What supports people to recover?
With the right support children, young people and adults can overcome their experiences of childhood trauma. Some people call this recovery, growth or healing, and others talk about living beyond the trauma they have suffered.
Whatever you call it, know that the Childhood Trauma Recovery Network is here to support you, and we will be trying to make the organisations and professionals you might work with more trauma-informed.
It is important to understand that not all people who experience childhood trauma will want or need therapy. We know that there are some things that can protect against the longer term impacts of trauma.
For example, having positive and supportive family environments, or building safe and mutual relationships with peers can soften the impact of trauma over time.
This is because humans are resilient and in the face of trauma can find ways of overcoming and making sense of the experience they have had.
Trauma-informed professionals, services and organisations know that every interaction matters, and that by building safety, trust and healthy relationships, people can heal, grow and recover from the trauma they have experienced.
Some people might need a little more support from a specialist to make sense of the experiences they have had. This could be because the way they have learnt to survive, or the way they adapted to a childhood trauma, is having an enduring impact on their sense of self, their relationships with other people, or their experience of the family or community they live in.
What is trauma-informed practice?
Becoming trauma-informed is something that all professionals, organisations and services can do.
Being trauma-informed is underpinned by kindness, empathy, consistent care, nurturance and a commitment to creating a sense of trust and safety. It involves being:
Prepared:
ensures addressing childhood trauma is a priority, and anticipates people’s needs.
Collaborative and enhancing:
involves people in decisions about their service, treatment and/or support, adopts a creative and strengths-based approach, and gives people’s hope about the future.
Aware:
understands childhood trauma, the impact it has on people, their lives, relationships and experiences of the world around them.
Integrated:
appropriately includes family, carers, partners, support agencies, and others to build a support network for the person.
Flexible:
doesn’t require a diagnosis to support people, and works with the different ways that people communicate their distress.
Committed:
takes active steps to increase their knowledge and skills, and those of the organisation or services, to build a community of trauma-informed professionals in the local area.
Safe and responsible:
avoids re-traumatising or stigmatising the person, and ensures professionals are knowledgable, qualified, and trustworthy.
Adapted from YoungMinds (2018).
How can I become trauma-informed?
Many psychologists, therapists, social workers, counsellors, mental health staff, medical professionals, police, etc have told us that they have not had sufficient training to understand childhood trauma and its impact on people, families and communities’ lives. This is because many of the qualifications these professionals have do not require them to become trauma-informed.
If you are reading this and would like to join Childhood Trauma Recovery Network UK, or find out about training in your area, get in touch.