Trauma Informed Practice
Trauma (noun) a deeply distressing or disturbing experience.
Trauma can be defined by the impact of the experience has had on the individual RATHER than the actual event .
Many trauma survivors show extraordinary resilience....but many can struggle with the day to day aspects of their life - their health, well-being, emotions, relationships, and sense of self and identity. Complex trauma affects not only its victims but those with whom they close to.
When working with people who have experienced (or experiencing) great trauma, there are certain practices that you need to consider. Practices such as 'Trauma informed care'.
What is trauma informed care and practice? The best way to describe this is through the words of Dr Cathy Kezelman - “Trauma-informed services do no harm i.e. they do not re-traumatise or blame victims for their efforts to manage their traumatic reactions, and they embrace a message of hope and optimism that recovery is possible. In trauma-informed services, trauma survivors are seen as unique individuals who have experienced extremely abnormal situations and have managed as best they could”.
This particular framework empowers people to learn about the nature of their trauma and to take the control in their own recovery.....it is an understanding of the particular vulnerabilities and ‘triggers’ that people of complex trauma experience, and looking at ways to minimise re-victimisation.
There are five core principles you need to consider when working with people who have either experienced trauma, or currently experiencing trauma;
Safety – feeling physically, socially, or emotionally unsafe may cause extreme anxiety in a person who has experienced trauma, potentially causing them to re-live their experience. By creating a safe environment is key in providing a welcoming environment and allowing the person to feel both emotionally and physically safe.
Trust – create clear expectations on what each treatment will involve, who will be providing the service, and how service will be delivered. It is about giving the information they need and by keeping them informed of each step of their treatment, you are creating a level of trust.
Choice – provide an opportunity of choice, inform them of treatment options so they can choose the best option for themselves.
Collaboration - maximising collaboration among health care staff, themselves and their families in treatment planning. Everyone works together in providing the best support they can.
Empowerment – use their strengths to empower them in the development of their treatment and working through their trauma.
Responding appropriately to trauma and its effects requires knowledge and understanding of trauma...not to mention ongoing education and training. It involves not only changing the assumptions or preconceived ideas we may have about someone's situation, but creating an environment that is personal, holistic, creative, open, safe and therapeutic for the person who has experienced the trauma to slowly recover.
We also wanted to take some time to touch on what is currently happening around the world – definitely scary and uncertain times and causing much angst and anxiety among us.
You may be worried about either yourself or a loved one catching the virus and it has definitely heightened uncertainty over our economy, employment, finances, relationships, and not to mention, our physical and mental health.
These stressors, along with the constant updates and changes from our Government (who are doing a really great job in trying to protect us – both personally and economically by the way), along with media hype, dealing with disappointment (travel bans, events being cancelled, etc.)...... lets just say – it's A LOT to deal with, and feeling stressed, anxious is a VERY normal and understandable response.
Some ways to help you cope could be;
focusing on what's in your control, and working with that.
writing down what's troubling you and what you can do to improve the situation.
practicing self-care activities.
allowing yourself to take a break from what's bothering you.
practicing positive self-talk.
With the social distancing and isolation restrictions, it is important to know, there are services out there that can help you, either over the phone, text or online Lifeline (13 11 14) and Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800) can be accessed for phone and online counselling, with Lifeline phone counsellors on call from 7 pm to midnight, and Kids Helpline available 24/7. Eheadspace also offers free online and telephone support and counselling.
I cannot stress enough, you are not alone in this, reach out to your friends and family (or a professional if need be). Look after yourself, stay safe and focus on situations and things you can control. Deep breaths, you've got this.
