debor016

One question I get asked a lot when I teach about trauma-informed care is whether this method is appropriate for clients who have not experienced trauma. One reaction I have it that it would be difficult to find anyone, including us, who has not experienced trauma. But putting that aside, I sometimes do regret the term trauma-informed care. Isn't what we are advocating here just good care? Let’s look at the concepts. It is my opinion that they apply to all effective treatment:   A belief that the relationship is the key to healing A conviction that symptoms are adaptive, so that the treater approaches difficult behaviors with respect and looks for how the behavior solves a problem for the client An understanding of the role of the brain and biology and the ways in which development is shaped by experience Empowerment and collaboration Flexibility and individualization A belief that change will come with learning new skills Not relying on punishment and reward as tools of...

I am very excited about developing a new division of our training which will offer on line training and consultation. I want this new service to be exactly what you need. To make sure that I understand your struggles and triumphs exactly, would you be willing to take this on line survey? It is called The Joys and Challenges of your job and can be found at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/J7W2CTS I would greatly appreciate it. It is short. It is in narrative rather than check boxes because I want to understand you with depth. I am currently considering a model such as described below. Would you please click on comments and tell me what you think of this- would it be valuable to you? Do you think that you or your agency would purchase it? An individual or agency subscribes for a specified time period. During this time, they receive a certain number of training modules.     Each module consists of a video, transcript, work sheet, and resources     They are able...

I am teaching a course at the University of Connecticut School of Social Work. I love it! About two thirds of the members of my class are second year students about to enter the world of job interviewing and jobs. I am interested in preparing them to interview better and enter their jobs with a semi-coherent theoretical framework. In other words, I would like them to be able to demonstrate that they have thought about their work! I often didn't find that when I was interviewing candidates for therapist jobs. When asked about their theoretical framework they all said they were eclectic. So I have developed the following exercise for my students to do to prepare for this question, and then plan to have them practice answering it. Developing a Theoretical Orientation Statement Complete these statements: 1.        I believe that people are… 2.        When people experience difficulties it is usually because… 3.    ...

Scary days at the Group Home It is a difficult time in the group home. Sally, a new admission, has been terrorizing the place. She very skillfully causes commotion with all the other girls, making them mad at each other and at her. When they become angry, Sally is astonished and begins to escalate. In her agitation she has left the house in her nightgown and stood in the middle of a busy road, has punched a hole in the wall, hit her favorite staff Tina, cut herself and threatened suicide. The police have already been called three times and she has had one visit to the ER and she has been at the group home less than a month! The other girls are starting to deteriorate, and two of them ran away for a few hours the other night. The staff are very upset. They have begun complaining to each other that the therapist Melissa doesn't seem to know how to handle Sally. Some staff feel the director is being too indulgent with Sally. They say we should impose stricter rules and have stronger c...