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Opportunity to Heal — The Stem School Shooting and the Trauma Response
My community was recently struck by tragedy. Not the type of tragedy that is created by nature, or an accident or an environmental issue; this was a tragedy that was human induced — it’s different. When a traumatic incident is induced by a human, the whole of the human family is affected and the whole of the human family needs an opportunity to heal.
I live in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. In May of 2019, there was a school shooting at STEM School Highlands Ranch — 2 miles north of where I live. My children attended STEM School the year prior to the incident. My community members and friends send their kids to school at STEM. I know teachers, administrators, parents, and children at STEM.
I think that much of the popular information available about the impact of trauma on the human brain and mind can be misleading and fuzzy. Well-intentioned interventions, such as offering advice to “build resilience,” “we have to move on,” and “it’s over now, we just push forward,” can be helpful to some and harmful to others. As a licensed psychotherapist spending the majority of my career treating traumas, I would like to offer some information about how human-induced trauma can affect individuals.
Types of Trauma
