TRAUMA CARE

Because each of us is only one competently compassionate person away from hope and healing.

The importance to the whole of society of understanding trauma, its effects and strategies to care for survivors cannot be underestimated. According to national statistics, in Canada, three-quarters of adults report some form of trauma exposure in their lifetime. Amongst youth, two-thirds of males and nine out of ten females report experiencing traumatic distress and for children more than half of those aged 2-14 and nearly two-thirds of those aged 15-17 experienced violence in the past year. While much of this trauma occurs in familiar relational contexts, so the opportunity for healing exists in relationships built on trust and felt-safety, where competence leads to an appropriate balance of nurture and structure. When we allow our compassion to inspire a pursuit of competence in our care, the resulting competent compassion is transformational both for us and for those we come alongside.