Tips for Trauma-Informed Training

During my workshops, I’ve often experienced behaviours that invoked a silent thought or reaction where I began to question participants’ interest in my teaching.

Consider these behaviours and what thoughts come up for you:

• You’re doing a private training with a small organization. The group is silent, most aren’t making eye contact, and some appear to be sleeping.
• In your virtual online training, several participants have their cameras off. Others are sitting out of view of the camera, or have it pointed at the ceiling.
• A participant stands up in class and gives a lengthy angry speech about an apparently unrelated topic. Another discloses a great deal of personal information.

As facilitators of learning, we may have reactions that include judgement or concern.  Our trauma-informed lens reminds us to switch from judgement to curiosity by asking ourselves, What has happened to cause this response?

All these situations may indicate that something about the workshop or course has activated a trauma response in the participants.

What Is the Impact of Trauma on Learning?

1. Trauma impacts the ability to process information and communicate.

INFORMATION PROCESSING: Traumatic experiences can impact the brain’s ability to process information. More time may be needed for a person to absorb new information or instructions for activities.

Our trauma-informed lens reminds us to switch from judgement to curiosity by asking ourselves, What has happened to cause this response?

VERBAL COMMUNICATION: The verbal area of the brain is affected by traumatic experiences. A person may find activities that require verbalization difficult.

EYE CONTACT AND NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION: It is important to recognize the cultural and traumatic significance of eye contact.  The Western gaze values direct eye contact as a hallmark of confidence, but facilitators and learners come with their own relationship to eye contact. This may be influenced by culture, marginalization, oppression, trauma, and/or neurodivergence.

Think about your use of eye contact. What is comfortable, comfortable enough, or uncomfortable to you? What informs this? How might your eye contact impact those in the training? How might you be impacted by or perceive participants’ eye contact?  

Being on video in a virtual workshop or class may increase the sensation of being exposed to intense eye contact or scrutiny.

2. Trauma also creates a state of high alert, where aspects of the environment or interactions can mimic past experiences and activate a survival response.

TRAUMA ACTIVATION AND RESPONSES: Learners may find certain topics, words, or images unsettling, or they may experience activation of their trauma response.

It is important to recognize that a person who appears withdrawn, unengaged, challenging, or disruptive may be experiencing emotional activation related to trauma response. Images (human/real vs icons) can evoke cues of safety. Real images are preferable to icons in most cases. By the same token, real images of a person in distress could evoke greater activation of trauma.

NEURODIVERSITY ISSUES: Many neurodivergent people have learned to mask their neuro-differences because of the lack of acceptance in society. They grow up in a world that is not built for them, so they require accommodations, which are viewed as extra work and resources. They are typically labelled as different and “less than” their peers.

Often, these negative experiences begin in educational settings and are generalized to workplaces. So, they feel they don’t belong or fit in, and over time, these experiences can become a trauma. Education of any kind may unintentionally activate these traumas, so it is essential to consider trauma-informed accessibility when delivering training.

CULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS: Since colonization, educational settings and the way we learn have been dominated by Eurocentric systems. Furthermore, educational settings have been a source of trauma for Indigenous people. It is important to be aware of this fact.

Being aware of the hierarchy prevalent in a Eurocentric learning structure can also be helpful. Approaching facilitation with humility – as one with some knowledge and acknowledging that everyone has wisdom to share – is helpful here.

Many neurodivergent people have learned to mask their neuro-differences because of the lack of acceptance in society.

BOUNDARIES: Trauma can impair a person’s sense of personal boundaries. This often shows up in learning environments as a tendency to overshare. In some environments, there is an atmosphere and invitation to share, but it must be remembered that a workshop is not a group therapy session. A person who overshares may feel regret and shame afterwards. Also, others may have their trauma responses activated by hearing someone else’s story.

How Can I Provide Trauma-Informed Training?

1. Create a Safe Environment

• Establish both physical and emotional safety.
• Ensure the venue or virtual space feels secure and inviting. This includes not requiring people to speak in large groups or to have their cameras on
• Set clear boundaries and expectations for behaviour during the training.
• Assist learners in protecting their own boundaries by naming this potential issue and encouraging people to be selective in what and how they share.
• Allow time for participants to process information and questions.
• Check your stories and examples for any unconscious bias.
• Be alert for the need to take emotional breaks so participants can move, smudge, or do whatever they need to settle themselves.

2. Promote Trust and Transparency

• Be clear about the training agenda, objectives, and what participants can expect.
• Encourage openness and honesty among learners and facilitators.

3. Facilitate Empowerment and Choice

• Provide participants with options to engage in a way that feels comfortable for them.
• Encourage personal agency and allow individuals to opt-out of activities that might be activating. This may include opting out of virtual or in-person small group discussions.

4. Be Culturally and Contextually Aware

• Recognize and respect the diverse backgrounds of participants.
• Adapt the training materials and examples to be inclusive and relevant to all participants.
• Consider implementing a reciprocal learning approach. This can be done by facilitating conversation and encouraging participants to share their knowledge.

5. Foster Collaboration and Connection

• Create opportunities for group work and peer support.
• Encourage participants to share experiences and learn from one another while also encouraging safe boundaries.

6. Be Mindful of Triggers and Responses

• Consider the potential impact this topic, content, or shared stories may have on your audience. 
• Identify potential triggers and work to minimize them in your material and delivery.
• Plan for how you will embed grounding strategies and reminders throughout the day. 
• Embed encouragement for people to have self-regulation tools (e.g., fidget gadgets, knitting, art, beading) accessible to them and for people to check in with their nervous system (NS) and do intentional check-ins on what their NS needs at any given moment.
• Recognize signs of trauma responses in participants and be prepared to provide support.
• Use images thoughtfully

7. Use a Strengths-Based Approach

• Focus on resilience, strengths, and coping skills rather than deficits. Highlight positive achievements and progress.
• Feedback is important. How do you provide feedback? How can you tie what was said into the workshop or program topic to enhance learning? 
• How would you give feedback when the information spoken about is of concern? 
• It’s important to address misinformation and provide space for curiosity and self-reflection. People often take risks talking in public forums. How can you respond in a way that embodies and models trauma-informed insight and response.
• When information is inaccurate, respond in a way that embodies and models trauma-informed insight and response.
• Don’t let side conversations or other disruptive behaviours go on too long. Shift judgement to curiosity!

Consider What May be Underlying the Behaviour

• Is this a traumatic topic for some participants?
• Do they need a bathroom break?
• Have you been droning on?
• Is the room too hot?

Inappropriate or disrespectful comments or jokes also need to be addressed. When someone says something, disguised as a joke, as sexist, heteronormative, discriminatory, we have a responsibility to address it in a trauma-informed way, using an anti-oppression lens. How do we respond from a decolonizing, anti-racism, neuro-affirming and trauma-informed place?

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8. Offer Support and Resources

• Have support systems or personnel available for participants who may need additional help. For example, in some of my workshops, elders or mental health workers have been on standby.
• Provide information about further resources, such as counselling services.

9. Adapt Flexibly

• Be prepared to modify the agenda or approach based on the needs and responses of the group.
• Remain open to feedback from participants for continual improvement.

10. Encourage Self-Care and Reflection

• Build in breaks and encourage participants to engage in self-care activities.
• Allow time for reflection and integration of the material.
• Do your own self-reflection. Ask yourself: Am I being trauma-informed in my language and actions?

Trauma-informed training is founded on humility, respect, and attentiveness to our participants. We must practice our motto and shift judgement to curiosity. What is this person experiencing, and how can I make this training a safe space for them?

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Still Curious?

If you want to learn more about this topic, check out some of our related resources and products..

On-Demand Workshop

Learn more about this topic in our workshop: Trauma-Informed Care.

Blog

5 Principles of Trauma-Informed Workplaces.

On-Demand Webinar

Learn about Vicarious Trauma in our 1-hour pre-recorded webinar.

Podcast

Listen to Episode 25 of the Counselling Insights Podcast – Co-Creating Trauma-Informed Spaces

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