While very young children are less verbally articulate about their feelings than older children, most children of all ages will experience some of the following features after exposure to a trauma:
- Increased anxiety when separated from family members
- Re-experiencing the exposure through intrusive thoughts, nightmares or repeatedly talking about the traumatic exposure
- Increased sensitivity to sounds such as sirens, planes flying above, thunder, loud noises
- Sleep disturbance, or fear of the dark
- Increase in minor aches and pains such as stomachaches, headaches
- Poor concentration with decreased school performance in some cases
- Increased thoughts about death and dying
- Irritability and increase in worrying
Preschoolers
If you have a preschooler, or have spent some time with a child between the ages of three and six, you have probably noticed that he or she is able to identify emotions including anger, sadness, happiness, and even envy. A child of preschool age can also tell you why he or she thinks another person feels badly about something. A 5-year-old may even express concern that a peer's feelings have been hurt.
Looking for emotional cues
When under stress, however, preschool children rely heavily on cues from important adults to help them choose emotional responses to given situations. When a crisis occurs, such as the recent terrorist attack, preschoolers will most likely check parent or teacher responses in order to regulate their own emotions.
