By Emily McCrary-Ruiz-Esparza, Photo: iStock, The Washington Post, February 21, 2022
For years, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and mental health counselors have practiced trauma-informed care, an approach that acknowledges that people have traumatic experiences and that those experiences can affect their behavior and understanding of the world. The goal of trauma-informed care is to offer more effective therapy by acknowledging trauma, recognizing the signs of trauma, responding to those signs and avoiding re-traumatizing the patient.
Now, professionals and service providers of all kinds outside the mental health field are adopting a trauma-informed mind-set. Lawyers, yoga teachers, photographers, career coaches and tattoo artists are educating themselves about the effects of trauma, approaching their work with this new knowledge in mind and labeling their businesses “trauma-informed.”
Although mental health professionals take coursework from and receive certification by academic and professional organizations that specialize in trauma-informed training, those outside the field seldom have access to similar instruction. There’s no consensus on how to vet professionals outside of the mental health arena, nor is there any governing body that regulates trauma-informed programs. That means that non-mental health professionals could receive inadequate training.
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