When I look back on my life, there are many different traumatic experiences I have gone through, a few that I would never want to have happened simply because there are still nonvisible scars that will never go away. Still, it makes me more aware of the surroundings and individuals' behavior. Being a single mother makes me more aware that everyone needs to be able to heal, and there is no time limit on such a powerful thing.

Immediately, when I think of any trauma or mental health that I have experienced, it will be when I had my daughter in 2018. She is my pride and joy, and the pregnancy was pretty rocky due to the relationship I was in; it was very stressful, and only a few "happy" days. A week after I had my daughter, I was back in the hospital diagnosed with Bell's Palsy. Bell's Palsy is when the muscles on one side of the face become weak- temporarily paralyzed. Before being diagnosed, I had no clue what Bell's Palsy was. The doctors looked at me and said, "What are you stressed about?"- your body reacts very traumatic to stress and just decided to shut down. Of course, like any human, especially one that just had her first child, hearing all of that is very scary. From that day forward, I decided to live my life for myself & my daughter. I want no parts if it doesn't involve me being genuinely happy. I made a vow that I would never let another individual have so much power over me that put me in the hospital and have my mental health at a risk.

COLLAPSE

Discussion Part 1

• What is your opinion on the ACE studies? Do you consider it to be a good representative of the population? Why or why not?

In my opinion, the ACE studies show all the different categories that any child can go through and how it affects them in the long run. Adverse childhood experiences are more profound than many believe, and the studies show just that. Experiencing adverse childhood trauma has been linked to increased medical conditions in a child up to adulthood. Any abuse can cause PTSD, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, poor self-image, and significant health issues. Many children who have experienced abuse might also have learning disadvantages in the academic environment, which can cause bullying. Traumatic childhood trauma not only affects a child while they are a child, but it rolls over to adulthood as well. The ACE study is a good representative of the population, considering it is accurate in many aspects. I took the ACES quiz last semester and was shocked by my results. Some things in my childhood I did not look at as being a traumatic experience, but the study put things in a more understanding perspective of why I do/ have done something. (Shattnawi et al., 2022) 

• Identify and explain, in your own words, three types (categories) of trauma you found most interesting in the course readings. Provide an example for each type of trauma. 

Acute Trauma: When a single traumatic event has happened in an individual's life, for example, a traumatic car accident. 

Organizational trauma: This type of trauma is when an entire organization experiences an unexpected traumatic loss, for example, if there is a terrible fire at a workplace and everyone loses their jobs. 

Complex Trauma: This type of trauma is the main result of when a child or adult is being abused and has chronic trauma based on what a parent or caregiver has done to them, for example, when an older adult is getting mistreated in a nursing home.

• Why do you think children are especially susceptible to trauma?

In my opinion, children are more susceptible to trauma because they are like sponges. They soak up everything that is happening around them in the environment they are living in. Children have such big loving hearts that, at some ages, they do not even understand that some individuals are causing harm to them because children are pleasers. They want to feel loved and wanted and see no evil in other humans, especially those they believe should love them, like parents and family members. When something drastic happens to them, they are more afraid to speak up, which leaves them more vulnerable to trauma. 

• Identify at least two grief infored or trauma informed strategies that can be used to help a student/client.

Creating a supportive school environment is a beneficial grief-informed strategy for helping students because many might not have positive support at home. Some students leave a toxic home environment and come to school to feel happier and have a sense of weight lifted off them. Home is not always considered a person's haven; creating a supportive/safe school environment will help students be more open about what they are dealing with and become more social. (Peterson, 2018) 

Another helpful strategy to help students deal with grief and or trauma is understanding the random outbursts or aggressiveness and understanding that there is hurt behind that anger and that it is not personal. Taking time to listen and be a listening ear is what many students need. A venting session can be constructive with students who are dealing with grief and trauma. (Peterson, 2018) 

• Do you think it should be mandated that all health professionals receive education about the effects of trauma and how to assess for trauma? 

Yes, of course, all health professionals should receive education and training on how trauma can affect individuals. Trauma is rooted deep in an individual; many individuals will never truly understand why a person thinks or behaves if they do not comprehend the root of all the pain/misunderstanding a person has been through. All health professionals should most definitely be trained on how to assess for trauma. It will be the blueprint for how to help many individuals. Learning mental health/ trauma is a nonstop learning process for all health professionals. 

• From your professional perspective, why is it important to have a basic knowledge and understanding of the effects of grief and trauma? (How is this necessary in your future role?)

As a future foster care advocate, learning essential knowledge and understanding the effects of grief and trauma will be a critical part of my role. Understanding that each child in the foster care system comes from different backgrounds and all have different adverse childhood experiences will help me to understand them in a more personal way. Building trust with them, showing non-judgment, and hearing them out will allow them to trust and know that I am here to support them most helpfully without judging or making them feel less of a person. Understanding trauma and the effects of grief will help me in my future career goal overall and is very important for my future career. 

The second personal goal I hope to learn from this course is different techniques and coping skills to help the children heal from any trauma they may have faced. Understanding various traumas and their effects on an individual will help me learn how to mentor them, as well as many questions about why a person might behave a certain way. The biggest takeaway from reviewing the resources on mental health concerns is that most mental health disorders start around the age of 14. The first initial thought in my head was how many children are suffering, and their parents have no clue.

In my future goal as a foster care advocate, knowledge of identifying trauma and mental illness at the first signs will help me help the children in their coping skills. Learning to identify crises, mental illnesses, and any trauma will help me help the children in foster care to understand themselves, see self-worth and passion as well, and know that their feelings are entirely valid. There is a healthy way to overcome all challenges. Many foster care kids grow up with hurt, confusion, different forms of trauma, and mental health issues as well. We all understand that some children are taken away from their biological parents because of neglect or even abuse- but their lives don't nicely get better once they are taken out of the unhealthy environment. This class will help me in my futre goals, being a parent as well as my indivual mental health; look forward to learning with you all.

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