Signs of Childhood Trauma in Children and Adults

November 5, 2024

Sometimes the things we experience as kids stay with us through adulthood. That is the case with trauma.

Childhood trauma can affect everyone differently. For some, it can have significant mental health effects. For others, it might mean the development of chronic physical health conditions.

How trauma affects you depends on many things, including your temperament, resources, and environment. In every case, healing is possible.

What’s childhood trauma?

Childhood trauma, also known as developmental trauma, is any significant experience that overwhelms a child’s ability to function and cope.

Trauma usually involves circumstances that are perceived as highly threatening — physically, emotionally, or both. But what’s traumatic for you may not be for someone else, and vice versa.

Childhood trauma isn’t a formal diagnosis in the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5).

Instead, it’s listed as a possible contributing factor for several mental health conditions, including anxiety and mood disorders.

Because of this, there isn’t a formal list of causes or symptoms of trauma.

What may affect one child may not have the same impact on another.

In general, traumatic experiences for a child may include:

Abuse

  • physical
  • emotional
  • sexual

Neglect

  • physical
  • emotional
  • financial

Medical trauma

  • chronic illnesses
  • hospitalizations
  • medical procedures
  • emergency transport
  • accidents
  • other experiences involving pain or injury

Household challenges

  • difficult divorce
  • family mental illness
  • exposure to domestic violence and intimate partner violence
  • family substance use disorder
  • incarcerated relatives
  • loss of a loved one, sudden or anticipated

Environmental adversity and social influences

  • natural disasters (witnessing, experiencing, or losing loved ones to one)
  • homelessness
  • poverty and other economic challenges
  • racism
  • bullying
  • acts of violence, including hate crimes and terrorism
  • discrimination

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) vs. trauma

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are events or situations that can negatively impact a child’s mental and physical development.

While ACEs carry the potential to cause trauma symptoms, they don’t always have this effect.

Trauma occurs when a child doesn’t have the resources or isn’t able to cope with an ACE, for example.

Symptoms of childhood trauma in adults

Childhood trauma may have long-term effects that affect how you live your life as an adult. A multitude of trauma effects can be experienced long after the initial shock has faded away.

For instance, research indicates childhood trauma is linked to significantly higher rates of chronic physical and mental health conditions among adults.

Long term effects of childhood trauma

On the side of mental health, one of the most common diagnoses associated with trauma is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

PTSD is often a result of exposure to a traumatic event during childhood or adulthood. This event may be a one-time incident or a repetitive occurrence.

Approximately 3.5% of adults in the United States experience symptoms of PTSD every year, and an estimated 1 in 11 will receive a PTSD diagnosis in their lifetime.

Symptoms of PTSD include:

  • intrusive thoughts
  • flashbacks
  • hypervigilance
  • avoidance of people, places, or situations that may be reminders of the traumatic event
  • inability to remember details about the traumatic event
  • distorted beliefs about self and others
  • self-critical thoughts or beliefs
  • guilt
  • self-blame
  • feelings of detachment
  • emotional unavailability
  • social withdrawal
  • lack of positive emotions
  • irritability
  • reckless behaviour
  • difficulty sleeping
  • inability to trust others
  • insecure or anxious attachment style

But not all traumatic events result in PTSD.

Other mental health conditions may also develop from experiencing childhood trauma. They’re not mutually exclusive. Sometimes, you may live with symptoms of two or more of these conditions.

Some of the most common ones include:

  • major depression disorder (MDD)
  • generalized anxiety disorder
  • specific phobia
  • panic disorder
  • conduct disorder
  • substance use disorder

Your long-term physical health may also change as a result of what you’ve experienced as a child.

Childhood trauma has been linked to increased chances of:

  • heart disease
  • stroke
  • cancer
  • diabetes
  • sexually transmitted diseases
  • obesity
  • chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
  • suicide

Symptoms that aren’t a formal diagnosis

Sometimes, experiencing a traumatic childhood event doesn’t result in a diagnosable condition.

Protective factors, such as certain types of temperament or a strong support network, may buffer some of the effects of trauma.

It’s possible that some people may not experience significant lasting, adverse effects of trauma.

Sometimes, the results of trauma are less noticeable or impairing but still present. This will look different for every person.

Maybe you developed a bird phobia, or you may rely on manipulation tactics in your relationships.

Other effects can be more disruptive to your adult life.

Childhood trauma can impact how you:

  • Build bonds in relationships. You may be afraid to trust anyone fully or be afraid to commit in a relationship.
  • Express or regulate your emotions. You may have difficulty saying what you’re thinking without emotional outburst.
  • Respond to authority figures. You may have an intense dislike or mistrust of authority figures.
  • Handle stressful situations. You may become more easily overwhelmed in times of stress or have lower tolerance to frustration.
  • Behave socially. You may avoid certain types of social events or speaking with certain people.
  • Perform at school or work. You may be absent-minded or unable to focus clearly.
  • Envision your future success. You may doubt you have the ability to go far in life.

When you’ve experienced childhood trauma, you may not realize how it impacts your life as an adult.

The effects can be subtle, like locking yourself into a job you hate, for example. Deep down, this choice might be due to self-doubt as a result of the trauma you experienced.

Only a mental health professional can help you explore and identify how childhood trauma has affected you.

References:

Signs of Childhood Trauma: How to Identify in Children and Adults

How to get in touch

Contact me by email on [email protected] or on 0406 765 522.

 

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