Topic: Trauma-Informed Practices-Creating Healing Relationships and Environments for Young Children
Research and decades of evidence that trauma experiences in the first 5 years can have a significant negative impact on a child’s development. Trauma disrupts a child’s capacity to develop relationships to learn and play. Trauma experiences make it very difficult for children to regulate their emotions Without treatment, repeated childhood exposure to traumatic events can affect the brain and nervous system and increase health-risk behaviors (e.g., smoking, eating disorders, substance use, and high-risk activities). Research shows that child trauma survivors can be more likely to have long-term health problems (e.g., diabetes and heart disease) or to die at an earlier age. Traumatic stress can also lead to increased use of health and mental health services and increased involvement with the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. Adult survivors of traumatic events may also have difficulty in establishing fulfilling relationships and maintaining employment.

---

I hold a Master's Degree in Human Development, a social work license, and an Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation certificate from Georgetown University. I have a Certification in the FAN Approach (Facilitating Attuned Interactions) level 3 and an early childhood coaching certificate from Weber State University. I have extensive experience using a reflective, relationship-based approach in my work with children, parents, early childhood professionals, and college students. I work at The Children’s Center Utah, a non-profit mental health agency serving young children and their families. I am an adjunct Family and Consumer Studies Department professor at the University of Utah.