Trauma and the helping professional
There are so many things that happen in peoples lives that impact their ability to work effectively with children and youth. A lot of times people get into this field of work because of their own childhood and adolescent experiences. Many people also have experiences in their work that change how they relate to clients in the future. From my work experience I’ve struggled to work with violent clients, I spent many years working with them but now I know it isn’t my most effective client group because of my past experiences. I also have had experiences in residential treatment which have made me realize I work better in other locations. Bessel Van Der Kolk has written articles on Developmental Trauma Disorder and those articles have really influenced my understanding of trauma and the profound and long lasting impact it has on a child’s life.