Final Paper | Flor Garca Chaljub

Research on the impact of trauma, indicates the need to stablish an integral approach to
treat traumatized people, avoiding the traditional interventions that could hyper arouse the
effects of trauma. In that respect, Trauma-Informed Practice is an intervention oriented to
address the specific effects that suffer traumatized children, adolescents and adults,
encompassing the patient, the service provider and the environment, in order to reach
patients wellness and healing.
The National Center for Trauma-Informed Care (NCTIC) has stablished some principles to
rule this approach: 1) Understanding how trauma affects people; 2) Promoting a safety
environment to the patient; 3) Considering cultural aspects in the treatment of trauma; 4)
Promoting autonomy and sense of control, 5) Sharing power and decision making related to
intervention programs; 6) Integrating care of the people and the system; 7) Promoting the
stablishment of safe and positive relationships in order to heal and restore; and 8)
Understand and assume that recovery is possible for everyone.
Advances in neuroscience research shows that emotionally charged experiences are
encoded by the limbic system and the right hemisphere as sensory memories. Besides,
trauma sequels reach Broca's area, affecting language and the possibility to express the
traumatic experience. In this regard, a sensory level expression and processing of these
memories are important components of a successful intervention in trauma, by helping to
reconnect implicit and explicit memories. In that way, Trauma-Informed Art Therapy
generates not only sensory, but multisensory experiences (visual, kinesthetic, tactile,
olfactory and auditory) to the patients, allowing them to develop the capacity to self
regulate their emotions and control their bodily reactions.
Given that thoughts and feelings are not strictly verbal and not merely stored as body
language in the brain, expressive therapeutic thecniques are particularly useful in helping
Trauma-Informed Art Therapy, Level I

Final Paper | Flor Garca Chaljub

individuals to communicate aspects of memories and stories that may not be readily
available through the conversation. For some people, it may be more tolerable to transmit a
memory or story through an expressive mode than doing it verbally. That is why nonverbal
expression through a painting, play, role playing, or movement can be a refreshing
experience for some individuals. There are five components to trauma-informed art
therapy:
1. A neurosequential approach
2. Identification of body reactions to stressful events and memories through traumainformed evaluation and sensory based activities
3. Somatic and sensory approaches to self regulation
4. Sense of safety through positive attachment and self soothing
5. Normalize and enhance resilience through art
As a psychotherapist, my scope has been to work with children and adolescents from
shelters, which main psychological problems are related to trauma caused by abandon,
neglect, abuse, poverty and all forms of lack of human rights. Last year I conducted a
research focused to work the internal working model of institutionalized adolescents using
art therapy techniques, obtaining incredible results. Reading your books Creative Arts and
Play Therapy for Attachment Problems and The Handbook of Art Therapy and some
other from different authors has ignite the enthusiasm to go deeper into this technique and
obtain the certification in order to do a better contribution to my patients and become and
Art Therapist.
As a Trauma-Informed Art Therapist I can develop my practice in other fields of my
interest as hospitals, education centers, schools for individuals with special needs, mental
health centers, shelters, refugee centers by violence and disasters, prisons, etc.

Trauma-Informed Art Therapy, Level I