Asking: “What’s Happened to You?” A Focus on Trauma-informed Care
Research suggests that most homeless youth have experienced multiple traumatic events both before becoming homeless and once on the street. This issue of the Exchange provides an introduction to trauma-informed care, an approach that asks, "What’s happened to you?" rather than, "What's wrong with you?"
We talk to one organization that has undergone a trauma-informed transformation in recognizing the symptoms and acknowledging the impact of trauma. We provide practical tips for youth workers on helping youth who have experienced trauma feel safe and open to accepting needed resources. And we talk to Tonier “Neen” Cain, a trauma survivor, about the trauma-informed treatment that helped her turn her life around.