Stand like the bear

As we move towards a trauma informed culture, what may come up for us through the act of recognising what prevails in clients, is an exposure to what prevails in us. For many this is an uncomfortable fact and would perhaps go to explain why it is that primary care is littered with good intention but is failing the population while rinsing out the caregivers. There is a song that precedes us. It contains an orchestra of information and is made up of all the lived experience of our entire lives. A trauma informed practice makes us willing to to hear this song and through the mechanisms of human connectedness, co-regulation and empathy, our own song will be present. I for one recognise how my own vulnerabilities show up when working with clients but our vulnerability is not what we may think it is. The bear, when confronted will offer up all that is vulnerable about her. She will stand on her back legs a slightly unbalanced position for her size, she will spread her arms and show the most vulnerable and most softest part of herself, that's what is happening, but to the onlooker this grounded and deeply placed sense of vulnerable self looks like a tsunami of characterised power. hashtag#primarycare, hashtag#traumainformed hashtag#standlikethebear