Toxic stress: Information for patients and families (The Primary School)
Definitions & Key takeaways
Toxic stress occurs when an individual, especially a child, experiences long-term stressful events such as physical or emotional abuse, neglect, poverty, or violence, all in the absence of a protective environment.
Toxic stress can have dramatic effects on the body and brain development and lead to psychological, behavioral, and learning problems. In the long-term, toxic stress has been linked to health problems like heart disease and cancer, as well as depression.
Symptoms of toxic stress include difficulty sleeping, anxiety, fearfulness, and irritability. However, complications of toxic stress can be prevented with the support of a supportive environment with caring adults such as parents, caretakers, and teachers.
Everyday we encounter stressful situations, like our first day of school, meeting new people, or going through a job interview.
In these situations, the body responds by activating our sympathetic nervous system. That’s the system that diverts blood away from organs like the intestines or the bladder, so that we can increase blood flow and energy to organs like the brain, heart, and muscles, which help us respond or cope.
This is sometimes called the fight-or-flight response because it’s the same system that kept our ancestors safe in dangerous situations.
Short bursts of stress are helpful, especially if the stress is addressed in a positive way, which often means with the help of a supportive social environment with parents, friends, or teachers that care.
In fact, even a hug from a loved one can release hormones that can ease the stress and make it more tolerable - in that situation it’s called tolerable stress.
But if there’s a stressful situation like the loss of a parent, and there isn’t a strong support structure to help cope with the stress, then the stress can persist and it can have negative effects like insecurity, anger, and fatigue.
And when the stress system gets activated repeatedly, like when a child experiences physical abuse or chronic neglect, and if there’s no supportive social environment, then the stress can be overwhelming and have a lasting, biological impact.
This type of stress isn’t tolerable and when it becomes chronic, it’s called toxic stress. And events that trigger toxic stress in children are called adverse childhood experiences.
Symptoms of toxic stress include difficulty sleeping, anxiety, fearfulness, and irritability. And that’s because their brains and bodies are functioning in a toxic stress mode.
In fact, students that have had 4 or more adverse childhood experiences are over 30 times more likely to have a behavioral issue or learning difficulty in the classroom.
In addition, there can be significant biological effects like an increased heart rate and blood pressure, and even dysregulation of the immune system which can lead to more infections.
In the long-term, toxic stress has been linked to health problems like heart disease and cancer, as well as depression. The good news is identifying toxic stress early and connecting children and families with services they may need, like counselors and social workers, can help reduce the negative impact.
Parents and teachers can help prepare children for stressful events, by helping them build skills like relaxation techniques for managing stress.
Because stress can be disruptive, having consistent routines throughout the day and being surrounded by supportive parents, teachers, and other caretakers, can also help reverse the symptoms.
All right, let’s quickly recap. Toxic stress occurs when a child experiences long-term stressful events in the absence of a protective environment.
Toxic stress can have dramatic effects on the body and brain development and lead to psychological, behavioral, and learning problems.
These complications can be prevented or reversed with the support of a caring environment with strong and consistent relationships with caring adults in the home or classroom.
No notes for this video yet
Try adding a note below