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Increasing student understanding of these can help them to have increased empathy and knowledge of the patterns and dynamics they may encounter. Knowledge may also begin to set a tone of the importance of understanding their own experiences of trauma, beliefs about traumatic events and patterns
of self-care. Adams and Riggs (2008) found that vicarious trauma reactions
of trainees are tied to less training experience and their own personal traumatic event experience. This and other research supports the need to train students in trauma before they begin working in a helping profession.
Training in systemic and family theories is often standard in family studies
curriculum. This is a foundation
for our field in assisting students in understanding the interconnectedness of relationships within families, communities and across generations. This is a natural way to begin to educate students regarding trauma. There are three main benefits in teaching students about trauma using a family systems theory foundation. The first is that students are able to easily apply the systemic lens to these real life situations and understand the nature of family systems more clearly. The next is that their empathy to the challenges of traumatic situations and the effects on family members increases as they see the interconnectedness of these events.
I have noticed this is especially true when examining historic trauma and the effects that traumatic events can have on brain development, attachment styles and parenting. The third way that using a systemic lens is effective in teaching about trauma is that it opens up more levels of intervention and hope within these challenging situations. Several specific theories can be applied in this instruction. In addition to the foundational family systems theory,
it also includes attachment theory, ecological theory, intergenerational transmission of violence theory, ambiguous loss theory and resilience theory. Each of these increases
students’ conceptual understanding
of the traumatic situations, family relationships, community concepts and intervention areas. Students integrate theory into several of their assignments, class discussions and application during their experiential learning presentations. Additional theories that could be added are those regarding grief and loss, and post-modern theory.
Education regarding trauma and its impact on families, communities, systems and individuals is also important to include in education to start to impress upon future helpers the importance of self-care and burnout prevention. This term may seem nebulous and hard to understand for stressed out college students, however, as professionals in the field know,
burn out and a drain of empathy are
all too common. Shannon, Simmelink- McCleary, Im, Becher, and Crook-Lyon (2015a; 2015b) found that students’ experience of their own traumatic events can affect their coping when working with others’ trauma narratives. Students will each have their own reactions to the topics in class. Learning about these emotions and how to care for themselves in a safe environment with an instructor who is knowledgeable about these processes is of great
value. This can be the beginning of future helpers who are able to care
for themselves and understand their reactions to trauma—in order to be a safe place for others and be part of change on a larger level.
case examples: mfts working
with families in trauma
An MFT is a member of a crisis response team that is called in after a mass shooting at a shopping mall. They arrive in the community two days after the shooting. With training in both trauma and systems thinking, an MFT would be able to assess the individuals they meet from a biological, psychological, sociological and emotional lens. They could begin by helping clients tell their stories and looking for initial signs of PTSD. They would also know
to meet with the family or close friends and assess them for secondary trauma. Helping the client gain knowledge of the safety of others they were with is also important. From an MFT perspective, supporting the family relationships helps the client feel secure attachment during a difficult time. Even with a few short crisis sessions, an MFT can begin to help the client feel safe and connect them with their family and other professionals for long-term support.
An MFT works in a clinic providing outpatient therapy. An immigrant family comes in for therapy. Their teenage son was attacked while walking home six months ago and nearly died. The son, daughter and both parents attend the session. The MFT would be able to assess and treat possible trauma on several levels for this family. In beginning treatment, they would work with the presenting issue, the attack on their son. It is possible all the family members are experiencing traumatic stress. An MFT would also be able to learn about the community’s response to the attack and if the family felt supported or re-victimized. Also, the MFT could learn about the family’s experience of immigration and life in the country they lived in previously, as they may have experienced traumatic events during that time. Language, assimilation and gender issues may come up and need to be thoughtfully learned about and addressed within the family. An MFT would be able to treat trauma in a culturally competent and systemic way with this family.
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