April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. In hopes of spreading awareness and to help educate our audience on ways to keep our children safe, we’ve teamed up with Kids House of Seminole for this month long series.
Kids House is Seminole County’s Children’s Advocacy Center. Its mission is to aid children who are victims of abuse by providing all necessary services for child abuse cases from report and investigation through treatment and prosecution in a child-friendly, non-threatening environment. Kids House is a nonprofit organization that exists because of the generosity of our community. If you would like to support them, please donate.
Click here to find a CAC near you. If you suspect a child you know is a victim of abuse, please call 1-800-96ABUSE.
Helping Your Child After a Traumatic Community Event
When traumatic events happen that affect an entire community, it can sometimes be overwhelming – everyone talks about it, it’s all over the media (television and internet). We can get so caught up in what has happened as adults, we sometimes forget how our responses can impact our kids. As a community we may see greater instances of profound sadness, depression, fear and overall loss of feeling safe. This can happen even if we weren’t directly involved in the incident. Children and teens may react in different ways, depending on their age and prior experiences. How you respond to the event strongly influences their reactions as children usually turn to the adults around them for information and comfort.
Some common reactions:
Feeling of anxiety, fear or worrying about safety, sadness, grief
Changes in behavior – level of activity, ability to concentrate, irritability/anger
Changes in sleep or appetite
Lack of interest in usual activities
Physical complaints (stomach aches, headaches, aches and pains)
Easily startled by loud noises
How you can help your child:
Talk to your kids (about their concerns or feelings, encourage them to ask questions and provide direct age-appropriate answers, comfort them)
Encourage your kids to take care of themselves – eat, sleep, exercise
Stick with your normal family rules/expectations/routine as much as possible
Address acting out behaviors (encourage positive coping skills instead)
Limit exposure to the media – television, radio, internet (including Facebook and Twitter)
Be patient
Monitor changes in behavior, relationships, attitudes
Give kids the opportunity to draw or play – this can help release “big” feelings they may have
Get professional help if needed or concerning behaviors continue after a reasonable amount of time
And don’t forget to take care of yourself!
