Trauma, Attachment and Relationships
Understanding trauma, attachment and relationships are important concepts to consider when operating from a trauma-informed approach. The world is experiencing many traumatic events at this time and no doubt, therapists will have a lot to assist with as we continue to work through these problems and deal with the aftermath both personally and professionally. As many of us know, the therapeutic relationship is a crucial component when operating from a trauma-informed approach. “In fact, a number of different studies indicate that therapeutic outcome is best predicted by the quality of the treatment relationship, as opposed to the specific techniques used” (M. J. Lambert & Barley, 2001; Martin et al., 2000; Orlinski, Grawe, & Parks, 1994). More importantly, a good therapeutic relationship is “integral to the resolution of major relational traumas” (Briere & Scott, 2015, p. 109).
The attachment process is another aspect as previously mentioned to consider when working with survivors as it can impact a survivors relationships with others including therapists. Clients have often struggled with relationships due to previous trauma, unresolved trauma or recent traumatic experiences. We can provide an environment that is safe and supportive of growth in developing healthy relationships through the therapeutic relationship/process. It can be confusing for survivors to determine if a relationship is safe or not and have all or nothing thinking about safety and struggle with trust (Brierre, 2015). Exploration of attachment history and current attachments is a valuable tool in working with survivors.
In addition to assessing our client’s vulnerabilities to trauma, we must assess our own histories of trauma. Providers are not immune to experiencing vicarious trauma. In fact, I can say that I have experienced it as an LADC and survivor of trauma. These experiences have helped me grow as a professional and personally. It has assisted in continued self-awareness and engaging in trust with fellow colleagues in strengthening my own relationships and sources of support. Providers have an ethical obligation to address previous trauma and vicarious trauma. This can impact our ability to connect with our clients and lead to burnout or compassion fatigue. Additionally, there are a number of other risks that can lead to “disempowerment of and disconnection from the survivor, and run counter to the principles of trauma-informed care, the goal of which is to foster empowerment, choice, and connection” Clark et al, 2015, p. Loc, 2701, Kindle Edition). During this time, we can help our clients even more by doing a self-assessment of vicarious traumatization. As we have all heard throughout our college careers and professional careers, self-care is of upmost importance when addressing issues of vicarious traumatization. This is going to be different for all of us and how we choose to engage in these activities.
I am a graduate student at Alfred Adler Graduate School and work as an LADC at Western Mental Health Center in Marshall, MN. As previously mentioned, we are facing a number of issues in our world at this time. Let’s remember to be compassionate towards ourselves at this time both in our work and in our personal lives. We are all experiencing this global crisis of systematic oppression and the pandemic differently and as we move forward, we need to also take care of ourselves and heal together. Together we can help foster hope, strength and resiliency. Self-care is not selfish and is of upmost ethical importance.
References
Briere, J. & Scott, C. (2015). Principles of trauma therapy: A guide to symptoms, evaluation and treatment (2nd ed). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications
Clark, C., Clssen, C.C., Fourt, A., & Shetty, M. (2014). Treating the trauma survivor: An essential guide to trauma-informed care. New York, NY: Routledge
Lambert, M. J., & Barley, D. E. (2001). Research summary on the therapeutic relationship and psychotherapy outcome. Psychotherapy, 38, 357-361.
Martin, D. J., Garske, J.P., & Davis, M. K. (2000). Relation of the therapeutic alliance with outcome and other variables: a meta-analytic review. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68, 438-450.
Orlinski, D. E., Grawe, K., & Parks, B. K. (1994). Process and outcome in psychotherapy. In A. E. Bergin & S. L. Garfield (Eds.), Handbook of psychotherapy and behavior change (4th ed., pp. 272-281). New York, NY: Wiley.
Comments (0)