Dealing with Trauma and Loss

Class Summary

WEL385 3.5
One 4-hour session

Individuals, supervisors, team leaders—anyone who would like to deal more effectively with the effects of trauma and loss or would like to help others deal more effectively with trauma and loss.

  • Reduce the negative effects of traumatic events on yourself, your family, your work group and others you are called upon to serve.
  • Provide needed leadership in times of crisis.

By the end of this program, you will be able to:

  • Identify the normal reactions to trauma and loss.
  • Identify common mistakes in dealing with trauma.
  • Identify coping strategies to help individuals in dealing with trauma and loss.
  • Identify strategies to use with workgroups when dealing with trauma and loss.
  • Recognize when someone may need more in-depth help in dealing with trauma and loss.
  • Describe the steps in critical incident stress debriefing.

1. Normal and predictable reactions to trauma–what to expect

  • Identifying types of trauma–individual and collective
  • Re-experiencing and re-stimulation
  • Numbing reactions
  • Hyperarousal reactions
  • How trauma symptoms show up in children

2. Mistakes in dealing with trauma

  • What not to say and do
  • Balancing compassion and accountability at work

3. Individual coping strategies

  • The role of sharing and support
  • Other coping strategies

4. Helping a work group cope

  • Encouraging support and sharing
  • Critical incident stress debriefing

5. When and how to get help

  • Indicators that we need to refer someone to counseling
  • Indications that we need to bring someone to the team