Trauma resources for CSUB students and greater community

Being trauma informed creates shared agency, support systems can shorten road to resiliency

By California State University, Bakersfield

May 17^th, 2021

According to Dr. Luis Vega, interim associate dean of graduate and undergraduate studies at California State University, Bakersfield, “COVID-19 hit like an earthquake, quick, unexpected, wreaking havoc in our lives, no one spared. Losing control of one’s life is a pure definition of trauma.”

Dr. Vega stated that we remain bystanders as losses mount in freedom of movement, losing one’s job, losing loved ones, not knowing the risk of catching COVID-19. We typically wrongly assume that trauma is something we must endure alone, which at its very worse morphs into PTSD, suicidal ideation, substance abuse, depression and mental and physical anguish.

However, resources exist for CSUB students and the greater community:

The CSUB Counseling Center can be contacted by any students in need of assistance:
Phone: (661) 654-3366
After-Hours Phone: (661) 654-3366 (Press 2 when voicemail answers)
National Support Text Line: Text HOME to 741741 for free 24/7 crisis counseling
Affordable counseling for the greater Bakersfield community is available through the University Counselor Training Clinic.

The National Institutes of Health have created a trauma-informed approach that infuses responsibility in all of us to be active bystanders in the plight of sufferers, based on the notion that information is power. SAMHSA (the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) created this manual in 2016, and it is freely accessible at https://ncsacw.samhsa.gov/userfiles/files/SAMHSA_Trauma.pdf. This 27-page long pamphlet provides information that can help create shared agency, support systems and help shorten the road to resiliency whenever possible.

Importantly, this is not a substitute for therapy but rather a resource that seeks to create collective knowledge of what trauma is, seeks to de-stigmatize it and creates consciousness on contextual causes rather than blaming the victim. More importantly, Dr. Vega said, is that “trauma can be overcome.” More entities are being encouraged to become trauma informed through formal training, which we can expect to be available in the future at CSUB.

The manual addresses five questions, three of which are next presented, with answers:

What do we mean by trauma? Individual trauma results from an event, series of events or set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or life threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual’s functioning and mental, physical, social, emotional or spiritual well-being.
What do we mean by a trauma-informed approach? A program, organization or system that is trauma informed realizes the widespread impact of trauma and understands potential paths for recovery; recognizes the signs and symptoms of trauma in clients, families, staff and others involved with the system; and responds by fully integrating knowledge about trauma into policies, procedures and practices, and seeks to actively resist re-traumatization.
What are the key principles of a trauma-informed approach? For this question, the manual provides six key principles that a trauma-informed approach must provide if we expect it to be effective, such as
feelings of safety in discussing trauma;
having trustworthiness and transparency;
having peer support in place;
collaboration and mutuality in communication;
empowerment, voice and choice for all involved; and
cultural, historical and gender issues acknowledgements.

The other two questions deal with how institutions can implement a trauma-informed approach, and how it is important to understand community and context if such an approach is to be successfully implanted and implemented.

The authors of this story have experienced and witnessed the importance of being trauma informed.

For example, Rocio Ramirez noted, “coming to the university on unequal footing makes academic success difficult to attain for underrepresented minorities and low-income (URM/Pell) students. Minoritized populations suffer from higher rates of COVID-19, have higher rates in losing loved ones, and suffer directly from a lack of resources such as broadband, old or no computers, and fewer safe spaces to study. Social, historical, cultural and gender issues weight heavily in how we experience trauma.”

Lucy Peltz has served in the Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) student body government as an advocate. She noted, “Dreamers carried on their shoulders the weight of uncertainty in their futures, with their residency status hanging on political winds. The CSU has made an imperative to create safe spaces for these students in official Dream Centers, where social, informational and legal supports are available so they can focus on their studies.” These centers are exemplars that apply the trauma-informed approach principles listed above.

Jose Lopez noted the lower college attendance and graduation rates for men of color. “Perusing the scientific literature for aids to minoritized males is absent, they are invisible in interventions and are deprived and excluded from good jobs.” He further added, “If we are to see more men come to college and graduate, programs such as the Excel Program in our campus, which is a rare jewel, needs to be expanded, connecting young men of color with mentors—other support systems need to be created too.”

Dr. Vega stated that he is encouraged when he explains that the Graduate Initiative 2025 is looking at all issues that impact admissions, retention and completion issues for students. Issues of inclusion, equity and diversity all have different levels of trauma that can be addressed by the university by improving our processes, procedures, policies and programs.

He added, “when we implement technology right, simplify processes such as academic advising, bring clarity to graduation requirements, increase pathways to graduation, we can reduce worries in students and help them stay focus on their academic goals. We are seeing results as we close equity gaps.”