Trauma can happen to anyone at any time. It can even affect entire communities. Understanding how trauma impacts us both as individuals and as groups of individuals is crucial for behavioral health organizations. It’s only by better understanding this phenomenon, known as collective trauma, that we can begin to heal after large-scale traumatic events. What is collective trauma? Trauma occurs when an individual has an experience that shatters their sense of safety, whether that be emotional or physical safety (or both). Collective trauma occurs when this type of event happens to an entire commu ..read more

In 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health (OMH) reported that 42.1% of citizens identifying as American Indian or Alaska Native relied on Medicaid or other public health insurance, and 14.9% had no coverage at all. Compared to non-Hispanic white individuals in the U.S. — with 34.3% on Medicaid or public health insurance and only 6.3% without coverage — Native American healthcare disparities clearly still exist despite efforts to eradicate them. Major health challenges for Native Americans stem from lack of access and the effects of social inequities an ..read more

Across the world, healthcare professionals hail October 10 as World Mental Health Day. A program of the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH), it has been observed since 1992. WFMH’s mission is to promote the advancement of mental health awareness, prevention of mental disorders, advocacy and best practice, and recovery-focused interventions worldwide. World Mental Health Day is one way WFMH seeks to recognize the goals of this mission. Each year, WFMH outlines a special theme for World Mental Health Day. This year, the WFMH has chosen, “Mental health is a universal human right,” as the 20 ..read more

Untreated trauma can pose significant dangers to an individual’s health. Mental health clinicians need to understand this and work to integrate therapy techniques for trauma, as well as incorporate trauma-informed approaches into their programs from the moment the client makes the first phone call. Addressing these needs sooner rather than later will lead to better long-term outcomes. To create this guide to trauma-informed therapy best practices, we consulted with the following experts from the National Council for Mental Well-Being: Karen Johnson, MSW, LCSW Cheryl Sharp, MSW Linda Henderson ..read more

At the beginning of 2020, we never could have imagined that the development of a vaccine for a virus would be the highlight of our year. It gives us all hope for a better future in life after COVID-19. Some of the other hardships we endured that year also brought hope for positive changes in the behavioral health landscape. Through all the extraordinary challenges of 2020, we learned much that can serve us moving forward. Those watershed moments taught us that the pressure for immediate solutions in a crisis can sometimes produce lasting changes for the better. Dramatic changes in daily intera ..read more

What does it mean to look at your work through a trauma-informed lens? Imagine sitting in a parking lot, drumming up all your courage just to walk into a behavioral health center. You have never seen a counselor before, and you are very nervous. You haven’t had a good night’s sleep for weeks. You have nightmares, seem to always be ‘on edge’ and anger easily. You wonder if the people inside are nice and if the social worker will be helpful. After what seems like an eternity, you walk through the front door. You enter a large, mostly empty and gloomy waiting room. The front desk is surrounded by ..read more

Trauma-informed care is a system of care that creates safe spaces for those who have experienced trauma and reduces the likelihood of causing re-traumatization. The trauma-informed care framework includes recognizing, understanding, and responding to the effects of trauma in the populations you serve. It also reframes trauma responses as adaptive, rather than pathological — these responses are the individual’s best attempt at coping with a traumatic experience. For those with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) who have experienced abuse, trauma-informed care can prove very helpf ..read more

Disparities in LGBTQ+ youth mental health have been a growing concern among human services organizations for some time. This group experiences bullying, discrimination, and other forms of abuse more than other populations. As a result, LGBTQ+ youth are at a higher risk for developing anxiety, depression, and more. Because of these disparities in mental health outcomes for LGBTQ+ youth, it’s crucial that human services providers understand how to best serve this population. Let’s explore what your organization can do to address the root causes of these mental health concerns and help to improve ..read more

What does it mean to look at your work through a trauma-informed lens? Imagine sitting in a parking lot, drumming up all your courage just to walk into a behavioral health center. You have never seen a counselor before, and you are very nervous. You haven’t had a good night’s sleep for weeks. You have nightmares, seem to always be ‘on edge’ and anger easily. You wonder if the people inside are nice and if the social worker will be helpful. After what seems like an eternity, you walk through the front door. You enter a large, mostly empty and gloomy waiting room. The front desk is surrounded by ..read more

Trauma is pervasive. 70% of adults have experienced some type of traumatic event at least once in their lives. This can include many different experiences. Surviving a natural disaster, experiencing abuse or sexual assault, first responders arriving at the scene of a crime — all these experiences (and more) can create a traumatic stress response. For healthcare organizations of all kinds, becoming trauma-informed has never been more important. What does it mean to be trauma-informed? At its core, a trauma-informed approach seeks to reorient the traditional view of trauma and its effects on the ..read more