What exactly does support mean? It starts with safety. For children with profound experiences, safe is not something that can be taken for granted. It is also important that, as a professional, you allow children to have positive experiences. And help them deal with their emotions. Those who do this work 'trauma-sensitively'. Children can cope better with feelings of stress and insecurity and thus increase their natural resilience.

Safety

Safety is a basic requirement for children to develop. Their stress system is often dysregulated, making them very alert to possible danger. This makes it difficult for them to relax. Safety starts with your basic attitude being calm and reliable. Moreover, make sure that children can feel safe within your working space: this applies to the building as a whole and to individual rooms. Like the doctor's treatment room, the corridors at school or the group room at childcare.

Predictable

It is important that your workspace is tidy, that there is enough walking space and that there are no protrusions that the child can bump into or hurt itself on. Also provide structure and predictability. As a doctor or nurse, tell a child what to expect from you, what you are going to do. Make sure no one can walk in unexpectedly. As a teacher, make sure you have fixed places, own school materials for the child and a clear daily schedule, with time and explanations between different activities.

Trust

Positive relationships are also essential for children's healthy development. Through their experiences with unsafe or unpredictable adults, children may distrust all adults. As a result, they may also react to you fearfully and dismissively or not look at you. Or react angrily and defiantly, while you try your best to be calm and kind. Help children restore their trust in adults by being trustworthy and safe yourself.

Positive experiences

Positive experiences gradually help children better distinguish between safe and unsafe relationships. Even if you have fleeting or one-off contact with children, you can help them: every positive experience with a trustworthy adult is one. By seeing them, listening to them and taking them seriously, you help restore their trust. In addition, if you work with groups of children, you can help establish friendships. Children who feel part of a group can relax and develop better.

Tools and materials

Window of Tolerance English version

Animations: Window of tolerance

The Window of tolerance animation explains the impact of dramatic events on a child. It visualizes the consequences of stress on the development of brain. But also, how you can help a child to cope with stress.

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Courses: How to support refugee children & youth

Help refugee children to strengthen their resilience, deal with stress and trauma, but also give them the opportunity to feel safe again. This course is developed for teachers who have refugee children in class.

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Infographics: Adverse childhood experiences

A child which grows up with a lot of stress, fear and insecurity can suffer from adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). For professionals there are 6 infographics with more information on what causes profound experiences.

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