• United Caribbean Trust distributing Healing Hurting Hearts children's Post Traumatic Stress Curriculum in Bahamas
  • United Caribbean Trust distributing Healing Hurting Hearts children's Post Traumatic Stress Curriculum in Bahamas
  • United Caribbean Trust distributing Healing Hurting Hearts children's Post Traumatic Stress Curriculum in Bahamas
  • United Caribbean Trust distributing Healing Hurting Hearts children's Post Traumatic Stress Curriculum in Bahamas
  • United Caribbean Trust distributing Healing Hurting Hearts children's Post Traumatic Stress Curriculum in Bahamas
  • United Caribbean Trust distributing Healing Hurting Hearts children's Post Traumatic Stress Curriculum in Bahamas
  • United Caribbean Trust distributing Healing Hurting Hearts children's Post Traumatic Stress Curriculum in Bahamas

Healing the Hurting Hearts

In 2017 the children of Dominica were traumatized following hurricane Maria which made landfall Monday, September 18th 2017 on the Caribbean island of Dominica as a Category 5 storm, in this context this curriculum was birthed, developed by the women and children of Dominica, the story "And Puppy' was written by the children of Dominica following hurricane Maria, a Cat called Garry 5! (Catigory 5)

It is a partnership between Lifeline Ministries Dominica and United Caribbean Trust.

The structure of the training and the curriculum follows the Bible Society Healing Hearts Club, written for the children of DR Congo and we are grateful to be able to follow the same structure and guidelines establishing a Caribbean Version following a natural disaster.

Visit our Healing Hurting Hearts website to view curriculum and download all that is needed for the programme.

HEALING HURTING HEARTS

Each of the twelve lessons includes a Bible story and a comparable real-life story about the experiences of a Caribbean family who experienced a devastating hurricane, so children can see the effects of trauma, learn how to work through their emotional and spiritual pain, and experience God’s love for them.

The Healthy Hurting Hearts curriculum is specifically designed for children who have experienced trauma. The book features a Caribbean family who learn about healing through the words of the Bible. Activities, such as drawing a picture of happy and painful memories, help them understand what they’re feeling so they can deal with their trauma and eventually work through it. Dance, art and play therapy is used to heal the broken hearts.

DOWNLOAD CURRICULUM

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in children occurs as a result of a child’s exposure to 1 or more traumatic events: actual or threatened death, serious injury, natural disaster or sexual violence.

Signs and symptoms:
The most common symptoms of PTSD include the following:
• Re experiencing the trauma (nightmares, intrusive recollections, flashbacks, traumatic play)
• Avoidance of traumatic triggers, memories and situations that remind the child of the traumatic event
• Exaggerated negative beliefs about oneself and the world arising from the event
• Persistent negative emotional state or inability to experience positive emotions
• Feelings of detachment from people
• Marked loss of interest in or participation in significant activities
• Inability to remember part of the traumatic event
• Sleep problems and Irritability
• Reckless or self-destructive behavior
• Exaggerated startle and concentration problems

Children may re-experience traumatic events in various ways, such as the following:
• Flashbacks and memories - These may be intrusive and may interfere with function at home or school; in children, intrusive memories are more common than flashbacks which are vivid experiences that include visual and auditory elements from the trauma, potentially causing the child to feel as if the trauma is happening all over again and triggering an intense fear
• Behavioral reenactment - Children may act out aggressively toward others or do and say things that they witnessed; they are often unaware that this behavior is connected to their abuse
• Reenactment through play - The child may represent the traumatic experience through repetitive play—for example, by repeatedly playing exactly the same scene of people fighting, a hurricane or a house burning down.

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