institutional trauma: the role of a trauma counselor in eap · •eap has always known that...
TRANSCRIPT
Institutional Trauma:
The Role of a Trauma
Counselor in EAP
Brenda Wilson, LCSW, CEAP
Joyce Camden-McCusty, LCSW
Faculty & Employee Assistance Programwww.uvafeap.com
434.243.2643
UVA & Charlottesville
Community- Fall 2014
3 Student Suicides
Rolling Stones:
Assault on UVA
Trauma position - .5 FTE
• If 1 in 5 women & 1 in 16 men have experienced sexual assault in college– UVA/HS staff & faculty are a well educated group, 21650 ee’s total
• EAP has always known that historic trauma can show up in work relationships, esp manager : employee conflict/bullying perception
• Time to talk about sexual assault, name it
• Asked for resources and a month later it was approved
Initially Envisioned
• Sexual assault intervention– historic & acute
• Interpersonal violence
• Education, ie FEAP seminars for staff and managers
• Expand to 1-12 sessions for this population
• Stabilize, educate, crisis management, counseling, community connections
• Pre/post outcomes intended
“Give sorrow words.
The grief that does not speak
Whispers o’erfraught heart,
And bids it break.”MacBeth, William Shakespeare
Causes of PTSD
• Acute Trauma
Overwhelming Single Event
• Cumulative Exposure
Series of Events
Ongoing Pattern
Trauma
Traumatic Stress occurs
“when our ability to respond
to threat is overwhelmed.”
~Peter Levine
Reactions to Trauma
• Fight
• Flight
• Freeze
• Tend/ Befriend
Fight Reaction
Flight Reaction
Imaging a flashback with fMRI
Freeze Reaction
Blanking out (dissociation)
Tend/ Befriend
Signs Which May Be Visible
• Easily startled or jumpy
• Appears sad, and may be tearful
• Displays reduced emotional expression, flat affect
• Displays irritability or has angry outbursts
• Increase in absences and/or late arrivals
• Behaving distanced, withdrawn, or cut off from team
• Less verbal
Signs Which May Not Be
Visible
• Repeated disturbing memories, thoughts, or images of the stress event(s)
• Repeated disturbing dreams of the event(s)
• Suddenly acting or feeling as if the stressful experience were happening again
• Having physical reaction (e.g., heart pounding, trouble breathing, or sweating) when something reminds the person of the stressful experience
Non Visible Signs (continued)
• Avoiding activities, situations, or places because they remind the person of the experience
• Loss in interest of activities which used to be enjoyed
• Feeling emotionally numb
• Feeling as if the future will somehow be cut short
• Trouble falling or staying asleep
• Being “super alert”, watchful, or on guard
Identifying Danger
Patterns of Attention
Normal PTSD
PTSD Screening Tool
In your life, have you ever had any experience that was so
frightening, horrible, or upsetting that, in the past month, you:
have had nightmares about it or thought about it when you
did not want to?
YES NO
tried hard not to think about it or went out of your way to
avoid situations that reminded you of it?
YES NO
were constantly on guard, watchful, or easily startled? YES NO
felt numb or detached from others, activities, or your
surroundings?
YES NO
3.38
1.72
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
Pre-Interview Post-Interview
PCL Score
Group Pre-Interview Post-Interview
Mean 3.3788 1.7231
SD 0.6785 0.4504
SEM 0.1696 0.1126
N 16 16
The Win-Win Equation
• Employee receives services and connects with resources
• Employee reduces symptoms and suffering
• Employee becomes more productive and feels better
• Employee develops deep sense of loyalty to Manager/Team
• Team feels the benefits
• Work environment can be more positive and adaptive
• Manager has high functioning employees
• Manager has expanded skills as a leader
Gratitude
“I strongly encourage anyone who has experienced trauma first hand or who is in a relationship with a trauma survivor to seek support through FEAP. The experience will be a profound gift to your loved ones…and to yourself.”
“Joyce was instrumental in helping us stabilize. Her support enabled me, as a University employee, to attend to my tasks at work at the same time as I am dealing with family matters that might otherwise have overwhelmed me. We are very grateful that FEAP is providing this service.”
Sweet Darkness
When your eyes are tired the world is tired also.
When your vision has gone no part of the world can find you.
Time to go into the dark where the night has eyes to
recognize its own.
There you can be sure you are not beyond love.
The dark will be your womb tonight.
The night will give you a horizon further than you can see.
You must learn one thing. The world was made to be free in.
Give up all the other worlds except the one to which you
belong.
Sometimes it takes darkness and the sweet confinement of
your aloneness to learn
Anything or anyone that does not bring you alive is too small
for you.
~David Whyte
Questions, Suggestions, Ideas?