School holidays, Easter and chocolate – it can be the triple whammy of triggers for young people who have experienced trauma.

When you remove the structure of school and routines and throw the promise of Easter holiday activities and sugar into the mix, excitement can quickly turn to anxiety for vulnerable children.

CareSouth psychologist Leah Phillips explains that children who have experienced trauma “have a super sensitive fire alarm, ready to go off at the slightest of changes” particularly around holidays where they are constantly exposed to different activities, people, sights and sensations.

“With so much information flooding through our senses, it can easily trigger our internal fire alarm (amygdala) to go off,” said Leah. “When that fire alarm sounds inside the brain, it starts a cascade of events, which all lead to survival first (brain stem) and thinking later (cortex and prefrontal cortex).”

Leah says that for children exposed to developmental trauma, the cascade causes significant amounts of stress hormones to be released into the body, eventually triggering a full shut down from the top of the brain down. This results in the brain stem’s survival response of fight, flight or freeze kicking in.

“Once this has engaged it can take hours for the brain to recover itself and allow the higher functioning parts of the brain to come back online,” said Leah.
Leah notes that for traumatised children the brain needs the opportunity to heal in safe, nurturing, connected and predictable environments.

“One of the most important and significant aspects of trauma recovery is creating safe and secure environments, including relationships. What all children want, especially those that have experienced trauma, is you. Easter is a great time to certainly have some yummy chocolate, but more importantly create memories,” said Leah.

“Use this time to stop and take stock of what you are doing with your children, enjoy being with them. Create traditions, like dying an egg or everyone getting pyjamas for Easter rather than just eggs and then have a camp out on the lounge room floor in your new PJs.

“It is not the chocolate that we remember from Easter it is the time we spend with the people we care about. For our children who have experienced trauma, what they need especially at such disrupted times like holidays, is that extra time spent just being with you. Slow down and enjoy the experience, your children will thank you for it.”
Leah also stresses the importance of including quiet time and relaxation into each day and limiting the amount of sugar by encouraging children to be mindful of their Easter egg eating experience.

Leah suggests encouraging children to take in what their chocolate egg or bunny looks like by noticing the colours of the wrapping and the smells.

Ask children to put a bite in their mouth and notice how the chocolate feels and what it tastes like, before the child eats the egg ask them to note the sensation of chewing. Once they have eaten their egg asks them how their stomach feels and encourage them to recognise their body’s signals of fullness. Explain to them that when they feel uncomfortable or sick they have had enough chocolate.
And no doubt you will find yourself also engaging in mindful Easter egg eating!

During our shut down period from Friday April 14 to Tuesday April 18 our 24/7 After Hours service will be available right throughout the Easter break on 1300 554 260. All of us here at CareSouth hope you have a safe and Happy Easter!