1.4: Adopting a Trauma-Informed Approach

What Is a Trauma-Informed Approach

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration (SAMSHA, 2019) in the United States explains that a trauma-informed approach accomplishes the following:

• Realizes the widespread impact of trauma and understands potential paths for recovery.
• Recognizes the signs and symptoms of trauma in clients, families, staff, and others involved.
• Responds by fully integrating knowledge about trauma into policies, procedures, and practices.
• Seeks to resist re-traumatization actively.

Why Is Adopting a Trauma-Informed Approach Essential?

As a career development professional, you will work in various settings and encounter very diverse populations. A trauma-informed approach is critical to promoting lifelong well-being for anyone who has had adverse childhood and adult experiences. Adopting a trauma-informed approach (TIA) means that the career development professional (CDP) understands how adverse life experiences can impact a client’s well-being and potentially influence their career decision-making. It is not always clear whether a client has experienced past trauma; however, if a professional develops an awareness of trauma, it can prevent retraumatizing the client. Re-traumatization can occur when a client must explain their story over and over to multiple service workers (SAMHSA’s Trauma and Justice Strategic Initiative, 2014).

The CDP can help to avoid re-traumatizing the client by using their different microskills to assess the situation and respond. The CDP should recognize that responses to trauma can include avoiding things that are reminders of previous traumatic experiences, and increased sensitivity to these reminders, people, and the environment. For example, if a client is uncomfortable in a setting, you could move them to another area. Many parts of the setting can cause a client to re-experience an event. Smells, sights, sounds or touches can be a trigger. For instance a client may cringe when exposed to a particular noise. It is essential to take a survivor’s trauma responses seriously (e.g., they may be jumpy or anxious, have a hard time sleeping, or may need to avoid a neighbourhood that has too many reminders of past experiences). This can be demonstrated by communicating respectfully and using appropriate language to build healthy, trusting and professional relationships. (OASH, 2021).

CDPs can provide non-judgmental, warm, empathic, and genuine interactions at all times while maintaining healthy professional boundaries (National Child Trauma Stress Network (NCTSN), 2020).

There may also be an opportunity for the CDP to provide information for the clients about trauma and its effects.  When possible, offer flexibility and choices as to how a survivor can interact with programs and staff.

Understanding Symptoms as Adaptations

When we adopt a trauma-informed approach, we understand that a survivor’s behaviour reflects adaptations to a world that has not always been safe. We must also understand that multiple variables such as brain chemistry, genetics, and life experience, as well as the person’s access to resources, affect how the world looks to them, what feels safe, what they think may happen, and how they ask for and use services (National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma & Mental Health, 2011). It’s also important for clients to understand that if they have a mental illness, they do not have to hide it, and they do not have to disclose it to get the help they are seeking.

Of course, this does not mean that the career development professional will not have reactions if a person’s behaviour is troublesome, disrespectful, or dangerous. It does mean that the way the career development professional communicates their reactions should not shame or embarrass the client. Saying, “We want everyone to be safe and comfortable here. You have been shouting for a while, and that worries some of us,” is better than saying, “You cannot keep making all that noise; you need to sit down and please be quiet.” (National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma & Mental Health, 2011). Both statements let the client know that people are reacting to their behaviour, but the first statement is respectful and acknowledges that the survivor is doing the best they can (Haskell & Randall, 2019).

Best Practices for Trauma-Informed Communication

One of the main goals of the helping interview is to achieve and maintain a trusting relationship with the client.

Career development professionals can model positive, non-judgmental communication to support healing for those in need and promote well-being for everyone. The CDP should listen empathically and utilize the microskills reviewed earlier in this chapter. Other best practices include the following:

• Communicate respectfully:  The tone of voice can significantly impact how people receive and react to messages.
• Be respectful of others’ life experiences: Recognize that someone’s mental health issues, substance abuse or physical health concerns may be rooted in “what has happened to them” and not because “something is wrong with them.”
• Build healthy relationships: When interacting with others, treat people with dignity and respect.
• Be an active listener: Engage with the speaker by showing interest, maintaining eye contact, and providing feedback.
• Focus on behaviours and not the person: Address specific actions or patterns rather than attributing them to someone’s character.
• Use appropriate body language: Adopt physical expressions that align with the spoken message in a given context.

Creating a Safe Environment for All Clients

An emotionally safe setting may seem challenging to achieve because it is hard to measure. The CDP should understand emotional safety. Emotional safety means that one feels accepted; it is the sense that one is safe from emotional attack or harm. Most trauma survivors have probably felt emotionally unsafe or had their sense of “being all right” taken away by others. Many survivors share that the ongoing and unrelenting attacks on their sense of well-being are more painful than a beating (King, 2009). Clients should always feel welcome in your practice setting (Washington Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs, 2012).

Many survivors may experience diverse feelings and worries that make it difficult to make decisions, follow plans, and tend to responsibilities for their personal and career needs. Thus, career development professionals can give clients greater control, such as booking appointment times that work best for the client’s schedule. The career development professional can also engage the client in thinking and planning how to gain better control over their situation. This can mean providing or offering a caring and calming presence, helping with tasks that appear to be overwhelming, such as completing paperwork or online scheduling of appointments or directions.

When possible, the career development professional can provide a relaxing place. When providing a calm environment, the message sent to the client is that one cares about their privacy and is interested in attentively listening to how the client feels and their physical and emotional status. A soothing space may be a quiet corner of a room or a comfortable chair, low lights, a flexible door that can be closed or kept open, or a source of quiet music. Alternatively, it could be a room with plants or flowers, videos of beautiful scenery, a source of upbeat music, and space for writing. Different things will be soothing at different times and to different types of clients and department settings.

Once again, the career development professional can provide information about trauma. Learning about trauma triggers can help clients understand and manage their feelings and increase their sense of control.

The career development professional needs to provide clear information and avoid surprises. They may be concerned about what the professionals will do with their information. Providing clear and accurate information about policies, procedures, rules, plans, and activities helps support emotional safety (Schladale, 2013).

The career development professional may be able to help trauma survivors feel comforted and in control. Each survivor has a pattern of needs related to emotional safety. For example, one survivor may find it reassuring to have clear directions or information from staff who speak with authority and expertise. For someone else, withdrawing from external stresses to explore their thoughts and feelings will be the jump start they need to plan for their future. An essential aspect of helping survivors feel comforted and in control is ensuring that survivors know they can ask for what they need. (OASH, 2021; National Child Trauma Stress Network (NCTSN), 2008).

Trauma-Informed Communication Strategies

What can the CDP do? They can create open, non-threatening communication by using focused eye contact and engaging body language. The CDP can ask open-ended questions to answer the who, what, when, where, and how questions about the topics discussed. When the client speaks, avoid interruptions and judgments and do not try to fix things. Also, remember to focus on behaviours and not the person. (National Child Trauma Stress Network [NCTSN], 2008; National Child Trauma Stress Network [NCTSN], 2020; Family Violence Prevention Fund, 2004). Table 1.3 summarizes some key points of trauma-informed communication.

When using trauma-informed communication, the CDP should be aware of the following things:

• Trauma can happen to anyone.
• The response to trauma is very individual.
• Consider that all clients have life experience or history and may have differing triggers.
• Assess each client and modify your communication to the client’s needs.
• Create a safe environment for all clients.

Attribution: Section 1.4: Adopting a Trauma-Informed Approach was adapted from Chapter 11 Trauma Informed Communication in Therapeutic Communication for Health Care Administrators by Kimberlee Carter, Marie Rutherford, and Connie Stevens and is used under a CC BY SA 4.0 licence.