Boulder Care

Trauma-Informed Care

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Key Points

  1. Many people who suffer from a Substance Use Disorder have experienced some form of trauma in their lifetime.
  2. Defining trauma.
  3. Boulder treats individuals with care and understanding. Said another way, we provide Trauma-Informed Care to all participants.

Trauma Defined

Trauma is an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that are experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or life-threatening. It can occur in childhood or adulthood.

Trauma can have lasting, harmful effects on the individual’s daily functioning and mental, physical, social, emotional, or spiritual well-being. Trauma can impact a person at any time during their life, and can surface as mental health, substance use, or physical health conditions.

On an individual level, trauma often creates emotional responses of

  • Fear
  • Helplessness
  • Powerlessness
  • Horror
  • Shame
  • Guilt

What Causes Trauma?

A traumatic event is when someone has an experience that is scary or dangerous and makes them feel unsafe or that their life is in danger. Something that makes us worry about someone else's safety or life can also be a traumatic event. For example, seeing or hearing about something scary or dangerous happening to someone we care about can be traumatic.

Broadly, trauma is an event that overwhelms our capacity to cope. Trauma can be both a terrible event and the emotional response to it. These are normal emotions in the face of terrible circumstances.

Some Risk Factors for Lasting Symptoms from Trauma

  • Having already had other traumas
  • The experience happened repeatedly or over a long time
  • Feelings of helplessness during the experience
  • Dealing with other major stressors

Acute Traumatic Experience

A single traumatic event that causes extreme physical or emotional stress, such as:

  • Natural disaster
  • Crime
  • Community disaster, like a school shooting

Complex Traumatic Experience

Complex traumatic experiences:

  1. Repetitive, prolonged, or cumulative.
  2. Are most often interpersonal, involving direct harm, exploitation, and maltreatment.
  3. Involved neglect, abandonment, and lack of caring by primary caregivers or other responsible adult.
  4. Often occur at vulnerable times in the person's life, especially early childhood/teen years, but can also occur later in life.

What is Trauma-Informed Care?

Trauma-Informed Care is health care that recognizes someone’s possible exposure to trauma and the effects of that exposure. We at Boulder Care take a universal approach and treat everyone as if they have a history of trauma. Trauma-Informed Care means we treat all people with dignity and respect.

Boulder Care Trauma-Informed Care Approach

  1. Safety: We create spaces where people feel culturally, emotionally, and physically safe. We pay attention to an individual’s discomfort or unease.
  2. Transparency and Trustworthiness: We provide full and accurate information about what's happening with your care and what's likely to happen next.
  3. Choice: We give you ownership over your goals and honor your choices.
  4. Collaboration and Mutuality: We know that healing happens in relationships and partnerships with shared decision-making.
  5. Empowerment: We recognize, validate, and build on your strengths.

Summary

People who suffer from addiction, by the disease’s very nature, have experienced trauma. Maybe you are aware of your past trauma history or maybe you feel you’ve never been exposed to trauma. In either case, there are certain behaviors that are common to both addiction and trauma. These behaviors do not mean there is anything wrong with you.

If you identified with any of the information above, know that healing is possible and your Boulder Care Team can help.

Action Steps

  • If you have experienced trauma, talk to your Care Team about having an assessment and making a plan to help treat the lasting effects of trauma.
  • Talk to your Peer Recovery Specialist and Care Advocate about finding a counselor in your community, and ask about books and support groups.

Resources and References

Questions, concerns, or feedback?

You can send a message to your Care Team in the app with non-urgent questions or feedback, or you can always call Boulder's 24/7 Support at 888-316-0451.

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