ABSTRACT
Young people often disassociate from the strong feelings that have accompanied their trauma experience. Intense fear and sadness are too much to experience for an extended period of time, and so, commonly, young people learn to endure the abuse or neglect, disconnected from their emotions. The young person can come across as being ambivalent or unemotional about what has happened. Attributing the pain and emotions to a character in a story can help the young person claim and experience their emotions. Story and metaphor can help the young person to connect thoughts and feelings to memories. Third-person narratives provide safety. Real-life stories of celebrities or sporting heroes that the young person admires, who have been through the care system, will have an authentic resonance that can be incredibly powerful. Some celebrities and famous authors have written books about their experiences; for others, there are interviews online that can be quickly found through a search.
