Trauma-Informed: An Introduction - What is Trauma? (Repost from October 2024)

We often refer to our services and approaches as trauma-informed, but what does that mean and why do we employ such an approach? Great Questions! Let us step back and talk about what trauma is first.

 Definition:

Trauma is an event, a series of events, or a set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or life threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual's functioning and mental, physical, social, emotional, or spiritual well-being. 

 Explanation:

To put this definition of trauma into context, let's use the framework of the 3 E's of Trauma:

· Event: This can be an event or situation, real or imagined, that threatens physical, emotional, or mental harm.

· Experience: The response to the event and the assigning of meaning and emotion to the event.

· Effect: The short- and long-term impacts and outcomes of experiencing the event. 

This framework helps us understand that what is traumatic and why it is traumatic is up to the individual. Each person can have different events, experiences, and effects that they define as trauma. 

Because trauma can have such a profound impact on so many aspects of an individual, providing care and services to someone who has experienced trauma calls for special awareness to ensure that they feel safe, receive support, and avoid re-traumatization. 

 Next time, we'll focus on what trauma-informed looks like in practice.