Transcript Slide 1

Fostering Resilience in Clients
with Trauma Histories
Monica Hinton PhD Cand., RSW
[email protected]
Grounding Trauma Conference 2014
Outline
• Introduction
• Your needs
• Resiliency
defined
• Research
• Resiliency tools
• Conclusion
What do you hope
to get out of this
workshop?
What to expect from me…
Hope to accomplish
the following:
• To define resiliency
• To look at the
research
• To give concrete ways
of fostering resiliency
in clients
Vision…
“If we think we are fragile &
broken, we will live a
fragile, broken life.
If we believe we are strong &
wise, we will live with
enthusiasm & courage.
The way we name
ourselves colours the way
we live.”
Wayne Muller
What is resiliency?
• Resiliency is not something
fixed, concrete
• The very definition
(engineering): bouncing back
• If rigid, a bridge would collapse
in an earthquake
• It’s the going back & forth from
vulnerability to resiliency;
that’s essence of the
phenomenon
• Bamboo—balance b/w
flexibility & rigidity
Emmy Werner & Ruth Smith
Research
• Followed 700 children born
into high-risk conditions:
mentally ill, alcoholic,
abusive, or criminal parents,
or in poverty-stricken
communities
• Longitudinal findings: at least
50%, closer to 70%, of youth
growing up in these high-risk
conditions: developed
social competence
despite exposure & led
successful lives
My MSW/PhD
Research
Research questions:
1. What fosters resiliency?
2. What is the process of resilience?
• Qualitative, Grounded Theory
• In-depth interviews with self-defined
resilient individuals over 30
• Childhood trauma of sexual abuse
before age 12
• Limitations (geography, time, # of
participants, etc)
• Applicability (reinforced past research
findings)
Grounded Theory:
Strategies for Addressing the Phenomenon
Regulating traumatic
experience
Enlisting NB indiv/
pets
Spirituality
Humour
Selfpreservation
Self-direction
Regulating the
Traumatic
experience
‘Unhealthy’
strategies
Imagination/
fantasy
Intelligence
Pictorial Representation of First PhD
Interview Memo
self
harm
relationship: to
self/others
travel,
move
sport
push self to
the limit
avoid
(dissociate,
ignore)
PhD: Creating Distance Category
From
memories
From
location
Creating
Distance
From
others
From
self
“Protective factors" consist of three broad
categories:
1.Caring relationships: convey
compassion, understanding,
respect, & interest, are grounded in
listening, & establish safety & basic
trust
2. High expectation: look for
strengths & assets as opposed to
problems & deficits
3. Opportunities for
meaningful participation &
contribution: opportunities for
valued responsibilities, for making
decisions,& contributing one's
talents to the community
(Benard, 1991)
The major implication for practice:
• If we hope to nurture socially
competent people who have a
sense of their own identity, who
are able to make decisions, set
goals, & believe in their future…
PRIMARY FOCUS must be on:
basic human needs for
respect, caring,
connectedness,
challenge, & meaning
Do you have in your life what research shows help
people be resilient?
People bounce back from tragedy, trauma,
stress
by having the following conditions in
their lives.
How many do you have:
1. Caring & Support
o
o
o
Several people in my life give me unconditional love, listen nonjudgmentally, &
who are "there for me"
I am involved in school/work/ faith/other group where I feel cared for & valued
I treat myself with kindness & compassion, & take time to nurture myself (including
eating well & getting enough sleep & exercise)
2. High Expectations for Success
o
o
o
Several people in my life let me know they believe in my ability
I get the message "You can do it," at work/school
I believe in myself, & give myself positive messages about my ability—even when I
encounter difficulties
3. Opportunities for Meaningful Participation
o
o
o
My voice (opinion) & choice (what I want) is heard & valued in my close personal
relationships
My opinions & ideas are listened to & respected at work/school
I volunteer to help others or help a cause in my community/faith organization/school
How many do you have:
4. Positive Bonds
o I am involved in 1 or more positive after-work/after-school hobbies or
activities
o I participate in 1 or more groups (i.e. a club, faith community, or sports team)
outside of work/school
o I feel "close to" most people at my work/school
5. Clear & Consistent Boundaries
o Most of my relationships have clear, healthy boundaries
o I experience clear, consistent expectations & rules at my work/in my school
o I set & maintain healthy boundaries for myself by standing up for myself, not
letting others take advantage of me, & saying "no" when needed
6. Life Skills
o I have (& use) good listening, honest communication, & healthy conflict
resolution skills
o I have the training & skills I need to do my job well/do well in school
o I know how to set a goal & take the steps to achieve it
YOUR OWN RESILIENCY
1.
Think about the reasons that you are a resilient person.
2.
What are the struggles & challenges you have faced in the past/currently
face?
How did you overcame these difficulties:
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3.
How can you use these same things in the future when you are dealing
with issues? What can you do that has worked in the past?
4.
What barriers do you think stand in the way of our clients being resilient?
What ideas do you have about how we can change these barriers?
What did you do?
What beliefs about yourself/others guided you?
Who helped you; how did they help?
What else helped you?
Resiliency In Action; Nan Henderson, MSW; www.resiliency.com
PERSONAL RESILIENCY BUILDERS
Individual Qualities that Facilitate Resiliency
Relationships:
Sociability/ability to be a friend/ability to form positive relationships
Humour:
Has a good sense of humour
Inner Direction:
Bases choices/decisions on internal locus of control
Perceptiveness:
Insightful understanding of people & situations
Independence:
"Adaptive" distancing from unhealthy people & situations/autonomy
Flexibility:
Can bend to positively cope with situations
Love of Learning:
Capacity for & connection to learning
Self-motivation:
Internal initiative & positive motivation from within
Competence:
Is "good at something"/personal competence
Self-Worth:
Feelings of self-worth & self-confidence
Spirituality:
Personal faith in something greater
Perseverance:
Keeps on despite difficulty; does not give up
Creativity:
Expresses self through artistic endeavour
Positive View of Personal Future: Optimism, expects a positive future
You Can Best Help Yourself or Someone Else
Be More Resilient by...
1. Communicating the Resiliency Attitude: "What is right with
you is more powerful than anything that is wrong with you.“
2. Focusing on the person's strengths more than issues/
weaknesses.
Ask, "How can these strengths be used to overcome problems?"
3. Providing for yourself or another the conditions listed in The
Resiliency Quiz.
4. Having patience... successfully bouncing back from a
significant trauma or crisis takes time.
Message Through Metaphor:
There was a king who owned a large, beautiful, pure diamond. One day, this
diamond accidentally sustained a deep scratch. The king called in the
most expert diamond cutters & offered them a great reward if they
could remove the imperfection from his jewel. Not one could remove the
blemish.
The king was distressed. After some time, a gifted craftsman came to the
king & promised to make the rare diamond even more beautiful than it
had been. The king was impressed by his confidence & entrusted the
precious stone to his care.
The man kept his word…he engraved a lovely rosebud around the
imperfection, using the scratch to make the stem.
When life bruises & wounds us, we can use the scratches to etch a
portrait of beauty & charm.
Jacob Kranz
List of
Resources/Good
• www.resiliency.com
web sites
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www.resiliencybuilder.com
www.mindtools.com
www.life-happens.ca
www.mheccu.ubc.ca
www.resiliencycenter.com
www.aidsalliance.org/sw2389.asp
www.projectresilience.com
Questions?
Thank you for your participation today.
www.phoenixcounsellingservices.org
Experiential Learning
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