Fort Hood Shooting and its Effects on Children
Parenting Tips for Helping Children Through a Tragedy
Nov 7, 2009
Current events affect everyone, even children. Adults work through shocking and devastating events by talking through the situation and processing the information. Children and teens process information differently from adults, so they need quality time with adults to decompress.
Background of the Fort Hood Shooting
On November 5, 2009, a gunman opened fire within Fort Hood in Kileen Texas. The shooter was identified as Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a military psychiatrist. Allegedly, Hasan received information that he was being deployed and possibly to Iraq. The news of the deployment may have upset Hasan enough to shoot several people on the base, killing at least 12 people.
How Children Take in Information
Children take in all information around them. Their brains have not developed enough to filter information. In order to process the information, children use play. Children's vernacular has not evolved enough for them to talk through their feelings.
How Parents Can Help Kids Understand the Massacre
Parents can play a key role in assisting children to process the Fort Hood situation. First, parents need to limit the amount of news that children are exposed to. Watching or listening to the Fort Hood news coverage needs to be done without the children present. Adults use the news to gain more understanding, which is processing the information. Children who are exposed to the same news are simply hearing the same information repeatedly. They are exposed to the same story over and over again, which is comparable to reliving the same event over and over again.
When children take in the dramatic events through news, they need an outlet to process and draw the events out of their minds. Adults attempt to talk with children about the situation, but children do not have the skills to fully express themselves. Instead, they use play as a method of processing.
Parents can play with their children using toys already in the home. Allow children to choose the toys they want to play with and watch them play. Children who are exposed to the Fort Hood shooting news may begin to act out the information they have absorbed. If parents notice that their child is acting out scenes of people being hurt over and over again, the child is trying to process the event.
While professional counselors can use play therapy as a tool to help children through traumatic events, parents can use play therapy techniques to communicate with their child. Following the Fort Hood situation, parents who notice their child acting out the shooting can intervene. Parents can gently ask the child questions like "What is happening to that toy figure and tell me what the figure is thinking?". This technique will help the child to begin drawing out the stressful thoughts.
Parents Provide Security
Children may begin to associate a soldier killing another soldier or a friend killing a friend. They make simple assumptions. The child may begin to feel anxious about being secure in everyday situations. Parents can help relieve some of the stress by providing security. When leaving children, like at school or at an activity, parents can reassure children. Parents need to be specific about what time they will see or pick up the child. If parents will be late, they need to personally communicate that to the child. That way the child will know that parents are fine, thus allowing the child to feel secure.
A shocking event like the Fort Hood shooting affects everyone including children. Parents need to be observant of how the child is reacting to the situation. Limiting news exposure and observing play are good starting points to help children. If the child begins to exhibit higher levels of stress or physical aliments, parents may consider talking to a school counselor or taking the child to the family doctor for professional advice.
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