feature of GAD

    • Characterized by excessive, uncontrollable anxiety and worry about various events or activities.

  • OCD Treatment Resistance

    • OCD is notable for being extremely resistant to reasoning, meaning logical arguments often fail to alleviate obsessions or compulsions.

Family Dynamics and Trauma-Informed Approaches

  • Healthy Families

    • Characterized by adequate coping skills and methods to promote child development through stimulation and attention.

  • Trauma-Informed Approach

    • Instead of asking "What's wrong with this child?", this approach asks "What has this child experienced?".

  • Key Motivational Variable in Body Image Issues

    • The drive for thinness underlies many dieting and body image complications.

  • Most Common Effective Medications for OCD

    • Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are effective, especially when combined with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT).

  • Types of Childhood Trauma

    • Acute trauma, chronic trauma, and relational trauma as identified by Dr. Adam McCormick.

Physiological Reactions to Danger

  • Fight-or-Flight Response

    • The immediate physiological reaction to perceived danger, aimed at escaping potential harm.

  • Sympathetic Nervous System

    • The part of the nervous system activated by the brain's physical responses to anxiety, preparing the body for the fight-or-flight response.

  • Behavioral System in Anxiety Response

    • The desire to escape a threatening situation is part of the behavioral system.

  • Adaptive Benefit of Moderate Fear and Anxiety

    • Suggests that moderate amounts of these feelings help us survive by increasing situational awareness and alertness to dangers.

  • Normal Fear in Children

    • The classification of a fear as 'normal' depends on its effect on the child and stress level.