Research in Alberta shows that the most common triggers of toxic stress in children are: Parental mental illness. Parental substance abuse. Parental abandonment or divorce.
Toxic stress response can occur when a child experiences strong, frequent, and/or prolonged adversity—such as physical or emotional abuse, chronic neglect, caregiver substance abuse or mental illness, exposure to violence, and/or the accumulated burdens of family economic hardship—without adequate adult support.
We may feel toxic stress when we face strong, frequent, or prolonged challenges. These can include abuse, neglect, violence, or substance use in the home. These experiences can trigger our body's stress response. This response floods our body with "fight or flight" chemicals.
Examples of toxic stress can include abuse (physical, sexual, emotional), neglect (physical, emotional) and household dysfunction (parental mental illness, domestic violence, parental incarceration).
The National Scientific Council on the Developing Child proposed three distinct forms of stress responses in young children: Positive, tolerable, and toxic.
To know whether a child is experiencing toxic stress, parents and caregivers can keep an eye on behavior – is your child acting or feeling differently than normal? Other signs may include prolonged anxiety or sadness, difficulties concentrating at home or school, and being overly threat-sensitive, risky or reclusive.
The term “toxic stress” refers to stress that is not only overwhelming to a child but also not alleviated by the buffering of supportive adults.
The most common type of stress, acute stress, can be helpful in short doses. It is the body's response to a recent or anticipated challenge or unexpected event. Common symptoms of acute stress include: emotional distress.
It can disrupt early brain development and compromise functioning of the nervous and immune systems. In addition, childhood stress can lead to health problems later in life including alcoholism, depression, eating disorders, heart disease, cancer, and other chronic diseases.
What Are ACEs? ACEs are traumatic events that occur before a child reaches the age of 18. ACEs include all types of abuse and neglect, such as parental substance use, incarceration, and domestic violence.
Young children who experience toxic stress are at high risk for a number of health outcomes in adulthood, including cardiovascular disease, cancers, asthma, and depression.
When traumatic experiences occur in childhood (ACEs), feelings of powerlessness and loss of control are generated, along with a greater amount of stress, resulting in toxic stress. The body reacts physiologically to both physical and emotional stress.
Emotional Responses
Children who have experienced complex trauma often have difficulty identifying, expressing, and managing emotions, and may have limited language for feeling states. They often internalize and/or externalize stress reactions and as a result may experience significant depression, anxiety, or anger.
Toxic stress has the potential to change your child's brain chemistry, brain anatomy and even gene expression. Toxic stress weakens the architecture of the developing brain, which can lead to lifelong problems in learning, behavior, and physical and mental health.
Changes in mood
"Having low mood or apathy can be a sign that your child is feeling anxious or depressed," explains Dr Sharie Coombes. "Children may also get angry more easily than usual." Other children may display signs of mental rushing around.
Repeated or severe activation of stress hormones can increase levels of inflammation throughout the body which can then, over time, lead to damage to the heart and arteries. Toxic stress can even damage the immune system leading to a higher risk of infection or development of autoimmune diseases.
Most expectant women are warned that drinking alcohol, smoking and even eating unpasteurized cheeses can have serious consequences for the growth and development of their unborn children.
ACEs can include violence, abuse, and growing up in a family with mental health or substance use problems. Toxic stress from ACEs can change brain development and affect how the body responds to stress. ACEs are linked to chronic health problems, mental illness, and substance misuse in adulthood.
A study of young adults found that childhood trauma was significantly correlated with elevated psychological distress, increased sleep disturbances, reduced emotional well-being, and lower perceived social support.