What is trauma? “Trauma is an unexpected and sudden event, a shocking event, there is a feeling of bodily harm or that somebody can hurt me, physically and emotionally. It usually includes an intense terror and a feeling of helplessness” (MIMH, 2008). Trauma is individual, and not everyone has the same experience with it. Even […]
I believe that addressing the neurobiological aspect of trauma is vital in understanding the negative effects of trauma. Firstly, trauma is a term used to describe the experience or circumstances that occur which in turn have a negative effect on an individual. This can be quite devastating as one would imagine. Some may experience trauma […]
“I intentionally hold the opposing ideas of absence and presence, because I have learned that most relationships are indeed both.” – Pauline Boss, Ph.D. In the last 50 years, our understanding of the spectrum that grief encompasses has grown immensely. Yet, grief is still wildly misunderstood and unrecognized in our culture. For some, we grant […]
St. Louis city has a terrible reputation as being a dangerous city overrun by crime. Most of the crime is centered in two districts of northern St. Louis City. “There is this conception of the city as crime-ridden throughout,” says University of Missouri–St. Louis criminology professor Richard Rosenfeld. Looking at the homicide rate, which ranks […]
“I intentionally hold the opposing ideas of absence and presence, because I have learned that most relationships are indeed both.” – Pauline Boss, Ph.D. In the last 50 years, our understanding of the spectrum that grief encompasses has grown immensely. Yet, grief is still wildly misunderstood and underrecognized in our culture. For some, we […]
One critical risk-factor leading people to the criminal justice system is trauma. An estimated 93% of youths involved in the system have a history of trauma (Maschi & Schwalbe, 2012, p 21). The earlier that trauma can be addressed, the less likely someone is to later become involved in the legal system. The American Psychological […]
I created an infographic to bring awareness to the sudden surges of domestic violence cases around the world, and more specifically the United States, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sources: Abuse Defined. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.thehotline.org/is-this-abuse/abuse-defined/ Bremner, J. (2020, April 1). U.S. Alcohol Sales Increase 55 Percent in One Week Amid Coronavirus Pandemic. Retrieved […]
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a psychotherapy treatment that was initially created to diminish the anguish associated with traumatic memories. It is an unconventional treatment that has sparked great debate and controversy over its effectiveness (Rousseau 2019). According to van der Kolk (2015) EMDR challenges the long time belief that severe emotional pain […]
Though many find it morbid and weird, serial murder has always been fascinating to me. In most cases, it’s hard for one to wrap their head around how one individual can take the life of another – it’s even more mind-boggling to think that an individual can take the lives of multiple people. That’s why […]
The approach to mental health care of offenders has, in recent times, been recognized as defective for the fact that the mental health needs of males and females differ yet are addressed using a model based off of studies and research conducted using men as the sample population. This is an issue in need of […]