Many individuals experience trauma during their lifetimes. Although many people exposed to trauma demonstrate few or no lingering symptoms, those individuals who have experienced repeated, chronic, or multiple traumas are more likely to exhibit pronounced symptoms and consequences, including substance abuse, mental illness, and health problems. Subsequently, trauma can significantly affect how an individual engages in major life areas as well as treatment.
Those who seek treatment in behavioral health settings and have histories of trauma, often don’t recognize the significant effects of trauma in their lives; either they don’t draw connections between their trauma histories and their presenting problems, or they avoid the topic altogether. Likewise, treatment providers may not ask questions that elicit a client’s history of trauma, may feel unprepared to address trauma-related issues proactively, or may struggle to address traumatic stress effectively within the constraints of their treatment program.
By recognizing that traumatic experiences and their aftereffect tie closely into behavioral health problems, therapists then build a trauma-informed environment across the continuum of care.
Key steps for providing Trauma Informed Care include:
Meeting client needs in a safe, collaborative, and compassionate manner
Preventing treatment practices that retraumatize people with histories of trauma who are seeking help or receiving services
Building on the strengths and resilience of clients in the context of their environments and communities
Endorsing trauma-informed principles in agencies through support, consultation, and supervision
Source: National Institute of Health