Hands to Heart: Therapeutic Techniques to Anchor Safety and Build Resilience in Children with Chronic Paediatric Medical Trauma
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Authors
Stewart, Meghan
Issue Date
2024-07
Type
Capstone
Language
en
Keywords
pediatric medical trauma , developmental trauma , interoception , self regulation , trauma wisdom , trauma , co-regulation
Alternative Title
Abstract
Pediatric medical traumatic stress (PMTS) can lead to considerable physical, social, and emotional development impacts in children and their families. Research has identified childhood as a particularly vulnerable developmental phase for medical trauma due to the extensive neurological, physical, and emotional growth occurring in early development. Historical gaps in research and discussion have led to less sensitivity and compassion to the depth of potential medical trauma exposure (McBain et al., 2023). Furthermore, medical trauma has a wide range of risk factors for children which can be misunderstood by a variety of professionals including counsellors (Locatelli, 2020). The aim of this capstone is to build context for counsellors in and out of school settings to understand the complex trauma response patterns, behaviours, and developmental delays rooted in medical trauma. Bringing a decolonizating and reconciliation lens to this capstone, I hope to honour a wide selection of voices including underrepresented voices and the value of story and to be reflective in my research process. The heart work in this capstone is to resource school and private counsellors with research and resources to support post-traumatic growth for children and their families using play therapy, a developmentally attuned therapeutic approach to childhood trauma (Bratton et al., 2005), and trauma sensitive techniques to support with pre-verbal and somatic memories.