Teen Adolescent Trauma
Statistics
Acute Trauma
Chronic Trauma
How Teens Respond
Identifying Trauma
Effects of Trauma
Helping Your Teen
Trauma and Addiction
Treating Teen Trauma
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Population Affairs, adolescent trauma can come from experiencing abuse or violence personally or witnessing events that are violent or abusive. Though not every teen or child exposed to sexual violation, physical abuse, a traffic accident, domestic violence, natural disasters, community violence, or severe injury or death will be traumatized as a result, some will experience long-term effects of trauma including damage to their development as young adults. Some will even develop an addiction to drugs or alcohol in an attempt to cope with the emotions they feel in relation to the trauma.
The following is an examination of the trauma-addiction connection in teenagers and a look at how families can help their teens break this cycle and heal the issues related to trauma before addiction causes irreparable damage.
Adolescent Trauma Statistics
According to the Child Trauma Academy, five million American children experience a traumatic incident of some kind every year. Of these, two million kids are the victims of sexual abuse or physical abuse, and even more spend their lives witnessing domestic violence. It is estimated that 25 percent of children will have been directly affected by some form of violence by the age of 18.
Teens are victims of trauma at twice the national average, and those traumatic events are usually committed by a peer or someone the teen knows. Unfortunately, it is estimated that 65 percent of physical attacks and 86 percent of sexual attacks on teens are not reported, making it difficult to make sure that treatment is provided to adolescents who need it.
According to the Office of Adolescent Pregnancy Programs, untreated trauma events in adolescence and the teen years can mean that the victimized teen is more likely to engage in unsafe behaviors. Sexual promiscuity, running away, and drug and alcohol abuse are far more common among teen survivors of trauma than their peers. Also:
- The Future of Children says that three to 10 million kids witness domestic violence and 30 percent to 60 percent of them become victims of physical abuse.
- According to the National Institute of Justice, about four million American adolescents have been victims of a violent physical attack and nine million have been witnesses to violence.
- OJJDP, Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 1999 National Report says that one in 12 high school-aged teens are threatened with or hurt by a weapon every year. In one Connecticut city, 39 percent of high schoolers reported being witness to a shooting in the year prior. In Miami, 90 percent of high schoolers reported being witness to violence in the community.
- PTSD is not uncommon among adolescents and teens who have survived trauma – in fact, it is estimated by National Center for Children Exposed to Violence that 20 million children have the disorder.
Acute Trauma
Trauma can be either acute or chronic; both can be devastating your teen’s development and increase their odds of developing a dependence upon alcohol or drugs. According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN), trauma can be almost any disturbing event, including being injured personally, witnessing an injury to or death of someone else, facing the threat of injury or death, or dealing with the threat of or actual sexual violation. The feelings of helplessness, terror or horror associated with the event can be triggered over and over for a period of time even if the event was short-lived or acute in nature. Some examples include:
- Divorce of parents
- Death of a loved one
- Physical or sexual attack to self
- Witnessing an attack on someone else
- Terrorist attacks
- Natural disasters
- Violence in the community
- School shooting
- Severe traffic accidents
Chronic Trauma
According to NCTSN, repeated exposure to trauma can be devastating to your teen, increasing his or her chances of developing an issue with substance abuse in an effort to drown the feelings associated with the event. Teens often feel a loss of control, intense fear or guilt, a lesser degree of personal safety, and increased sense of shame surrounding the event. Some incidents that fall into this category of trauma include:
- Ongoing sexual abuse
- Ongoing physical abuse
- Domestic violence
- Ongoing bullying at school
- Instability at home
- Living in a community characterized by violence
Any one or more of these issues can quickly lead to addiction because the teen reaches out for anything to counter the negative feelings associated with the trauma.
How Teens Respond to Trauma
The inability to cope with an event or process it successfully defines the experience of adolescents and teens who need help dealing with trauma. Age makes a big difference in how a teenager will respond to trauma, according to NCTSN. Some may be unable to sleep, isolate themselves, or have a hard time paying attention in school. Others may act out, behaving poorly or intentionally breaking rules, hurting themselves or hurting others. Still others may have intense reactions or episodes of crying, screaming, lowing control of their bowels and other severe responses when reminded of the traumatic event or put in a position to believe that it may be repeated. In many cases, teens develop psychiatric disorders when trauma occurs, including PTSD, depression, behavioral disorders and/or anxiety.
Physiologically, an adolescent’s development may actually be altered by trauma, resulting in changes to the brain and nervous system that may mean decreased ability to perform at school, increased negative interactions with peers and authority figures, and increased involvement in high-risk activities like unprotected sex and drug abuse. It can also mean a decreased ability to succeed in personal matters, at school and at work. Fortunately, help is available.
Identifying Adolescent Trauma
It may not always be easy to recognize when the difficulties a teen experiences at home or at school are due to trauma. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, assessment is an important component in the treatment of adolescent trauma. It is also difficult to perform for a number of reasons, including:
- An unwillingness to share details of personal experience
- An issue trusting others
- Ongoing trauma that the teen fears will continue or worsen if they talk about it
- Feelings of guilt that they caused the trauma
- Feelings of insecurity, embarrassment or shame
As difficult as assessment may be, concerned parents who fear that trauma has informed their teen’s drug and alcohol abuse or other dangerous behaviors should seek the professional and medical assistance of experts in the field of adolescent trauma. Proceeding incautiously can mean the risk of re-traumatizing the child if the trauma was acute. It is also important to make sure that assessment is immediately followed by treatment.
Effects of Adolescent Trauma
According to a study published in the Journal of the California Alliance for the Mentally Ill, 11:1, 48-51, 2000, brain development of the adolescent or teen can be negatively affected after trauma. Because brain development is not complete until the mid-20s, some part of development is dependent upon environment and experience. When a teen is traumatized in childhood, this can mean that certain functions are affected, including the abilities to:
- Organize and maintain a schedule
- Prioritize appropriately
- Make and follow through on decisions
- Remember details
- Recognize appropriate behaviors or responses
- Control impulses
Fine motor control, memory, cognitive ability, sleep and impulse control are all areas of the brain that control these functions and are affected by trauma. Treatment of traumatized teens can address these changes and promote healing.
Helping Your Teen Deal With Trauma
The best way that you can help your teen deal with trauma and begin the process of healing is to enroll them in a treatment center that can provide them with the medical and psychotherapeutic care they need. If drug and alcohol abuse is a problem as well, both issues should be addressed simultaneously at a Dual Diagnosis rehabilitation center staffed by specialists in both areas. In the meantime, according to OAPP, parents can aid their child in the healing process in the following ways:
- Establish and keep a routine around the house.
- Avoid punishing anxiety-related behavior problems.
- Help your teen prepare for potentially disruptive or difficult events that are foreseen.
- Be as empathic and supportive as possible.
- Don’t push your teen to talk about the traumatic event as it can lead to re-traumatization.
- Should your teen want to discuss the trauma with you, allow them to speak without judging their perspective or response or revealing your own emotional issues with their experience.
The Connection Between Trauma and Substance Abuse or Addiction
When an individual suffers a traumatic event, they will search for coping mechanisms to help them deal with the pain and emotional discomfort caused by that trauma. Oftentimes, in an effort to self-medicate the pain, the patient will turn to substances such as alcohol or drugs, both of which alter an individual's state of mind in such a way that their problems are temporarily forgotten, or shifted into a positive "space" as a result of the drug's properties. Without proper treatment, this may lead to addiction. This occurs as the individual develops a tolerance to the drug, meaning it will take more and more to achieve the desired effect of the drug, thus creating a fertile ground for dependency.
Studies have found that childhood trauma tends to produce the most stress for an individual, thereby making it one of the primary forces behind trauma-based addiction. For young people, the pain associated with a childhood trauma is still quite fresh, meaning it will take more drugs and alcohol to numb the pain. If, for example, the teen was sexually abused, they will still be dealing with this issue in a very real way. This can lead to heavy drinking and drug abuse at a time when the adolescent's life is still in an unstable state as a result of the trauma.
According to a study published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine 1993 Oct;22(10):1530-4, about 34 percent of teens admitted for trauma tested positive for drugs and/or alcohol. The most commonly detected drugs were alcohol and benzodiazepines, closely followed by cocaine and marijuana. Only two percent of teens who were screened for drug abuse but had no history of trauma tested positive for drugs of any kind.
Treating Trauma With Teen Drug and Alcohol Rehab at Newport Academy
Without professional help, the addicted teen's problems will only continue to grow worse with time. However, seeking professional help in the form of a teen trauma treatment center can help turn the tide for the better. Teen trauma treatment programs are effective for two main reasons. First, they speak to those issues that are unique to young people. This helps addiction treatment professionals gain the trust of their young patients by providing empathy and understanding about the forces impacting their daily lives. Second, and perhaps more importantly, counseling at teen rehab programs addresses the core issues behind the undesired behavior. That means a careful examination of the "triggers" (in this case, pain due to trauma) that lead to substance abuse and to respond in a manner that is healthier, more productive, and does not include the use of drugs and alcohol.
If your teen has developed an addiction or substance abuse problem as a result of trauma, contact Newport Academy today. Newport Academy is the country's leading teen trauma treatment center, and can help your child break the negative effects of trauma once and for all.
