Trauma-informed is a buzzword right now, but one that has significant repercussions for how we work with kids and adults in our programs, schools, and churches.

Trauma-informed care is based on growing knowledge about childhood trauma’s negative impact, originally based on the ACEs (adverse childhood experiences) study done by Kaiser and the CDC.  The study was groundbreaking in understanding how childhood trauma changes the brain, how incredibly prevalent it is and the physical and emotional outcomes for people over their lifetime.

Without understanding how childhood trauma can impact people, we can unintentionally re-traumatize individuals, affecting their willingness to participate and engage with us. In addition, this lack of knowledge can contribute to poor decision-making without understanding why kids and adults behave in certain ways.

Generational trauma is passed down through our genes and distressing events.  There have been studies that show how this changes our DNA and is passed down through time. This trauma can include wars, natural disasters, enslavement, and systemic racism.

Our goal is to begin the healing process to stop generational trauma!