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Treating the Cause, Not Just the Symptoms, of Traumatic Stress by Focusing on the Nervous System

Speaker(s):

Chris Lawrence, Ph.D. SEP

Kiko Ha, M.Ed., LPC

Presentation:

Advances in brain development research have demonstrated the physical, physiological and emotional impact of chronic and situational stress and trauma on individuals. Individuals with a history of trauma have been found to be at much higher risk for a variety of medical and mental health complications. It is essential that we search for creative, non-invasive and non-pharmacological interventions to address the CAUSES of the physical, mental and behavioral health symptoms associated with trauma and stress.       

HeartSpace Clinic has been offering two technology based interventions, HeartMath and The Safe and Sound Protocol for the past 18 months. The focus of these interventions is improved regulation and resilience in the nervous system and they are both effective with children, adolescents and adults. HeartMath is a biofeedback program that teaches individuals certain thought patterns and breathing techniques affect their HeartRate Variability (HRV). HRV has been found to be a significant factor in physical and mental resilience. HeartMath is easily taught and can be generalized to home by using a device that works with a phone.       

The Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) was developed by Stephen Porges, author of the Polyvagal Theory. The SSP addresses an auditory adaptation that contributes to hypervigilance (in other words, anxiety). The intervention was first used with children on the autism spectrum, with remarkable results in their social engagement abilities. It is now being used by HeartSpace Clinic, as well as by others around the world, with individuals who have a history of trauma or traumatic stress, with similarly amazing results in terms of anxiety, depression, social engagement and trauma symptoms.   

The most recent group of patients to receive the benefits of SSP has been cats and dogs with severe anxiety and avoidance symptoms.       

This workshop will introduce these two unique interventions, share anecdotes and data from our ongoing study of their impact on adults, children and pets, and discuss lessons learned.

Objectives:

  1. Introduce two technology assisted interventions – HeartMath and the Safe and Sound Protocol.
  2. Provide rationale for utilizing both interventions with clients who have a history of trauma.
  3. Share data gathered through the Technology Enhanced Trauma Treatment Project.
  4. Discuss the use of the Safe and Sound Protocol with pets.
  5. Discuss clinical indicators and cautions for the use of both interventions.

Slides and Handouts:

LAWRENCE_Spring Institute (2)

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Lessons Learned: Effective Interventions and Support for Young Children with Trauma

Speaker(s):

Rachel Hanks, MSW, LCSW, RPT

Presentation:

In 2016, the National Survey of Children’s Health reported that 46% of children under the age of 17 have experienced at least one traumatic event. A single traumatic event is understood to be inherently complex in the most stable of children. However, chronic stress and trauma during those crucial early years of brain development may adversely impact a child’s ability to function and self-regulate. Presenting behaviors of developmental trauma may include aggression, intolerable feelings of distress, attachment issues, developmental delays, dissociation, depression, and sensory processing issues. These issues increase a child’s risk factors for mental illness, poor health outcomes, lowered educational attainment, involvement in the criminal justice system, and can even lower their life expectancy.       

When working with young children, it is important to understand the pervasiveness and complexities of these presenting issues in a variety of settings. The principles of play therapy, attachment, and brain development can help a child’s team and family better understand a child’s behavior. From the case management team to home to school, developmentally-appropriate interventions and support can help increase a young child’s ability to self-regulate, attach, heal, and even thrive.


Objectives:

  1. Identify the effects of chronic trauma and maltreatment on a young child’s development.
  2. Understand the role attachment plays in self-regulation and development.
  3. Identify appropriate interventions for young children with high levels of dysregulation.

Slides and Handouts:

HANKS_RACHEL_2021_Lessons Learned_participant copy_Hanks

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Ha, Kiko, M.Ed., LPC

I am a licensed professional counselor in the state of Missouri. My clinical experiences include working with children, adolescents, adults, and families. I have experiences working with mental health issues including abuse and neglect, trauma, stress management, depression, anxiety, family relationships, gender issues, self-esteem and communication. I am also a level-two trained EMDR therapist. I use a variety of techniques in therapy including play therapy for children, role playing, dialogue, self-awareness exercises, nervous system regulation skills and cognitive reframing. I am also trained in HeartMath and Safe and Sound Protocol interventions.  

Presentation(s): 

Treating the Cause, Not Just the Symptoms, of Traumatic Stress by Focusing on the Nervous System

 

 

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Lawrence, Chris, Ph.D. SEP

Dr. Lawrence is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist. She has worked in the mental health field for 30 years, both as a clinician and as an academic. Her career started at McCambridge Center for Women, a substance abuse program for women and their children in Columbia, Mo. She worked at McCambridge Center for 15 years, including 3 years as Clinical Supervisor and 4 years as Clinical Director.

Dr. Lawrence established a private practice in 2005, and then co-established Lawrence, Oliver and Associates, a practice which employees 16 clinicians and provides services to hundreds of clients per year. She also developed a nonprofit, HeartSpace Clinic and serves as its Director. HeartSpace Clinic provides education and advocacy regarding the impact of trauma, traumatic stress and resilience. The clinic also offers innovative and creative treatments for individuals and families including nature based therapy, art therapy, HeartMath and the Safe and Sound Protocol.
 
Since 2016 Dr. Lawrence has been studying somatic interventions for anxiety, trauma and depression. She completed a 3 year training program and is a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner.  She continues to train and study the impact of trauma on the body and is a well versed in the areas of nervous system regulation, resilience and the impact of traumatic stress on our bodies. She offers workshops and trainings on these topics to a wide variety of groups and organizations.





Presentation(s): 

Treating the Cause, Not Just the Symptoms, of Traumatic Stress by Focusing on the Nervous System


 

 

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Hanks, Rachel, MSW, LCSW, RPT

Rachel Hanks, MSW, LCSW, RPT, has been the therapist at the Therapeutic Preschool at FamilyForward since 2016. She received her MSW from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 2016 with a concentration in Family Practice and a focus on violence and injury prevention. She has over eight years of experience in various levels of care in supporting people of all ages, backgrounds, and developmental abilities. Her interest in supporting young people and families dealing with trauma started in 2013 as a paraprofessional and continued throughout graduate school, culminating in a concentration practicum at the Children’s Advocacy Services of Greater St. Louis. At FamilyForward, she is part of team that uses the most up-to-date practices in healing the effects of developmental trauma in young children with high levels of dysregulation. She became a Registered Play Therapist in 2019. She presented at the Missouri Department of Mental Health’s 2019 Spring Training Institute and is also a trainer with the St. Louis Play Therapy Institute.


Presentation(s): 

Lessons Learned: Effective Interventions and Support for Young Children with Trauma

 

 

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Colwick, Rachel, MA

Rachel Colwick has her Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and is a Licensed Professional Counselor, as well as a National Board Certified Counselor. Rachel is published and co-authored in two articles in the Safer Society Press. Rachel’s first publication was in the summer of 2015 titled Resolving Trauma Related Issues in Contemporary Treatment of Offenders: A Brief Review. Her second publication was in the spring of 2016 titled A Meta-Change Maintenance Model: Effective Strategies to Maintain a Pro-Social Lifestyle. Further, Rachel is a member of the professional organization, Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ATSA). Rachel has a vast amount of clinical experience in working with those who have suffered from mood disorders, personality disorders (such as Borderline Personality Disorder, Narcissistic Personality Disorder, and Antisocial Personality Disorder), psychotic disorders, substance abuse, suicidal ideation, grief, trauma, and self-harming behaviors, to name a few. For over 5 years, Rachel has implemented process groups, psycho-educational groups, and individual therapy for those who are civilly committed sexual violent predators while at Missouri Sexual Offender Rehabilitation and Treatment Services (SORTS) and Minnesota Sex Offender Program (MSOP). Currently, Rachel is providing individual therapy to adults, teens, and children at an outpatient clinical mental health setting.

Presentation(s): 

Vicarious Trauma, Secondary Traumatic Stress, or Burnout? Implications for Mental Health Professionals

By

Moore, Mark, MA

Mark Moore has his Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and is a Licensed Professional Counselor, as well as a National Board Certified Counselor. Mark is published and co-authored in two articles in the Safer Society Press. Mark’s first publication was in the summer of 2015 titled Resolving Trauma Related Issues in Contemporary Treatment of Offenders: A Brief Review. His second publication was in the spring of 2016 titled A Meta-Change Maintenance Model: Effective Strategies to Maintain a Pro-Social Lifestyle. Further, Mark is a member of the professional organization, Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ATSA). Mark has vast experience in working with a variety of populations such as those suffering from mood disorders, psychotic disorders, grief, trauma related experiences or PTSD, to name a few. Specifically, Mark has specialized in the treatment of sexual offenders starting with conducting group and individual therapy sessions for the Cape Girardeau, MO Probation and Parole. For the last several years, Mark has been working at Southeast Missouri Mental Health Center (SORTS-Sexual Offender Rehabilitation and Treatment Services) and has been implementing process groups, psycho-educational groups, and individual therapy for those who are civilly committed sexual violent predators. Mark also spent time conducting process groups and psycho-educational groups at Minnesota Sex Offender Program (MSOP).  Primarily, Mark has been working with those that have scored moderate to high psychopathy levels, Antisocial Personality Disorders, and Narcissistic Personality Disorders.

Presentation(s): 

Vicarious Trauma, Secondary Traumatic Stress, or Burnout? Implications for Mental Health Professionals

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Vicarious Trauma, Secondary Traumatic Stress, or Burnout? Implications for Mental Health Professionals

Speaker(s):

Mark Moore, MA

Rachel Colwick, MA

Presentation:

This presentation consists of an eclectic, contemporary review of the literature involving vicarious trauma, secondary traumatic stress, and burnout including their implications for professionals working in the mental health field. These constructs will be defined in-depth and opposing views from the present empirical studies will be fully explored as well as outlined. For example, a research study indicated that 60 percent of therapists who noted a personal history of trauma reported significantly more vicarious trauma symptoms (Pearlman and Mac Ian, 1995). Other studies have indicated that approximately 38 percent of social workers experience moderate to high levels of secondary traumatic stress (Cornille and Meyers, 1999; Dalton, 2001). Additionally, Devilly, Wright, & Varker (2009) found that being new to the profession along with beliefs about one’s safety and intimacy with others, which are subscales of vicarious trauma, predicted affective distress. This presentation will further describe the signs and symptoms for the development of these constructs including those professionals who are more at-risk. Case studies or personal stories will be highlighted to better illustrate the aforementioned. Due to counselors, social workers, psychologists, and the like are not the only professionals who are impacted by these entities, special attention will be applied to those in the judiciary system including judges, lawyers, and probation officers, to name a few. Self-care strategies along with protective factors will be discussed and experiential exercises will be utilized during this presentation. Furthermore, organizational components of vicarious trauma will be discussed. Specifically, changes in the organization culture, education, work environment, group support, workload, and supervision will be addressed that could help professionals to mitigate these effects.

Objectives:

  1. Define vicarious trauma, secondary traumatic stress, and burnout
  2. Identify the symptoms of traumatic stress and burnout including at risk populations
  3. Learn and utilize self-care strategies for mental health professionals
  4. Describe changes in the organizational culture with respect to vicarious trauma
  5. Discuss these constructs in their application to professionals within the mental health and judiciary system
Moore and Colwick_PPDownload
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Schaefer, Geoffrey, MSW, LCSW

Geoffrey Schaefer is a graduate of University of Missouri-Columbia School of Social Work. He has extensive social services experience in working with at-risk youth, people with severe emotional disabilities, geriatrics, and substance use. He has worked as a hospital social worker, in child protective services, at the Department of Mental Health, and currently is employed at Father’s Support Center as a family therapist.

Presentation(s): 

The Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences & Trauma on Fathers

By

Roberson, Amethyst, MA, LPC, NCC

Amethyst Roberson is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Nationally Certified Counselor offering Christian Counseling, Coaching and Professional Development workshop services to those in need. Roberson was born and raised in St. Louis, MO. She graduated from Oral Robert’s University Counseling program and is the Executive Director and Founder of C.A.R.E Solutions Inc. and Amethyst Roberson Therapy LLC. As a mission-minded person, she helps individuals, families and communities discover remedies to their distress, find resources, information, opportunities, and options that bring about change. Throughout her career, she has been driven towards impacting lives, listening, solving human problems, and providing solutions through counseling. Her vision is that every individual, family and couple is hopeful, empowered and emotionally and mentally healthy within their family system and community. She has worked with organization and assists with operations, management and supervision. She provides community relations, advocacy and programming. She has developed education training curriculum relevant to clients in service. This work includes material for people of all ages.

Presentation(s): 

The Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences & Trauma on Fathers