Talking About Trauma Series

As a society, and as practitioners it can be difficult to know how to respond appropriately to people who have experienced trauma. For this reason, Blue Knot Foundation has developed a Talking about Trauma series.

Each publication in this series supports a different audience to talk about trauma. Knowing how to ‘talk about trauma’ is essential to supporting traumatised people.

It is critical to driving trauma-informed change, which fosters recovery. Research shows that positive interactions assist trauma recovery, this includes personal social interactions as well as those within services.

Talking About Trauma - Guide to Everyday Conversations for the General Public

Members of the general public are becoming more aware of the prevalence of trauma and how it can affect people. However, many people feel poorly equipped to have everyday conversations with people they know or suspect have actually experienced trauma.

Talking about trauma: guide to everyday conversations for the general public provides a simple guide, in plain English, to support these critical conversations. Whether you are starting the conversation yourself (because you suspect a person is experiencing/has experienced trauma) or you are responding to a person telling you about their trauma. The following information, evidence and tips will help you manage the challenges and minimise the risks.

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Digital Download of Talking About Trauma - Guide to Everyday Conversations for the General Public

Talking about Trauma: Guide to conversations and screening for Health and other Service providers

Many service providers feel poorly equipped to have conversations with people they know or suspect have experienced trauma.

This Blue Knot publication helps service providers to know when and how to ‘talk about trauma’ or to screen for trauma. This is not about providing clinical or specialist treatment. It’s a role everyone in services can play.

Research shows that positive relational experiences assist trauma recovery while negative social interactions impede it. Daily interactions in services can play a major role supporting recovery from trauma.

Talking About Trauma – Guide to Conversations, Screening and Treatment for Primary Health Care Providers

Large numbers of people present to their primary care practitioners with diverse health issues, many of which are complex trauma-related, but which neither they nor their GPs identify as such. The physical, psychological, financial and social costs of failure to identify cumulative, underlying trauma in primary care consultations are substantial.

As primary health care plays a critical role in health promotion, prevention, screening, early intervention and treatment, primary care providers need to be able to confidently `talk about trauma’ in their daily practice. This includes intervening early and effectively with patients with a lived experience of trauma to promote better care and health and well-being outcomes.

This publication seeks to educate the primary health care sector about the nature, types and adverse health impacts of trauma. Its goal is to help build the capacity of primary care providers to better engage with patients impacted by trauma, as a precursor to skills-based training.

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