The movement to incorporate trauma-informed care, and the wave to bring awareness to ACEs science has manifested in to the perfect storm; the perfect mix of compassion and frustration. I've said over and over again, once you become aware of the research and science behind trauma, and start to talk to other people about what it all means and how it looks, its a game changer.
Since our agency-wide ACEs/Trauma 101 training by Acesconnection.com community member, Dave Wallace, atleast once a week I have someone in the agency contact me with a story about how an encounter with a client felt different because of what they learned. I often hear too, "How have we not known this?"
As someone who has only had the luxury of discussing all things ACEs, survivorhood, and the ah'ha-ness of all of this with people online, scattered in and out of the country, I want to break in to song and dance when people engage me in this conversation. I am feeling so blessed to be the one spearheading TIC into the agency I work for and to be able to facilitate conversation among other champions of change within this community.
What can readers expect to learn from you?
My career thus far has existed in the trenches of the mental health system. I graduated from SUNY Oneonta in the spring of 2004 and walked onto an inpatient mental health unit, adorned with an official psychiatric assistant employee badge, a bleeding heart, and a whole lotta green enthusiasm. With an ACE score of 9, I was able to empathize and understand the patient's often traumatic stories led them to the inpatient unit. What I came to not understand was how I, a fresh out of college 20-something was hearing this, and the people writing treatment plans and scripts were not.
The frustration I felt back then, as I moved out of working inpatient and on to carrying out mental health evaluations in the emergency department, is still felt today as a health home care manager. It's that frustration that fuels my passion to connect, teach, and learn from others.
I'm still very new in this process and am completely self-taught. I have a lot to learn myself; however, because of the systemic cracks I've witnessed first hand over the last decade, I have insight on how to begin filling those cracks. My lived experiences and work as an advocate for our society's most vulnerable has taught me where the shifts need to begin to take place. That is what I am hoping others can learn from me within this new community.
I know the struggle in finding guidance on what being trauma-informed is and looks like. You are not alone in feeling overwhelmed in this process! Finally, the silos are coming down, fear based Band-Aid treatments are no longer seen as the gold standard, and momentum to put the human back in human services is a topic of conversation.
What are you hoping to learn from this community?
Spearheading TIC movements within organizations/agencies is a completely overwhelming process. I'm hoping to learn from others who are also beginning or are already well on their way to implementing TIC. I want to know what has and hasn't worked for others, what the feedback from peers has been, the outcomes of new policies and procedures, and different tools and resources in place that can prevent feeling like we need to reinvent the wheel.
How did you get involved in the trauma-informed/community resilience building movement?
This all began for me about three years ago while creating a book for parenting survivors of childhood abuse. It was through the process of talking with other parent survivors, editing Parenting with PTSD, and educating myself on the effects of trauma on parenting that I found Dr. Nadine Burke-Harris’ TED tx. That was my first introduction to ACEs. It was also the first time I had ever heard the phrase “trauma informed care.”
I became determined to learn everything I could about ACEs science and what it means to be trauma-informed. As Dr. Allison Jackson said at this year's ACEs Symposium in Albany, NY "I drank the Kool Aid."
Why are you passionate about this work?
Two Reasons. First, I have witnessed the damaging cycles that occur when people are “helped” by current "evidenced-based practices" and traditional methods of care.
Secondly, I am a woman, mother, survivor, realist, and advocate at heart who has a very difficult time keeping quite when I witness unfairness or wrong-doing around me.
“I fight with love and laugh with rage. You gotta live light enough to see the humor, and long enough to see some change.” ~Ani DiFranco
When you're not wearing your professional hats, what are you doing?
I am a writer at heart. It’s cathartic for me so I try to write for enjoyment purposes as often as I can (which is never often enough). I also have two young kids (5 and 8) so I always have my “mom” hat on, which is chaotic but I love it. I love to get lost in good music, catch up with friends, and discover things around me that evoke inspiration.
I have to admit though, I am such a neuro/psych/biology/trauma junky at this point. I am often times reading articles and research for “fun,” and not because it’s necessary for work.
Bio:
Dawn is co-editor of Parenting with PTSD, a recovery resource for parenting survivors and those who provide services to them. She spends her work week as a mental health care manager, helping others put and keep pieces of their lives together. Working in the trenches of the mental health system, and being a survivor of childhood abuse with an ACE score of 9, Dawn is passionate about bringing trauma-informed care to the forefront of mental health and medical care, and raising awareness that parenthood has the potential to derail a persons recovery, no matter how “through it” she may feel. When she isn’t working or capturing life on paper, she’s taking advantage of life’s simple pleasures with her husband and two children in Upstate, NY.
Dawn's work has been featured on numerous online publications including Huffington Post, The Mighty and The Establishment. Daum’s insight and commentary has been included in several publications such as Narratively, Scary Mommy, and ACEs Connection.
You can connect with Dawn on her website:
www.parentingwithptsd.com, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
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