KITTGlobal

Katalyst was created to help people who have experienced trauma, in all of its many forms, reclaim and recover their lives and is committed to being a trauma informed care practice.

Specifically a trauma-informed practice incorporates assessment of trauma and trauma symptoms into all areas of practice; it also ensures that clients have access to trauma-focused interventions, that is, interventions that treat the consequences of traumatic stress. A trauma-informed perspective considers clients from a place of “What happened to you?” not “What is wrong with you?”

Recognizing that traumatic events made people feel unsafe & powerless (among other things), trauma informed practice means focusing on the principles of safety, trustworthiness, choice, collaboration, empowerment, from an overall strengths based approach.  Then developing a treatment plan to safely move to recovery, while not triggering or re-traumatizing the client.

The effects of trauma at any & every age, are far reaching and impact everything you thought you knew about yourself & others and how you now see, experience and show up in this world.

All traumatic events count – one event or multiple events, whether it happened as a child or an adult, or both. It all counts. You count – you matter and what you have experienced matters and you deserve to heal from this. There is no scale of relativity, trauma is trauma. There can be different levels of impact and its effects, but each & every trauma has an impact.

So please don’t discount what happened to you as not as important as what has happened to others. Conversely, please don’t think that too much has happened, that you will never recover. Neither of those statements are true.

This also includes those directly involved & supporting those who have had traumatic experiences.  This is called vicarious trauma or compassion fatigue, and it is a real issue for those friends & family members who support those who have experienced the trauma itself.

Vicarious trauma / compassion fatigue can also be found in those who support trauma survivors in other ways, from counselors & therapists, to first responders, to lawyers, doctors & nurses who work the front lines to help those affected. This is by no means a complete list, but it shows the reach of any traumatic event.

Treating vicarious trauma is also a serious issue and deserves compassionate care, so you too can heal from what you are taking on to help someone you care about, even if moments ago, they were a complete stranger.

Trauma recovery is possible, no matter where you are in this moment, there is help and there is hope.