NEW CHAPTER 13 Interventions in Disaster Mental Health Counseling A
GENERATION OF DISASTER MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS
Catastrophic events have accelerated worldwide within the past 15 years. In
America, the horrific terrorist attacks of Tuesday, September 11, 2001, and
ina that took place on the devastation that took place from Hurricane Katr
August 29, 2005, left emotional, physical, spiritual, and environmental scars
upon our minds, bodies, and spirits. The desolation left in the aftermath has
created a sort of historical trauma among Westerners. This has prompted a
sciousness shift within the mental health counseling field and other allied con
helping professions. Since 9/11, there have been a multitude of other
catastrophic events that have required the direct and indirect interventions of
ed, medical and physical interventions by first mental health counselors. Inde
responders are critical for survival. The psychological first aid and mental
health rescue in the aftermath and recovery phase are critical in working with
erienced civil unrest, acts individuals, families, and communities that have exp
of terrorism, school shootings, workplace violence, and the unending natural
events that keep the Earth out of balance, such as fires, floods, hurricanes,
tornadoes, and droughts. There are many geographic regions of the planet
that are not safe places to live. In part, many areas of the United States, as
well as the world, have been destabilized by human engineering and climate
change; hence, they are prone to natural disasters (e.g., hurricanes, floods,
made -thquakes). Since World War II, persontornadoes, tsunamis, ear
disasters have grown exponentially (e.g., war, civil unrest, genocide, ethnic
cleansing) along with a host of biological pandemics (e.g., HIV/AIDS, Ebola,
a multitude of first Zika viruses). Each of these catastrophic events requires
responders to provide medical, physical, psychological, emotional, social, and
psychosocial first aid. We are all impacted by critical incidents in the United
we States and abroad. Critical incidents are replayed on the nightly news, and
are all affected at some level of consciousness. As a consequence, many in
,the United States may be experiencing the emotional
Disaster Mental Health Counseling : Responding to Trauma in a Multicultural
CCM, CCMC Context, edited by Mark A., PhD, LPC, DCMHS, CRC,
Stebnicki, Springer Publishing Company, 2016. ProQuest Ebook Central,
.http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/liberty/detail.action?docID=4751279
.13 00:38:40-09-Created from liberty on 2021
TRMA 820
REFLECTION JOURNAL ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS
OVERVIEW
This reflection journal assignment is a way of responding to readings that requires you to interact
with new ideas on several levels. In this assignment, you will be developing your four
dimensions of critical thinking skills: analysis, synthesis, evaluation, and application. Note that
your grade for each Reflection Journal depends on the quality and thoroughness of developing
critical thinking skills as demonstrated in your response to each of the 3 sections below. You
must include all 3 of the headings in the body of your paper. Use current APA standards
throughout, and include the book reference at the end.
INSTRUCTIONS
From Module 1 through Module 7, after you read your weekly assigned texts and review your
online materials, you will write a weekly journal entry that includes the following:
Describe what you believe are the key ideas from this week’s readings (1 page).
How do these ideas impact you as you consider working with trauma clients
(1 page)
What Christian worldview integration thoughts come to mind from this material
(1 page)?
Your journal must be in current APA standards and include a reference page.
Key ideas from this week's readings
In this week's reading, I understand the importance of problem-solving, an essential aspect of a
therapist's job. When; the clients expressed their emotions and feelings while actively listening to
them, the therapist's job is to help the client solve the problem and provide them with all the
support that will help them lessen their stress from the trauma they encountered throughout their
life (Jacobs, 2016).
The acronym STOP stands out to me because each client is different as a therapist we should
first assess a situation before making any decision. Hayes stated, "it is important to stop and
assess the situation before you rush in and begin to try to help. It is important to understand what
needs to be completed. Before you start trying to do it, and it is important to make sure that you
are ready before you leap into the effort" (Jacobs,2016).
Self-care is essential as a therapist. We have to take care of our well-being, finding some type of
coping technique that will help us after a stressful day. Don't overwhelm yourself with your daily
routine; try to have some family time with friends and family; this is an excellent form of coping
strategy, or sit down and talk your feelings out to someone.
They are various catastrophe events happening in the world today. Example: 09/11, climate
change, mass shooting, etc. which put a heavy burden on humans that lead them to stress and
depression, also suicide. As a mental health counselor, you are called to perform mental help
rescues, which is essential. Counselors are also trained on various interventions to help an
individual who has been through this type of ordeal. There a multiple models based on specific
trauma. These models are focus on interventions within the time of the trauma or disaster, with
goals being solution-focused and intervention brief (Stebnicki, 2016).
How the ideas impacted me as I consider working with trauma clients
This week's reading was very imperative for a disaster mental health counselor. I learned so
much important information, which I did not know because presently I am a school counselor
but would like to a]be a clinical counselor to help children/adolescents with trauma. Before
making any decision, I will use active listen, to have a better idea of what problems they need
help in, then try to solve the problem which I will be able to assist them on their psychological
needs due to their trauma. I will reinforce the Stop to help me to assess each client before
making any decisions. If I am overwhelmed by listening to the clients' stories, I will adapt some
type of self-care, which I like running and have a great family system that I can call and
FaceTime them anytime.
My primary goal as a disaster mental health therapist is to use the models to conduct brief
intervention therapy according to my client's needs. I will encourage my clients to express their
traumatic events without forcing them to disclose or attempt psychotherapy. I will be empathic
towards my clients and support them to express their feelings, emotions, and experience about
the trauma, and introduce hope and various coping skills in which they will be able to live a
happy and productive life. (Stebnicki, 2016).
During the pre-intervention stage, it is my responsibility as well to coordinate with the disaster
team.
What Christian worldview integration thoughts come to mind from this material
(1 page)?
Reference
Stebnicki, M. A. (2016). Disaster mental health counseling: Responding to trauma in
a multicultural context.
Stebnicki, M. A. P. L. D. (Ed.). (2016). Disaster mental health counseling : Responding to trauma in
a multicultural context. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral-proquest-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu
Key ideas from this week's readings
In this week's reading, I understand the importance of problem-solving, an essential aspect of a
therapist's job. When; the clients expressed their emotions and feelings while actively listening to
them, the therapist's job is to help the client solve the problem and provide them with all the
support that will help them lessen their stress from the trauma they encountered throughout their
life (Jacobs, 2016).
The acronym STOP stands out to me because each client is different as a therapist we should
first assess a situation before making any decision. Hayes stated, "it is important to stop and
assess the situation before you rush in and begin to try to help. It is important to understand what
needs to be completed. Before you start trying to do it, and it is important to make sure that you
are ready before you leap into the effort" (Jacobs,2016).
Self-care is essential as a therapist. We have to take care of our well-being, finding some type of
coping technique that will help us after a stressful day. Don't overwhelm yourself with your daily
routine; try to have some family time with friends and family; this is an excellent form of coping
strategy, or sit down and talk your feelings out to someone.
They are various catastrophe events happening in the world today. Example: 09/11, climate
change, mass shooting, etc. which put a heavy burden on humans that lead them to stress and
depression, also suicide. As a mental health counselor, you are called to perform mental help
rescues, which is essential. Counselors are also trained on various interventions to help an
individual who has been through this type of ordeal. There a multiple models based on specific
trauma. These models are focus on interventions within the time of the trauma or disaster, with
goals being solution-focused and intervention brief (Stebnicki, 2016).
How the ideas impacted me as I consider working with trauma clients
This week's reading was very imperative for a disaster mental health counselor. I learned so
much important information, which I did not know because presently I am a school counselor
but would like to a]be a clinical counselor to help children/adolescents with trauma. Before
making any decision, I will use active listen, to have a better idea of what problems they need
help in, then try to solve the problem which I will be able to assist them on their psychological
needs due to their trauma. I will reinforce the Stop to help me to assess each client before
making any decisions. If I am overwhelmed by listening to the clients' stories, I will adapt some
type of self-care, which I like running and have a great family system that I can call and
FaceTime them anytime.
My primary goal as a disaster mental health therapist is to use the models to conduct brief
intervention therapy according to my client's needs. I will encourage my clients to express their
traumatic events without forcing them to disclose or attempt psychotherapy. I will be empathic
towards my clients and support them to express their feelings, emotions, and experience about
the trauma, and introduce hope and various coping skills in which they will be able to live a
happy and productive life. (Stebnicki, 2016).
During the pre-intervention stage, it is my responsibility as well to coordinate with the disaster
team.
What Christian worldview integration thoughts come to mind from this material
(1 page)?
Reference
Stebnicki, M. A. (2016). Disaster mental health counseling: Responding to trauma in
a multicultural context.
Stebnicki, M. A. P. L. D. (Ed.). (2016). Disaster mental health counseling : Responding to trauma in
a multicultural context. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral-proquest-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu
Key ideas from this week's readings
In this week's reading, I understand the importance of problem-solving, an essential aspect of a
therapist's job. When; the clients expressed their emotions and feelings while actively listening to
them, the therapist's job is to help the client solve the problem and provide them with all the
support that will help them lessen their stress from the trauma they encountered throughout their
life (Jacobs, 2016).
The acronym STOP stands out to me because each client is different as a therapist we should
first assess a situation before making any decision. Hayes stated, "it is important to stop and
assess the situation before you rush in and begin to try to help. It is important to understand what
needs to be completed. Before you start trying to do it, and it is important to make sure that you
are ready before you leap into the effort" (Jacobs,2016).
Self-care is essential as a therapist. We have to take care of our well-being, finding some type of
coping technique that will help us after a stressful day. Don't overwhelm yourself with your daily
routine; try to have some family time with friends and family; this is an excellent form of coping
strategy, or sit down and talk your feelings out to someone.
They are various catastrophe events happening in the world today. Example: 09/11, climate
change, mass shooting, etc. which put a heavy burden on humans that lead them to stress and
depression, also suicide. As a mental health counselor, you are called to perform mental help
rescues, which is essential. Counselors are also trained on various interventions to help an
individual who has been through this type of ordeal. There a multiple models based on specific
trauma. These models are focus on interventions within the time of the trauma or disaster, with
goals being solution-focused and intervention brief (Stebnicki, 2016).
How the ideas impacted me as I consider working with trauma clients
This week's reading was very imperative for a disaster mental health counselor. I learned so
much important information, which I did not know because presently I am a school counselor
but would like to a]be a clinical counselor to help children/adolescents with trauma. Before
making any decision, I will use active listen, to have a better idea of what problems they need
help in, then try to solve the problem which I will be able to assist them on their psychological
needs due to their trauma. I will reinforce the Stop to help me to assess each client before
making any decisions. If I am overwhelmed by listening to the clients' stories, I will adapt some
type of self-care, which I like running and have a great family system that I can call and
FaceTime them anytime.
My primary goal as a disaster mental health therapist is to use the models to conduct brief
intervention therapy according to my client's needs. I will encourage my clients to express their
traumatic events without forcing them to disclose or attempt psychotherapy. I will be empathic
towards my clients and support them to express their feelings, emotions, and experience about
the trauma, and introduce hope and various coping skills in which they will be able to live a
happy and productive life. (Stebnicki, 2016).
During the pre-intervention stage, it is my responsibility as well to coordinate with the disaster
team.
What Christian worldview integration thoughts come to mind from this material
(1 page)?
Reference
Stebnicki, M. A. (2016). Disaster mental health counseling: Responding to trauma in
a multicultural context.
Stebnicki, M. A. P. L. D. (Ed.). (2016). Disaster mental health counseling : Responding to trauma in
a multicultural context. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral-proquest-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu
Key ideas from this week's readings
In this week's reading, I understand the importance of problem-solving, an essential aspect of a
therapist's job. When; the clients expressed their emotions and feelings while actively listening to
them, the therapist's job is to help the client solve the problem and provide them with all the
support that will help them lessen their stress from the trauma they encountered throughout their
life (Jacobs, 2016).
The acronym STOP stands out to me because each client is different as a therapist we should
first assess a situation before making any decision. Hayes stated, "it is important to stop and
assess the situation before you rush in and begin to try to help. It is important to understand what
needs to be completed. Before you start trying to do it, and it is important to make sure that you
are ready before you leap into the effort" (Jacobs,2016).
Self-care is essential as a therapist. We have to take care of our well-being, finding some type of
coping technique that will help us after a stressful day. Don't overwhelm yourself with your daily
routine; try to have some family time with friends and family; this is an excellent form of coping
strategy, or sit down and talk your feelings out to someone.
They are various catastrophe events happening in the world today. Example: 09/11, climate
change, mass shooting, etc. which put a heavy burden on humans that lead them to stress and
depression, also suicide. As a mental health counselor, you are called to perform mental help
rescues, which is essential. Counselors are also trained on various interventions to help an
individual who has been through this type of ordeal. There a multiple models based on specific
trauma. These models are focus on interventions within the time of the trauma or disaster, with
goals being solution-focused and intervention brief (Stebnicki, 2016).
How the ideas impacted me as I consider working with trauma clients
This week's reading was very imperative for a disaster mental health counselor. I learned so
much important information, which I did not know because presently I am a school counselor
but would like to a]be a clinical counselor to help children/adolescents with trauma. Before
making any decision, I will use active listen, to have a better idea of what problems they need
help in, then try to solve the problem which I will be able to assist them on their psychological
needs due to their trauma. I will reinforce the Stop to help me to assess each client before
making any decisions. If I am overwhelmed by listening to the clients' stories, I will adapt some
type of self-care, which I like running and have a great family system that I can call and
FaceTime them anytime.
My primary goal as a disaster mental health therapist is to use the models to conduct brief
intervention therapy according to my client's needs. I will encourage my clients to express their
traumatic events without forcing them to disclose or attempt psychotherapy. I will be empathic
towards my clients and support them to express their feelings, emotions, and experience about
the trauma, and introduce hope and various coping skills in which they will be able to live a
happy and productive life. (Stebnicki, 2016).
During the pre-intervention stage, it is my responsibility as well to coordinate with the disaster
team.
What Christian worldview integration thoughts come to mind from this material
(1 page)?
Reference
Stebnicki, M. A. (2016). Disaster mental health counseling: Responding to trauma in
a multicultural context.
Stebnicki, M. A. P. L. D. (Ed.). (2016). Disaster mental health counseling : Responding to trauma in
a multicultural context. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral-proquest-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu
1
Reflective Journal
Name
Institution
Course
Date
2
Reflective Journal
Key ideas from this week's readings
In this week's reading, I learned the significance of problem-solving, an essential
aspect of a therapist's job. When the clients express their emotions and feelings while actively
listening to them, the therapist's job is to help them solve the problem and provide them with
all the support that will help them lessen their stress from the trauma they encountered
throughout their life (Jacobs, 2016). I learned that problem-solving is a critical aspect of a
therapist’s job to understand the conflicting issues. As a result, it makes the therapeutic
processes customized to suit individual needs. It also improves cooperation between a
therapist and a patient.
The acronym STOP stands out to me because each client is different. Therefore, a
therapist should first assess a situation before making any decision. Hayes stated that it is
vital to stop and assess the situation before rushing in and trying to help. It is essential to
understand what needs to be completed before you start trying to do it, and it is important to
make sure that you are ready before you leap into the effort (Jacobs, 2016). This shows that a
detailed assessment is necessary before a therapist embarks on helping disaster victims and
patients recover from devastating life experiences.
I also learned that self-care is essential to a therapist. We have to take care of our
well-being by finding coping techniques to help us after a stressful day. Therapists should not
overwhelm themselves with routine activities. They should try to have some family time with
friends and family to cope with various issues by talking and expressing their feelings.
Various catastrophic events like mass shootings are happening in the world today,
causing stress and depression. As mental health counselors, we are called to perform mental
health rescues, which is essential. Counselors are also trained on various interventions to help
an individual who has been through this type of ordeal. There are multiple models based on
3
specific trauma (Stebnicki, 2016). These models focus on interventions within the time of the
trauma or disaster, with goals being solution-focused and intervention brief.
How the ideas impacted me as I consider working with trauma clients
This week's readings were very imperative for a disaster mental health counselor. I
learned crucial principles in my career as a mental health counselor, which I did not know
because presently I am a school counselor but would like to be a clinical counselor to help
children/adolescents with trauma cases. Thus, my understanding of how to deal with trauma
clients has been broadened.
The first critical idea that I got was to utilize active listening before making any
decision. Active listening is vital to understand the clients' problems and then find a mutual
solution. I will reinforce the STOP acronym to help me assess each client before making any
decisions. If I am overwhelmed by listening to the clients' stories, I will adopt some self-care
like running and having family time to talk and share ideas on family and friendship issues.
The ideas from this week’s readings also taught me that problem-solving is part and
parcel of a therapist’s job. A trauma therapist needs to listen to their clients’ views and
emotions and help them solve the expressed challenges. A disaster mental health counselor
also needs to provide all the necessary support to their clients to relieve them from stressful
experiences. This is crucial as I consider transitioning from a school counselor to a clinical
counselor working with children/adolescents with trauma cases.
My primary goal as a disaster mental health therapist is to use the models to conduct
brief intervention therapy according to my client's needs. I will encourage my clients to
express their traumatic events without forcing them to disclose or attempt psychotherapy. I
will be empathic towards my clients and support them to express their feelings, emotions, and
experience about the trauma, and introduce hope and various coping skills in which they will
be able to live a happy and productive life. (Stebnicki, 2016). During the pre-intervention
stage, it is my responsibility to coordinate with the disaster team.
4
Christian worldview
The Christian perspective applies positivism, hope, encouragement, and helping
individuals who face traumatic encounters to be optimistic for a better tomorrow since
Christians consider such devastating situations temporary. As a result, Christians are bound
by love to help their fellows facing challenging moments (Stebnicki, 2016). For example, the
Bible considers love as the greatest commandment. It also states that Christians cannot
comfortably claim to love God whom they have not seen but hate their fellow men. These
Biblical concepts champion unconditional love to entire humanity; thus, Christians and
Christian organizations globally have been on the frontline in supporting the well-being of all
people, especially those who face unclear and devastating situations like disasters. They
express love by offering counseling services to disaster victims, providing food, shelter,
medical services, clothing, and education.
The second Christian worldview integration thought that comes to mind from this
material is the power of encouragement that Christians promote through fellowships and
prayer for the victims. Trauma victims are always troubled in their hearts due to the traumatic
experiences and the repercussions, such as losing their loved ones, properties, injuries, among
other horrible experiences. However, Christians teach the believers to hope in God by
understanding times and seasons since each season has a lesson to be learned from it.
Therefore, the Christian worldview integration thoughts inspire the victims to remain strong
and always hope in God.
Finally, disasters are inevitable in our contemporary society. For example, hurricanes,
floods, earthquakes, and tornados, have become common in western countries. Thus, there is
a need for all stakeholders and humanity to unite to make the world a better place for all
(Stebnicki, 2016). Christians value unity by coming together and mobilizing resources to help
the affected individuals.
5
References
Jacobs, G. A. (2016). Community-based psychological first aid: A practical guide to helping
individuals and communities during difficult times.
Stebnicki, M. A. (2016). Disaster mental health counseling: Responding to trauma in a
multicultural context. ProQuest E-book Central https://ebookcentral-proquest-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu
