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2.6.4 Ali , 15 years old , Northern Iraq . Reactions and symptoms .
Ali lost his father , killed by a mine , and was sexually abused by his new stepfather . He escaped to a refugee camp , and was eventually resettled abroad , but struggled to adapt .
Ali
His trauma reactions include :
• Distrust of others .
• Nightmares .
• Flashbacks and triggers .
• Anxiety and depression .
• Social withdrawal .
• Overactivation and restlessness .
• Dissociation .
KEY TO KNOW
Until his father ’ s death , Ali ’ s childhood was secure and happy . But after his father ’ s death , Ali and his family were financially insecure , anxious , and felt unprotected . Ali was plagued by nightmares and flashbacks about what had happened to his father . Every night he dreamed that his father came from the store , there was an explosion , and his father disappeared . He woke up screaming . He did not want to see his friends or go to school . His dreams of becoming a trader like his father evaporated ; he felt overwhelmed and did not want to think about the future .
His life became worse after his new stepfather began visiting him at night to molest him sexually . Ali could not talk to his mother or deal with his feelings . After he fled , for a while he felt a little better .
After he was resettled and placed in a reception centre in his new country , Ali started going to school . But he did not talk much , looked no-one in the eye , and took lunch alone . At night , the nightmares returned , and he woke up screaming . He turned on the light and calmed himself but kept his eyes open and stayed awake . Ali looked nervous every time someone approached him , and if someone came too close , he walked away . In class , his feet were in constant movement and he often stared out of the window , paying no attention to what the teachers said to him .
Many of these reactions persisted : hyperarousal , mistrust , anxiety , social withdrawal and nightmares . He was triggered by the voice of an older man he met . The reactions amplified until a staff member took him in hand and gently and gradually included him in the life of the reception centre .