I am in the Masters of Arts for Professional Counseling.

A personal goal I plan to achieve is learn as much as possible in this program to become an excellent LPC.

A professional goal I have is to become an LPC and have my own private practice.

Something I would like to get out of this class is to understand more trauma and how to help individuals.

One of the biggest take away after reviewing the resources on mental health concerns that depression is the 1^st leading cause of disability worldwide, and is a major contribution to the global burden of disease. As a mental health worker, I am aware of the huge impact depression has on an individual, but I did not know that it was the leading cause of disability worldwide. It does put into perspective as to how important mental health is.

After taking the Mental Health quiz on deconstruction stigma, I have realized that being a mental health worker for the past three years has given me a new perspective and how important mental health is. I started to work in this field as soon as I graduated from my BA in psychology. My first job was as a mental health technician, and as a clinical coordinator in a psychiatric hospital. Working in this hospital has taught me what a mental crisis and untreated trauma looks like.

As a future role as an LPC, knowledge on what trauma is, how to recognize it, and appropriate treatment will give me skills to provide excellent treatment and safety for my future clients. For example, being able to recognize and address potential impacts of traumatic experiences, as well as trauma response on a client, such as early signs, can help me shape and utilize appropriate therapeutic techniques, such as EMD, CPT, or NET, to help clients process and heal past trauma.

According to National Library of Medicine, only a mall percentage of people with a history of trauma show impairment and symptoms that meet criteria for trauma-related stress disorders, including mood and anxiety disorders. However, one must be aware on the following domains once an individual has experience trauma: emotional, physical, cognitive, behavioral, social, and developmental. Another aspect to take into consideration is that trauma may go into two extremes, such as feeling overwhelmed emotions or numbness. As an LPC, one of the main goal is to help the client learn and regulate their emotions without the need of maladaptive behaviors.

Reference:

Treatment, C. F. S. A. (2014). Understanding the impact of trauma. Trauma-Informed Care in Behavioral Health Services - NCBI Bookshelf. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK207191/

ACE stands for Adverse Childhood Experiences, which refers to trauma-like events in our childhood. Some of these ACE may involve exposure to events, such as child abuse, neglect, domestic violence, substance abuse, and other traumatic events. Furthermore, adverse experiences in childhood disrupt normal child development, negatively impacting children’s social, emotional, and cognitive Childhood Alliance NC, 2024). On my personal opinion, I believe ACEs studies is a good representative of the population. After being in the mental health field for approximately three years, I have seen and treat multiple patients / clients who suffer from multiple mental illnesses. One thing most of them had in common was a rough childhood. When reading their file and after providing services for them, I would say that more than 50% had experienced a traumatic event, negligence, or an adverse childhood experience.

• 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. 

According to the American Psychological Association, trauma is an emotional response to a terrible event like an accident, rape, or natural disaster (APA). There are three types of traumas, which consist of the following: acute, chronic, and complex. Acute trauma refers to a single incident, such as a terrible car accident. Chronic trauma refers to a repetitive traumatic event of one nature. For example, being raped by a one individual in prolonged time. A complex trauma refers to multiple traumatic events. For example, a child living with two parents where one has a substance abuse problem causing emotional neglect, and the other parent engaging in physical, and/or emotional abuse towards the child.

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

After working as a case manager for an outpatient clinic where I did multiple CANs (The Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths) assessments with children and their caregivers, I believe there are multiple reasons why children are susceptible to trauma. These reasons may include, but not limited to, children being in a phase where the brain is still in development, dependency on caregivers, inability to cope due to no experience or knowledge, cognitive reasoning, and sensitivity. Furthermore, according to The National Child Traumatic Stress Network, without the support of a trusted parent/caregiver to help them regulate their strong emotions, children may experience overwhelming stress, with little ability to effectively communicate what they feel or need.

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

After having the Individual Counseling course and being a client of CBT Therapy for 6 months, I have learned and identify many strategies utilized in therapy, especially trauma informed strategies. For example, a strategy utilized in CBT is reframing and restricting strategy: to identify automatic thoughts and replace them with more balanced thoughts (Harris, 2021). Another strategy that can be utilized is the empty chair technique. The empty chair technique involves placing an empty chair in front of the client and initiating a “conversation” with oneself or individuals from the past. Utilizing this method during a grief therapy session can help the client have closure with the individual that has passed away.

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

I believe that professionals should receive education on the effects of trauma, as well as how to assess it. For example, an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan may be affected if an LPCs does not have knowledge on trauma. Furthermore, being able to identify triggers and co-occurring issues, such as a dual diagnosis helps understanding complex presentation of symptoms.

• 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 important in your future role?) 

As a future LPC who aims to provide CBT for a variety of clients, acquiring basic knowledge is crucial in order to understand the effects of grief and trauma. For example, being able to identify normal from complicated grief on a client can lead to different therapy strategies and efficiency of the treatment. Furthermore, basic knowledge on trauma and grief can also help early interventions by identifying signs of unresolved grief.

References

Crisishouse. (2024, July 11). What is trauma? Crisis House. https://crisishouse.org/blog/what-is-trauma/?gad_source=1

Harris, S. (2021, February 10). Reframing our thoughts to have positive feelings. AllHealth Network - Mental Health Counseling, Therapy, Psychiatry, Crisis Services. https://www.allhealthnetwork.org/colorado-spirit/reframing-our-thoughts-to-have-positive-feelings/

Peterson, S. (2018, March 23). Effects. The National Child Traumatic Stress Network. https://www.nctsn.org/what-is-child-trauma/trauma-types/early-childhood-trauma/effects#:~:text=Young%20children%20who%20experience%20trauma,size%20of%20the%20brain%20cortex.

Positive Childhood Alliance NC. (2024, August 16). ACE Study | Adverse Childhood Experiences | Positive Childhood Alliance NC. Positive Childhood Alliance North Carolina. https://preventchildabusenc.org/resource-hub/aces-study/#:~:text=The%20Adverse%20Childhood%20Experiences%20(ACE)%20Study%20is%20one%20of%20the,well%2Dbeing%20later%20in%20life.

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