What is trauma-informed counselling?

Many therapists describe their work as trauma-informed, but what does that look like in practice?

The Five Guiding Principles from the Blue Knot Foundation's Talking About Trauma resource provide a helpful framework for understanding trauma-informed counselling.

The Five Guiding Principles are:

1. Safety

2. Trustworthiness

3. Choice

4. Collaboration

5. Empowerment

As a client, experiencing these principles in therapy may be a good indication that your therapist is providing trauma-informed care.

You may think and feel:

1. Safety: I feel emotionally and physically safe.

2. Trustworthiness: My therapist is consistent and transparent.

3. Choice: My preferences are respected.

4. Collaboration: We work together.

5. Empowerment: My strengths and autonomy are valued.

At More Good Days Therapy and Counselling, we understand that trust is earned and that feeling safe enough to be vulnerable can take time. Our hope is to create a safe and secure foundation where it feels okay to be vulnerable while still feeling in control.

Trauma-informed counselling recognises that difficult life experiences, including trauma, can shape how we think, feel, relate to others, and respond to challenges. Rather than asking, "What's wrong with you?", trauma-informed care seeks to understand experiences with curiosity, compassion, and respect.

Healing often begins when we move from asking, "What is wrong with me?" to "What happened to me?"

Who can benefit from trauma-informed counselling?

Trauma-informed counselling may be helpful for people who:

• Have experienced childhood wounds, neglect, or difficult family relationships

• Have experienced trauma or complex trauma

• Struggle with anxiety, depression, or low self-esteem

• Notice patterns of people-pleasing, perfectionism, or difficulty setting boundaries

• Feel impacted by cultural expectations, identity challenges, or intergenerational trauma

• Are experiencing problem gambling or gambling-related harm

• Want to better understand themselves and their responses to life's challenges

You do not need to have experienced a major traumatic event to benefit from trauma-informed counselling. Many people find a trauma-informed approach helpful because it prioritises safety, trust, choice, collaboration, and empowerment.

You can download this free fact sheet from Blue Knot Foundation's website to learn more about trauma-informed practice: Applying trauma-informed principles to conversations about trauma - Blue Knot Foundation