Fears of 6-11 year olds in trauma

Latency Age, Six Years Old Through 11 Years Old Fears and anxieties continue to predominate in the reactions of children in this age group.However, the fears demonstrate an increasing awareness of real danger to self

and to the children’s significant persons, such as family and loved ones. The reactions also begin to include the fear of damage to their environment. Imaginary fears that seem unrelated to the disaster also may appear.

Regressive behaviors may appear in this age group similar to those in the preschool group. Problem behaviors include the following: ■ bed-wetting ■ sleep terrors ■ nightmares ■ sleep problems (e.g., interrupted sleep, need for night light, or falling asleep) ■  weather fears ■ irrational fears (e.g., safety of buildings, or fear of lights in the sky)

16Reactions of Children to Disasters  Additional behavior and emotional problems include: ■ irritability  ■ disobedience ■ depression ■ excessive clinging ■ headaches ■ nausea ■  visual or hearing problems Te loss of prized possessions, especially pets, is very difficult for children in this age group. As noted in the previous section, the school environment and relationships with peers is central to the life of latency age children. School problems begin to appear andmay take the form of: ■ refusal to go to school ■ behavior problems in school ■ poor school performance ■ fighting ■  withdrawal of interest ■ inability to concentrate ■ distractability  ■ peer problems (e.g., withdrawal from play groups, friends, and previousactivities or aggressive behaviors and frequent fighting with friends orsiblings