Good Harbor Institute staff spent the day with Shawnee County, Kansas, Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteers training them on how to transform trauma information into skills to be used immediately with their children. The volunteers and staff learned about the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study, learned how trauma brain may manifest as destructive behaviors, and then they learned what they can do to not "trigger" trauma brain reactivity.
Through role play and small group activities, volunteers and staff practiced "coaching", using powerful questions to move a person forward toward the goal/dream desired. CASA volunteers serve as the independent voice of a child who has entered foster care and the court system. Using trauma informed coaching skills can be a powerful way to learn what a child wants to have happen in their own care.
During the last part of the day, the CASA volunteers and staff focused on understanding how to plan and implement their self-care plans. Without an understanding of self-care these volunteers are at risk of burnout, or as one volunteer remarked, "becoming jaded". Children benefit most with a CASA who can be fully present in advocating. Being fully present comes with the practice of good self-care.
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