Glossary · Concept
Developmental Trauma
The pattern of harm that comes from repeated, relational wounds during the years a child's brain and body are still forming. Different from a single traumatic event, developmental trauma shapes how a child relates to safety, to others, and to their own inner world over time.
Stretch 2 · Settling InDefinition
The pattern of harm that comes from repeated, relational wounds during the years a child's brain and body are still forming. Different from a single traumatic event, developmental trauma shapes how a child relates to safety, to others, and to their own inner world over time.
Related terms
Concept
Attachment
The enduring emotional bond between a child and their caregiver. Secure attachment gives a child a base to return to and a base to launch from. Disrupted attachment is often at the center of developmental trauma.
Concept
Secure Base
A reliable, available caregiver the child can return to when the world feels too big. The phrase comes from attachment research and sits at the center of the Love and Acceptance wheel.
Concept
Window of Tolerance
The zone in which a child can feel their feelings, think clearly, and stay in relationship. Above the window is hyperarousal. Below it is shutdown. Widening the window is slow, patient work, and it is much of what the framework supports.