Toddler trauma and phobia

amother

Whitewash

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 12:27 pm

This doesn’t seem ok. Are you sure the trembling and vomiting is not her being sick? Most toddlers don’t stay traumatized to this extent. Have you been to the pediatrician? I would also get an appointment with a child psychologist asap.

Why are you vomiting now?

amother

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 12:32 pm

amother [ Whitewash ] wrote:

Well she doesn't tremble or cry or vomit when I hold her. She isn't sick. She's is scared. She's very expressive and she tells me she I'd afraid. Let's say she had a cat jump on her. And now she has a phobia of cats. When she trembles she says she sees a cat and is there a cat under the bed. So I know it's related to this. This wasn't from a cat but that idea.

amother

Whitewash

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 12:33 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Get an emergency appointment with a psychologist. I would be worried about this becoming a permanent issue.

amother

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 12:52 pm

amother [ Linen ] wrote:

This sounds very very odd. Trembling? Very odd

Have you ever been afraid? Maybe I am using the wrong word. Tremble or shiver the way a child who is afraid from the dentist would do while getting a filling or sitting in the chair or with the doctor before getting a needle. Not like someone who has fever.

amother

Linen

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 12:54 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Of course we’ve all be afraid. My kids don’t tremble in fear (nor do I) even when we are afraid but perhaps yours are more expressive. But the fact that she’s doing this days later is concerning. Are you comfortable relaying what the trauma was?

amother

Whitewash

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 12:57 pm

Trembling for hours all day is concerning for anyone but especially a child. The way toddlers work they can be easily distracted. What happens if you give her, her favorite toy? Or if you dance and sing with her? Also is she being exposed to her trauma all day? Is it something she keeps seeing?

amother

Viola

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 1:08 pm

This is not so rare. A toddler can have PTSD from a one time event, even if it doesn't seem hugely significant to us. There are definitely therapists who are trained to help with this. It can usually be resolved pretty quickly by someone qualified. And it's great you're asking, because even if these symptoms specifically resolved, the trauma would remain stored in the body and the brain and could reemerge at other times throughout life. Helping the brain and body process the trauma and release it is a priceless gift for life.

amother

Indigo

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 5:00 pm

I think the only thing that will reassure her is if you hold her and give her as much safety as she needs.
Maybe let her sit in the bathroom with you if she is still very little, or let her sleep somewhere in your room.
Right after a trauma is the critical response time.
Whatever you do now will affect her feelings about this in the future.
I don't know if you saw the mental health conference talk last week, but they addressed trauma.
https://www.imamother.com/foru.....63246
Maybe ask a trauma professional instead of your therapist.
Therapists aren't always knowledgeable about other issues than what they excell in.

ETA if this was a one time trauma that will never happen again, it is very likely that eventually she will completely forget about the event, as she is still very young.

amother

Acacia

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 5:14 pm

amother [ Linen ] wrote:

I tremble, it's a real thing, ok?
Moving on, I it sounds like ptsd, please reach out to a trauma professional.
Sending hugs you sound like a great mother!

amother

Hyssop

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 5:18 pm

amother [ Whitewash ] wrote:

Get an emergency appointment with a psychologist. I would be worried about this becoming a permanent issue.

This!

amother

Magenta

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 5:24 pm

It's a super hard balance, however you want to make sure that you're not making it a bigger deal in her head then it is. Too much validating the "scariness" of it (assuming it's that type of phobia) might make it worse in the long run. Of course at the same time you should be speaking to professionals to see how to proceed.

(This is what I was told when my son started having random phobias, though there was no specific trigger. I was told to not appear anxious and pretend everything was regular)

Rubies

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 5:29 pm

Kid seems to be still stuck in a trauma state.

Can you do some sand play with her? Or some drawing of her fears and some resolution in the drawing?

amother

Narcissus

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 5:45 pm

.Dan Siegel talks about this in one of his books, I think it's called The Whole Brain Child. He compares it to a puzzle with all the puzzle pieces flying around inside the child's head and the child can't make sense of the full picture. By s retelling the story many times with the child, it helps the child put the puzzle pieces together and make sense of what happened. You can ask her lots of questions and let the story come from her. You can also help her make a book about what happened.

I'd also take her for 2 or 3 sessions of craniosacral therapy to take her body out of fight or flight mode, which she appears to be stuck in.

taketwo

Fri, Mar 18 2022, 5:55 pm

Poor little kid. So young. This seems beyond your therapists scope. Please reach out to a qualified trauma therapist who has lots of experience with little children.

amother

Ecru

Sat, Mar 19 2022, 6:34 pm

I don't have any helpful advice but I wanted to send you hugs and I hope your dd finds peace soon. It must be so difficult seeing your child in such pain and not knowing what to do.
Please do seek out expert advice for your dd as it sounds like she isn't getting over the trauma, and may need professional support.