Pathways to Healing
Trauma-Informed & Healing-Centered Approaches
A primary step in reducing exposure to and healing from traumatic experiences requires the systems that Louisianans interact with become trauma-informed. It is critical for any organization or individual implementing a trauma-informed approach to understand that being trauma-informed is an ongoing process and not a final destination — nor is it the ultimate objective. The Whole Health Louisiana State Plan recommends that organizations integrate trauma-informed approaches that also include healing-centered principles. Healing-centered engagement and trauma-informed care share similar goals of addressing the impacts of trauma and promoting healing and well-being. Trauma-informed practices primarily focus on building trauma awareness, while prioritizing safety, collaboration, and organizational practices that avoid re-traumatization. This creates a solid foundation upon which healing-centered principles can be built.
Understanding Trauma-Informed Approaches
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) developed a framework that identifies the four R’s of a trauma-informed approach.
Realize
People at all levels of the organization or system have a basic realization about trauma and understand how trauma can affect individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. This is the shift in perspective from “What’s wrong with you?” to “What happened to you?” to ultimately, “We know that trauma is widespread. What protective and healing-centered resources are accessible?”
Recognize
People in the organization are also able to recognize the signs and symptoms of trauma in clients, families, staff, and others involved with the system.
Respond
The program, organization, or system responds by applying the principles of a trauma-informed approach to all areas of functioning.
Resist Re-Traumatization
Organizations should work to avoid inadvertently creating stressful or toxic environments that interfere with the recovery of clients, the well-being of staff, and the fulfillment of the organizational mission.
Being trauma-informed requires organizations to review practices and policies that may re-traumatize participants or staff impacted by trauma. A trauma-informed person, organization, or system realizes the widespread impact of trauma and understands potential paths for recovery; recognizes the signs and symptoms of trauma in clients, families, staff, and others involved with the system; responds by fully integrating knowledge about trauma into policies, procedures, and practices; and seeks to actively resist re-traumatization.
Healing-Centered Approaches
Healing-Centered Engagement is an approach that focuses on fostering resilience and well-being by acknowledging and addressing the trauma individuals and communities have experienced. Rather than solely focusing on pathology or deficits, Healing-Centered Engagement emphasizes the strengths, cultural assets, and resources that people already possess. It prioritizes creating environments where healing can occur through supportive relationships, empowerment, and community-driven efforts. This approach recognizes that healing is a holistic process, encompassing not just physical or emotional well-being, but also cultural, social, and spiritual aspects. Ultimately, Healing-Centered Engagement aims to help individuals and communities move beyond trauma by promoting healing, growth, and collective empowerment.
Healing-centered interventions employ an asset-driven approach, centering repair and resilience with a strengths-based lens that uses the knowledge and skills of the individual and their community. The focus is on wellbeing and positive outcomes, rather than labeling as a disorder or damage. This requires empowering individuals and communities to reclaim their agency and identifying and nurturing individuals’ strengths, resources, and cultural assets as sources of resilience and healing. Trauma-informed policies and practices create a foundation by which we can recognize and respond to trauma while restoring safety. Expanding on these principles, healing-centered engagement recognizes the potential for restoration of well-being, transformation, and post-traumatic growth.
According to Flourish Agenda, Healing-Centered Engagement includes five core principles:
Culture
The values and norms that connect us to a shared identity.
Agency
The individual and collective power to act, create and change personal conditions and external systems.
Relationships
The capacity to create, sustain and grow healthy connections with others.
Meaning
The profound discovery of who we are, why we are, and what purpose we were born to serve.
Aspiration
The capacity to imagine, set, and accomplish goals for personal and collective livelihood and advancement. The exploration of possibilities for our lives and the process of accomplishing goals for personal and collective livelihood.
The Potential for Change
Healing-centered, transformative change is not just a concept. It is an attainable future for Louisiana’s children and families when we understand that childhood adversity can be recognized, prevented, and treated effectively within the context of community.