Changes You May Notice In Your Child After a Stay in the PICU
You may notice some of the changes below in your child after they return home from the PICU. These changes should lessen and go away with time. If they persist for a long time, or do not get better, contact your child’s healthcare provider, school counselor, or family doctor. If you feel that any member of your family is having trouble coping after the PICU, reach out to your support network, spiritual leader, or family healthcare provider.
Emotional Changes:
There hasn’t been many studies of emotional stress among children who have been in the PICU. What we do know from the available studies is that children who have suffered serious illnesses like heart problems, serious injuries, organ transplants, or cancer may experience Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS). Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms are common among children and families of children who have been extremely ill. Most of the time, these symptoms are part of the normal process of dealing with a traumatic event for both adults and children. Typically these symptoms will lessen and go away in time. If your child or anyone in your family experiences these symptoms for a prolonged period of time, if they do not get better with time, if they are experiencing many of the following symptoms simultaneously, or if you have general concerns about any family member’s ability to cope, seek help from your pediatrician, family healthcare provider and/or a licensed therapist.
Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms:
For more information on Post Traumatic Stress Symptoms in children who have been very sick please visit the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Center for Pediatric Traumatic Stress website here.
Developmental Changes (Acting Younger):
Being in the intensive care unit of the hospital can be a frightening time for a child. When kids go through a very stressful period, they often deal with it by regressing in their behavioral and emotional development. Children may want to stop following normal routines that they have started. For example, infants who have spent a long time in the PICU may want to be held more often than usual. Toddlers may start having temper tantrums, or ask to use a bottle instead of eating on their own. Preschoolers who have started speaking in full sentences may go back to “baby-talk”, or no longer be toilet-trained. School-age children sometimes cry more than usual after a stay in the PICU, and teenagers can sometimes want to be with their parents more than usual. These are just a few of the ways that staying in the PICU can change the way a child’s behavior and temperament. Once the child has returned to his or her typical routine for a while, the changes often resolve. However, depending on the type of illness and procedures a child had, there may be lasting effects of the sickness.
For more information on normal child development please visit the CDC's developmental milestone page and chart here
Behavioral Changes:
What we do know from research on other hospitalizations is that the stress caused by being very sick in the hospital and being hooked up to a lot of machines can lead to behavioral changes in kids. It is very common for children to feel stressed out and scared in the hospital, and this may affect them after going home. Kids may feel helpless, anxious, afraid, or sad. Sometimes they may act withdrawn or want to be alone more than usual, or they may cling to parents and not want to be separated. Kids may change their sleeping habits or become pickier eaters. Younger children may feel guilty about being sick, or think they did something wrong to cause it. Older kids may act angry and worry about how they will fit in at school or with their friends after being in the hospital. Teens may also act mean toward their parents and jealous of their brothers or sisters.
Emotional Changes:
There hasn’t been many studies of emotional stress among children who have been in the PICU. What we do know from the available studies is that children who have suffered serious illnesses like heart problems, serious injuries, organ transplants, or cancer may experience Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS). Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms are common among children and families of children who have been extremely ill. Most of the time, these symptoms are part of the normal process of dealing with a traumatic event for both adults and children. Typically these symptoms will lessen and go away in time. If your child or anyone in your family experiences these symptoms for a prolonged period of time, if they do not get better with time, if they are experiencing many of the following symptoms simultaneously, or if you have general concerns about any family member’s ability to cope, seek help from your pediatrician, family healthcare provider and/or a licensed therapist.
Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms:
- Flashbacks and/or persistent unwanted thoughts about being in the PICU
- Nightmares
- A desire to avoid people, places, or things associated with the PICU
- Feeling emotionally distanced or shut off from others
- Lack of interest in usually enjoyable activities
- Being easily startled or scared
- Feeling overly anxious and/or easily angered
- Reenacting the traumatic event during play or through art
For more information on Post Traumatic Stress Symptoms in children who have been very sick please visit the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Center for Pediatric Traumatic Stress website here.
Developmental Changes (Acting Younger):
Being in the intensive care unit of the hospital can be a frightening time for a child. When kids go through a very stressful period, they often deal with it by regressing in their behavioral and emotional development. Children may want to stop following normal routines that they have started. For example, infants who have spent a long time in the PICU may want to be held more often than usual. Toddlers may start having temper tantrums, or ask to use a bottle instead of eating on their own. Preschoolers who have started speaking in full sentences may go back to “baby-talk”, or no longer be toilet-trained. School-age children sometimes cry more than usual after a stay in the PICU, and teenagers can sometimes want to be with their parents more than usual. These are just a few of the ways that staying in the PICU can change the way a child’s behavior and temperament. Once the child has returned to his or her typical routine for a while, the changes often resolve. However, depending on the type of illness and procedures a child had, there may be lasting effects of the sickness.
For more information on normal child development please visit the CDC's developmental milestone page and chart here
Behavioral Changes:
What we do know from research on other hospitalizations is that the stress caused by being very sick in the hospital and being hooked up to a lot of machines can lead to behavioral changes in kids. It is very common for children to feel stressed out and scared in the hospital, and this may affect them after going home. Kids may feel helpless, anxious, afraid, or sad. Sometimes they may act withdrawn or want to be alone more than usual, or they may cling to parents and not want to be separated. Kids may change their sleeping habits or become pickier eaters. Younger children may feel guilty about being sick, or think they did something wrong to cause it. Older kids may act angry and worry about how they will fit in at school or with their friends after being in the hospital. Teens may also act mean toward their parents and jealous of their brothers or sisters.