Category: Article
A Family Systems Approach to Treating Intergenerational Trauma
October 11, 2018
When we think of creating family legacies and preserving family traditions, we focus on positive connections and joyous occasions. But often joy is only part of the family story. Pain, while often ignored or even denied, can be passed down from generation to generation. This legacy of pain, coined Intergenerational trauma (IGT) after World War […]
Preventing Relapse in Traumatized Families: The Troubleshooting Technique
September 17, 2018
Relapse occurs when our clients initially get worse before they get better. It is like stretching a rubber band that will snap back as soon as we let go. Over time, a child’s problem symptoms (i.e., self-harm, aggression, anxiety, extreme disrespect, etc.) that are caused by a traumatic event often become the new normal in […]
Healing Family Trauma: Two Families, One Tragedy
August 17, 2018
On July 19, 2018, an amphibious vehicle, known as a duck boat, encountered a thunderstorm during a sightseeing tour on Table Rock Lake, near Branson Missouri. The boat sank, killing 31 passengers. For many of us, the event was only a blip on our radar. However, the families involved are left with ongoing emotional and […]
Rethink Child Trauma Using Feedback Loops
July 16, 2018
Unhealed child trauma impacts not only the child but the family as well. I often see family members with trauma symptoms when they are dealing with an out-of-control, traumatized child. One father told me: “As the dad, I am supposed to protect my child from hurt and pain. When my daughter started cutting on her […]
What Can We Learn From the Santa Fe Shooting: The Mindset Must Change
May 25, 2018
In the wake of the Santa Fe Shooting, we are likely to respond with the same blame focus as with the Parkland school shooting (more gun control, a broken mental health system, bad parenting, bad President, etc.) instead of looking at how our mindset needs to change. On May 18, 2018, 10 people were fatally […]
Trauma and Nutrition: Why Nutrition is Not Typically Part of Trauma Treatment and What to Do About It
May 23, 2018
Despite the advances of nutritional therapy over the last 30 years, there is often limited to no inclusion of nutrition as part of the trauma treatment for children and families with PTSD. Diet and nutrition can be a powerful tool to influence change in both the body and brain of a child and/or family member […]
The iFamily and its Link to Rising Teen Suicides: Causes and Solutions
April 27, 2018
For the first time in more than two decades, suicide is killing more teenagers than homicide. Teen suicide is on the rise. Time Magazine reports that anxiety and depression is skyrocketing with an estimated 30% of girls and 20% of boys (about 6.3 million teens) have reported anxiety disorders and three million teens ages 12 […]
America After a School Shooting: The Mindset Must Change
March 21, 2018
In the wake Parkland school shooting in February 2018, many stories focus on who to blame (more gun control, a broken mental health system, bad parenting, bad President, etc.) instead of how our mindset needs to change. Even Nikolas Cruz’s lawyer is jumping on the bandwagon as the central theme of his defense: Cruz’s lawyers […]
Why a Motivational Phone Call Before Trauma Treatment Begins Will Make All the Difference in the World?
March 21, 2018
An interesting phenomenon occurred in our Family Systems Trauma (FST) research. If we began trauma treatment using a FST- Motivational Phone Call, a “soft start-up” took place. If not, “harsh start-ups” occurred. Harsh start-ups happened when the FST therapists began treatment using a traditional start (a phone call to simply schedule the first appointment). Within […]