I have chosen to do a project on children who are exposed to stress and trauma with a focus on foster families.
I chose this subject because I see more and more children being diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder, attention deficit disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, and reactive attachment disorder.
I am wondering why our youngest population are experiencing such stress and trauma?
I do not think that only children in foster families are those with such such diagnoses, but I would suspect that children who are removed from their original homes are indeed under stress and have witnessed or experienced some type of trauma.
I was once told that trauma, simply stated, is something that is happening to you while you are saying "no" (personal communication, c. green, 2003). Just think how many of us have experienced stress and trauma over a life time?
What makes one child more or less resilient than the other? How do we support children who have experienced trauma in and out of the classroom setting? Are teachers and schools prepared to support these children? Are foster families?
Robin
