Riddhi Mukhopadhyay and Monte Jewell

Statewide Legal Advocate Training

October 11, 2018

TRIALS OF TRAUMA:Secondary Trauma & Creating Community Care

Sexual Violence Legal Services

Holistic, trauma-informed, legal services for survivors of sexual violence through:

• Advocacy

• Education

• Litigation

• Resources

• Referrals

• A program of YWCA Seattle | King | Snohomish

Sexual Violence Legal Services

Protection orders

Victim rights in criminal cases

Immigration

Employment

Education

Housing

Family law (hotline or consultations)

Other legal needs related to safety and

stability

Burn Out

“

”

To allow ourselves to be carried away by a multitude of conflicting concerns, to surrender to too many demands, to commit oneself to too many projects, to want to help everyone in everything is to succumb to violence.

Laura Van Dernoot Lipsky, Trauma Stewardship: An Everyday Guide to Caring for Self While Caring for Others

Vicarious Trauma

The frenzy of our activism neutralizes our work for peace. It destroys our own inner capacity for peace. It destroys the fruitfulness of our own work because it kills the root of inner wisdom which makes work fruitful.

Mirror Neurons & Trauma

Mirror Neurons & Trauma

Systems Trauma

Personal Consequences: Emotional

• Prolonged grief

• Prolonged anxiety

• Shame

• Irritability

• Depression

• Agitation

• Change in humor

• Feeling less safe

• Hopelessness

Trauma Stewardship; Living Well: Signs of Vicarious Trauma

Personal Consequences: Behavioral

• Isolation

• Avoidance of people or duties

• Extended time at work

• Inability to separate work from personal life

• Addiction

• Undertaking risky behavior

• Difficulty sleeping

• Changed eating habits

• Hypervigilance

Trauma Stewardship; Living Well: Signs of Vicarious Trauma

Personal Consequences: Physical

• Headaches

• Hives

• Heartburn

• Migraines

• Stomach ulcers

• Tics

• Anxiety

• Weight gain

• Chronic exhaustion

Trauma Stewardship; Living Well: Signs of Vicarious Trauma

Personal Consequences: Spiritual

• Changed belief about meaning and hope

• Lack of sense of purpose

• Decreased sense of agency

• Reduced sense of connection to others

• Challenging believing in self worth

• Sense of persecution

• Inability to embrace complexity

• Inflated savior complex

Trauma Stewardship; Living Well: Signs of Vicarious Trauma

Personal Consequences: Cognitive

• Increased cynicism

• Negativity

• Constantly thinking about client trauma

• Difficulty thinking clearly

• Unable to concentrate

• Increased difficulty with day-to-day decisions

• Diminished capacity

• Difficulty remembering things

• Dissociative moments

Trauma Stewardship; Living Well: Signs of Vicarious Trauma

Normalizing Secondary Trauma

• Eventually everyone burns out

• “Crazy” becomes normal

• Stress is rationalized

• Failure is individual fault

• Group gets more insular

• Bring work home

• Free time is catch up time

• No big picture

• Hope fades

Personal Steps to Self-Care

Consequences in the Workplace

• Lost Productivity: decreased morale, lack of collaboration, poor quality of services, less communication

• Poor Organizational Health: lack of concentration, weak decision making, decreased motivation and performance

• Staff Turnover: more time required, greater resources on hiring and training, draining energy of remaining staff

Institute on Urban Health Research and Practice, Northeastern University

Agency Responses to Vicarious Trauma

A vicarious trauma-informed agency

• Recognizes the potential negative consequences of the works

• Assumes the responsibility for proactively addressing the impact of vicarious trauma through policies, practices and programs

• Values the mental and physical well-being of staff

Agency Responses to Vicarious Trauma

What practices and protocols should be implemented by• Leadership• Supervisor•Peers

to respond to vicarious trauma in the workplace?

Agency Responses…Starting the List

• Intentional recognition of successes and victories• Intentional recognition of well-attempted failures• Supporting physical activity and breaks•Realistic workload•Encouraging boundaries•Opportunities to support each other• Space for feedback and discuss issues•Recognizing individual needs•Planned renewal time•And more….

Community Responses to Vicarious Trauma

What practices and protocols should be implemented by• Funders•Community Partners•Peers

to respond to vicarious trauma in our community?

Creating a Community of Care

Lars and the Real Girl, 2007

Empathy v Sympathy

Resources

• Trauma Stewardship: An Everyday Guide to Caring for Self While Caring for Others by Laura Van Dernoot Lipsky & Connie Burk

• Vicarious Trauma Toolkit from the Office of Victim’s of Crime (vtt.ovc.ojp.gov)

• Riskin, L.,"Awareness in Lawyering: A Primer on Paying Attention," in The Affective Assistance of Counsel: Practicing Law as a Healing Profession (2007)

• Koh Peters, J. “Stress, Burnout, Vicarious Trauma, and Other Emotional Realities in the Lawyer Client Relationship,” (2004)

• Trauma & Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence – From Domestic Abuse to Political Terror by Judith Herman (1992)

• The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk

Need Technical Assistance?

Email us

Send us a referral by email. Copy of referral form attached to the end of handout:

svlsatty@ywcaworks.org

Call us

Encourage self-referral through our legal line. If you are not sure if the client needs a referral, call to staff a case with us:

(844) 999-SVLS (toll free)

(206) 832-3620

Find us online

See if the resources on our website are helpful:

www.svlawcenter.org