When a child has experienced abuse, their world can feel unsafe, unpredictable, and overwhelming. Healing is possible but it takes patience, compassion, and consistency to rebuild their sense of safety, trust, and self-worth.
Here are some thoughtful, practical ways caregivers can support children on their journey to healing.
Create a Safe Environment
Children recovering from abuse often feel anxious about what might happen next. Establishing clear routines — like consistent mealtimes, bedtime rituals, and predictable rules — helps them feel secure.
Listen Without Judgment
If a child chooses to share their feelings or experiences, listen attentively without interrupting or questioning their truth. Avoid pressing for details they’re not ready to share. Instead, validate their emotions with phrases like, “I believe you” or “It’s okay to feel that way.” Acceptance helps them feel heard and valued.
Encourage Healthy Expression of Emotions
Abuse can leave children feeling confused, angry, or ashamed. Offer safe outlets for expression — drawing, journaling, playing music, or engaging in physical activities like sports or dance. These creative and physical outlets can help them process emotions they may not yet have words for.
The Sesame Workshop has great tips for helping children going through big emotions and ways to make them feel connected and loved by caregivers. One tip they share is paining small rocks together, or giving a child a small square of fabric from a piece of the caregiver’s clothing so even when they are away for the day, they have something to put in their pocket to remember they are loved.
Build Trust Through Consistency
Trust is often shattered by abuse. Rebuilding it takes time. Keep promises, follow through on commitments, and be honest — even about small things. Modeling healthy relationships shows them that trust can be repaired.
Children learn by observing. Show them what respect, kindness, and healthy boundaries look like in your interactions with others. This sets a positive example for their future relationships.
Practicing Gratitude
Showing and practicing gratitude can help with building positive experiences. The Sesame Workshop shares that, “Developing a sense of thankfulness places us in a better position to face challenges with inner strength and resilience. And gratitude isn’t reserved only for big things such as our families or having enough food; appreciation for small things is just as powerful: a loving hug or a puppy’s soft fur. The power of gratitude lies in pausing, noticing, and enjoying the good feelings that come up.”
A great way to do this is creating a gratitude jar or a dream board. Here are some simple ways to create one at home: https://sesameworkshop.org/resources/gratitude-jar/
Be Patient with the Healing Process
There may be setbacks, emotional outbursts, or moments of withdrawal. Respond with patience and reassurance. Remember, healing takes time. When a child has experienced abuse, the journey toward healing is rarely quick or happening in a straight line. For caregivers, this can be challenging. We want to see the child safe, happy, and thriving again—but recovery happens in its own time.
Trauma may change how a child experiences the world. Healing is about slowly building safety, trust, and self-worth again. Patience communicates something powerful: You are worth waiting for. When caregivers respond with calm consistency instead of frustration, children learn that love doesn’t disappear when they struggle. This steady presence helps rewire the child’s sense of safety and belonging, which is essential for long-term recovery.
Seek Professional Support
Therapists trained in trauma-informed care can provide specialized tools for healing. Encourage therapy as a safe space for the child to process their experiences. Seek support for yourself too. Patience is easier to sustain when caregivers have their own emotional outlets and resources.
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