Disasters and children's mental healthDisasters and children's mental health
All In The Mind
Traumatic events such as mass shootings and natural disasters can cause high proportion of children to suffer mental health problems. We hear how to equip adults to minimise the impact of trauma on children.
29:07•12 May 2019
Disasters, Kids and the Hidden Wounds Left Behind
Episode Overview
- Many children show short-term distress after disasters, but a significant minority (around 5–20%) may develop ongoing mental health difficulties and need extra support.
- Typical post-traumatic reactions in children include clinginess, anxiety, nightmares, and difficulty being away from caregivers, sometimes surfacing months or years later.
- Repeated exposure to traumatic events through news and social media can heighten children’s anxiety, making honest, age-appropriate conversations and limited media time crucial.
- The community trauma toolkit stresses that every adult around a child—parents, teachers, first responders and others—has a role in offering safety, reassurance and regular check-ins.
- Involving children in practical disaster preparedness plans, with clear roles and information, can reduce anxiety and strengthen their sense of being able to cope.
“Most children will recover well from exposure to a traumatic event or disaster, but for a small but significant proportion of children, they will go on to develop some ongoing issues.”
How do people find hope in the darkest times? This episode of All In The Mind focuses on children, disasters and the quiet, long-term toll that trauma can take. Hosted by Lynne Malcolm, the conversation centres on the Black Saturday bushfires in Victoria and the way that day still ripples through one family’s life.
April Harrison, who was eight at the time, recalls barricading in a hallway under a woollen blanket while her dad ran in and out putting out flames as houses around them burned. She sums it up simply: she was “terrified, but I had to be strong for my siblings.” Her mum, Rachel, speaks frankly about guilt, grief and the sense that “their childhood was stolen away”, while also noticing how anxiety has lingered for several of her children.
There’s no sugar-coating here; Rachel admits she and her husband are still traumatised themselves and jokes gently that she’s not even sure she looks after herself properly. Clinical psychologist Nicola Palfrey adds the bigger picture. She talks through what research shows about children after disasters, explaining that while many eventually find a “new normal”, a significant minority need more help.
She outlines common reactions like clinginess, nightmares, and school difficulties, and stresses that kids can be deeply affected even if they only see events repeated on the news. Nicola also explains the Emerging Minds community trauma toolkit and its core message: every adult in a community has a role in supporting children before, during and after crises.
Simple acts like checking in, limiting media exposure, talking honestly in an age-appropriate way, and involving kids in disaster preparedness plans can make a real difference. This is a thoughtful listen for parents, carers, teachers and anyone who worries about how traumatic events shape young minds. It might leave you asking: what small but steady support could you offer a child who’s been through more than most?
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