Crisis and Trauma by Morgan Gainey

Introduction/Prior Knowledge

mgainey10 — 2025-09-15 03:28:21 UTC

My name is Morgan Gainey and I am working toward my M. Ed. in school counseling. I am currently set to graduate in May of 2026! I have been looking forward to the opportunity to be a high school counselor and have just started as a secondary (6-12) counselor at a rural collegiate school district. I am a mom of a three- and four-year-old and a coach's wife, so life is full and fun! My goal for this course is to learn applicable skills for my current and future positions to better serve my students. Unfortunately, trauma and mental health are real and prevalent and I want to be a valuable asset to my students who may need resources.

The most profound piece of information from the unit materials is truly how prevalent mental health is in adults AND youth. I felt confident taking the quizzes as I have worked in the school system for quite some time and have been required to take mental health trainings. I know that I certainly do not know everything there is to know and I am hopeful that I will add more knowledge as this course continues. This course will be helpful as I navigate the senior year of students who lost a classmate due to a traumatic on-campus event.

In my previous school district, my campus alone has faced at least one traumatic event every year for the past 3 years. These events did not happen on campus, but deeply impacted students and staff alike. While I never wish these kind of experiences on anyone, I did learn more about the process of handling traumatic events that widely impact the school setting and how individuals process trauma differently.

After some searching, I found that May is mental health awareness month. While I wouldn't necessarily wait until then to start discussing mental health, it provides a great opportunity for school counselors to provide lessons and discussions around the sensitive topics of mental health, trauma, and crises.

ASCA Ethical Standards

mgainey10 — 2025-09-15 03:32:13 UTC

These standards come from ASCA or American School Counselor Association. These are the guidelines for ethical obligations of school counselors in the nation.

2 Tex. Educ. Code 33.002-33.009

mgainey10 — 2025-09-15 03:34:58 UTC

This code serves as the law for school counselors in Texas.

Reference Guide for Mental Health Disorders

mgainey10 — 2025-09-15 03:38:54 UTC

This guide provides a quick reference with sources for a variety of mental health disorders. It is useful for recognizing signs of mental health that goes beyond the role of the school counselor.

Developmental Discussions on Trauma

mgainey10 — 2025-09-15 03:58:44 UTC

These posts discuss trauma types, documentaries and their relation to trauma, and also a school counselor's response to types of trauma.

mgainey10 — 2025-10-08 12:45:01 UTC

Upon first hearing of Psychological First Aid (PFA), I believed it to be similar to Mental Health First Aid (MHFA). Through my research I found that MHFA is used for anyone who is showing signs of mental health concerns or distress and PFA is specifically for use following a traumatic event (Canadian Red Cross, 2019). Receiving my Psychological First Aid certificate was relevant to the field of school counseling as it has equipped me for response after crises. According to The National Child Traumatic Stress Network, around 25% of children in America will experience at least one traumatic event before they leave high school (n.d.). This demonstrates the need for this type of training.

Psychological First Aid

mgainey10 — 2025-10-08 12:45:40 UTC

Crisis Prevention and Threat Assessment

mgainey10 — 2025-10-09 02:18:38 UTC

This collaborative assignment emphasizes the importance and impact of group work and the capacity to do it well. Differentiating between suicide and non-suicidal self injury cleared any uncertainty between the two and this prevention and threat assessment provides a guide with helpful resources in the event of a crisis or threat. This is an applicable tool for use in the role of school counseling.

ABC Crisis Model

mgainey10 — 2025-10-09 02:23:55 UTC

This case study exploration through the use of the ABC Crisis Model gives an overview of the process when responding to crises. This works in tandem with the psychological first aid to best serve those in need. This exercise provided an understanding on real-life applications of this model.

mgainey10 — 2025-10-09 02:46:54 UTC

2 Tex. Educ. Code §33.002-33.009. (2025).

American School Counselor Assocation. (2022). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. schoolcounselor.org. https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/44f30280-ffe8-4b41-9ad8-f15909c3d164/EthicalStandards.pdf

Canadian Red Cross. (2019). Psychological first aid and mental health first aid. Learnfirstaid. https://www.learnfirstaid.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Chart_PFA_MHFA_EN_Comparison_Table.pdf

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network. School personnel. NCTSN. (n.d.). https://www.nctsn.org/audiences/school-personnel