Youths and adults who are victims of trauma experience significant impacts due to their past experiences. According to the study conducted by Kaiser and the Centers for Disease Control in the 1990s, adverse childhood experiences or ACEs due to trauma can affect a child well into their adult years. The following areas are covered by the study: injuries, mental health, maternal health, infectious diseases, chronic disease, risky behaviors, and lost opportunities. The importance of helping the client reduce the consequences of their trauma makes a tremendous difference in their long-term health.
One way for the client to improve their functioning is to focus on the triggers to trauma. These trauma triggers, like any other stimuli, occur before the person acts in reaction to the stimuli. The person could have internal feelings or thoughts that relate to the traumatic event (flashback, physical pain, or memory). They also could be affected by external stimuli such as sensory information. Exposure to this precursor leads to maladaptive behaviors (cutting, rage, withdrawal, drug use, sexual acting out).
Many treatment or psychological organizations offer coping strategies to help the client calm down during these situations. The Boketto Center for example has a list on its website of these strategies to help feel grounded. These are examples of reactive approaches. That is, the client first feels the trigger and then finds a way to cope with it. While there are benefits to this method, it does not relieve the client of the trauma’s stress in the first place.
Another intervention would be to deal with the prevention of the trauma trigger or identify its cause. When a client relives or experiences that trauma and a trigger is created, they have to react. But if they could learn what stimuli, internal or external, helps them, they can reduce its impact. These are preventive measures, which are designed to prevent the trauma behavior from occurring. For example, suppose a client cuts themselves when they experience a trauma trigger. The cutting is a way for the client to deal or cope with the trauma; maybe to feel a sense of control or a means of stress management. But if the client pinpoints what happens that leads to cutting, the behavior can be avoided. Suppose that the trigger is thinking of their abuser or the event. What they can do is then look at the situations in which they think of the event (e.g., before bed, at breakfast, or other times). Then they can engage in other activities that can calm them down (talking to a peer or adult, deep breathing, exercising) to counteract the fears they feel. This helps the client to proactively develop skills to reduce the trauma.
Other treatment approaches such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) or neurofeedback help the client to change their brain’s way of thinking and feeling about the trauma. These approaches offer more long-term success along with behavioral interventions.
Praxes offers training on Trauma-Informed Care and Interventions. For more information, please contact us.
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PRAXES is a nationwide behavioral health software, consulting, and training company. No one in the behavioral health industry has a better reputation, and if you give us the chance, we’ll show you why! At PRAXES, our services improve the efficiency and structure of behavioral health agencies serving children and families nationwide. PRAXES brings over 45 years of administrative and clinical expertise. With more than 100 client companies nationwide, we offer the expertise to advance the quality of behavioral health services. We accomplish these goals through our new clinical decision software, our training of best practices, and helping companies meet regulatory standards. At PRAXES, we believe in being creative and fostering new ways to serve children and their families. Our vision is to empower the families our agencies serve with skills that not only improve their functioning, but help them to thrive in their everyday lives. When you give us the chance, you’ll be connected directly to our friendly staff, so you can expect immediate attention to your inquiry. So, don’t wait, call now!
Dan Thorne has unique perspectives on the field of mental health. As a clinician, he has had over 40 years of experience working with clients in the Southern California area. After obtaining his Bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Irvine, he worked with children in the Orange County Juvenile Hall. Here he honed his earliest techniques on at-risk children. After that, he obtained his Master’s degree in Counseling from California State University, Fullerton.
In the 1990’s, Dan turned his attention to the clinical and administrative side of behavioral health organizations. For three years, he was the Assistant Administrator of Starting Point, a chemical dependency facility in Costa Mesa, CA. In 2001, he took an opportunity to be the Director of Harbor View Community Services Center in Long Beach. When he arrived, the Center had only 80 clients and 13 staff. When he left, there were over 400 clients and 75 staff. Dan created several programs through their contract with the Los Angeles County Departments of Mental Health and Child and Family Services. Under his guidance, Harbor View became one of the leading providers of children’s services in Los Angeles County.
While improving the results of the client’s parents at the Center, Dan reflected on his experiences as a parent. His children themselves had special needs such as mental and intellectual challenges, and Dan knew the toll it takes on the parent. In order to help the child, the parent has to be healthy. From this concept, he created his parenting program. After years of refining it, teaching it to his staff at the Center, and then taking the results and comments from these efforts, he became the developer of the current PRAXES program. It is a culmination of Dan’s personal trials and tribulations as a parent along with empirical results and research of over 40 parenting programs.
Our vision at PRAXES is to advance the strength of parents and caregivers of children with special needs (mental health, intellectual, or physical) through education, support, and empowerment. Thus, they can live healthy and functional lives while caring for the child.
Apogee is a clinical decision software designed to help behavioral health practitioners with their treatment and patient engagement. It provides evidence-based and research-based components. Not only do they consist of elements from such practices as Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Seeking Safety, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Functional Behavior Analysis, but also the Intensive Models for Parents, Youth, and Children.
PRAXES has over 30 years of accreditation experience. We know what it takes to get your organization accredited. Whether it’s Joint Commission, CARF, or COA, our team can provide an evaluation of your current status and review the standards which need improvements. We will assist you with the policies, documentation, and training required to be accredited.
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