Trauma-informed care (TIC) is a crucial piece of the behavioral health landscape. It’s a framework that puts the person at the center of care and allows their needs to drive the approach to care. In true TIC, the practitioner will ask “What happened to you?” rather than “What’s wrong with you.” Many behavioral health organizations have started to use TIC practices when interacting with clients, as well as staff. But becoming truly trauma-informed is often easier said than done. To help your organization become trauma-informed, we’ve put together this resource that answers common questions arou ..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

Psychological trauma is a common experience, with over 70% of the U.S. adult population having experienced at least one traumatic event in their lifetime. Unfortunately, trauma in the LGBTQ community is much more common. Despite this fact, many providers (outside of those who directly serve LGBTQ individuals) are unaware of how much this can impact their ability to best serve this population. Early in my career, I coordinated a youth program for individuals with disabilities. One day, a young man came to my office who was experiencing bullying at school. Not only did he have a learning disabil ..read more

The field of direct support was born in response to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) demanding autonomy over their lives and a connection to their communities. Fostering both these forces in clients’ lives is rewarding work for direct support professionals (DSPs). But this workplace environment also puts DSPs at risk of vicarious trauma. Vicarious trauma disrupts the balance of autonomy and connection, harming not just DSPs, but also people with IDD and the organizations that support them. While IDD organizations don’t have the power to prevent all stress or trauma ..read more

When I worked in a rape crisis center, certain images of clients’ traumatic experiences troubled me. Weaving their way into my nightmares, these memories didn’t leave me easily, even though they were not my own. I was experiencing vicarious, or secondary, trauma, which causes symptoms of PTSD in those who hear or witness others’ traumatic experiences. Because of the nature of their work, helping professionals such as social workers and paraprofessionals are particularly vulnerable to vicarious trauma. This is especially so after helping others navigate and endure a year like 2020. Self-care ha ..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. Some of the other hardships we have endured this year also bring hope for positive changes in the behavioral health landscape. Through all the extraordinary challenges of 2020, we have learned much that can serve us in 2021 and beyond. This year’s watershed moments have 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

Direct support professionals (DSPs) have faced increased stress in their roles serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) during the coronavirus pandemic. While DSPs are always dedicated to keeping the people they serve safe, they also must protect their own physical and mental health amid the added pressures brought on by COVID-19. Promoting resilience is a key tool in helping DSPs stay healthy and engaged during these difficult times. Just like other front-line workers, DSPs are putting themselves and their families at increased risk of contracting the virus by goi ..read more

The year 2020 is the first in recent memory to become a four-digit punchline, synonymous with a level of struggle that sometimes has seemed comically surreal. This year, a pandemic has altered our way of living, longstanding racial inequities have led to civil unrest, and divisions have troubled our communities. Although 2020 has become an absurdist punchline, its impact on our collective mental health is all too real. During late June, 40% of adults in the U.S. reported struggling with mental health or substance use, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Rates of anxiet ..read more

Even when organizations don’t directly engage with trauma, they are touched by it. The effects of trauma are present when employees call in sick. They are present when tensions build between staff and clients. And they are present when high turnover occurs and stretches budgets. Trauma-informed organizations change these painful patterns by acknowledging both the far-reaching effects of trauma and the many paths to heal it, becoming more effective in the process. Why Become a Trauma-Informed Organization? Trauma is embedded in human services organizations because it is extremely common. Almost ..read more

This year has been full of surprises and uncertainty. A life-altering global pandemic, volatile economy, racial tensions and accompanying civic unrest, and an election year have led to a tumultuous 2020. The usual holiday stressors on the horizon are now paired with a national healthcare crisis that has no clear end date. Everyone has been impacted by the upheavals in our society caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Everyone has suffered a loss of some sort. This could be a loss of familiar routine, sense of personal safety, time with loved ones, or a family member who has become sick or died ..read more