Foster Care Trauma
Treating Foster Care Trauma
Child trauma is caused by adverse events that overwhelm children or adolescents’ ability to cope with daily life and function normally. Although protective child laws are in place, abuse and trauma remain a major problem worldwide. Many foster children experience potentially traumatic occurrences that leave negative and lasting effects on their well-being and health. The experiences are often multiple traumatic events, mostly called Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs).
In such cases, foster parents and other stakeholders must understand how the traumatic events impact the children under their care. Trauma can affect a child’s body, behavior, and brain, especially if foster parents are unaware of the adverse effects.
However, putting a child in foster care in many cases is traumatic. While they are expected to show relief and gratitude for being rescued from the abusive environment, for the child, it also means a loss of friends, birth family, schoolmates, and everything familiar.
How Trauma Affects Children
Continued exposure to trauma disrupts a child’s sense of safety, security, and self-esteem. This alters their perception and responds to different situations in their lives. Foster care trauma may cause many children to develop unhealthy habits, aggression, disobedience, and distrust (especially for adults) if not addressed. Other signs of trauma include:
- Passive, despondent
- Anxiety and fear
- Being clingy
- Hyperactive and repetitive play
- Difficulties relating with others
- Sexualized behavior
- Sadness and depression
- Absent-mindedness
Still, it is highly beneficial to help traumatized children overcome their troubles and battles and emerge strong. Foster care children in such cases will require established or stable role models in the family.
Solution
Solutions to such issues take time, patience, and require therapeutic intervention. At Global Freedom Ministries, we recommend proceeding cautiously and avoid making unverified conclusions concerning a child’s behavior to prevent exasperation.
A common biblical principle to helping a child recover from trauma is patience. Don’t take the child’s behavior personally or expect too much soon. Also, don’t give up hope, even when you notice little or no progress as you start the process.
We encourage foster parents always to listen, answer questions, and provide the child with needed comfort and support. However, when this becomes overwhelming, please seek help and advice from others, or a professional. You can talk or share in our community or access helpful information and guidance through a membership portal.
From a biblical perspective, there are classic passages and principles, like the fruit of the spirit, to help us through trying moments. Love, peace, joy, kindness, gentleness, and self-control are principles and attitudes that help foster a compassionate response to foster care trauma.
The simple thought of God seeing everything, caring, and understanding what the traumatized child is going through is sometimes enough encouragement for the healing process. Reminding the child and making them understand that one day all the suffering and pain will go away facilitates the growth of a positive mindset. Positivity turns the mind away from anxieties and the uncertainties of future trauma.
Still, it is our responsibility to provide comfort, safety, and reassurance while walking patiently and compassionately with them, as we believe God is in total control.