Trauma Aware: 7 Days to More Biblical and Empathic CareSample

Day 3: The Three Stages of Recovery: Stage 1

Most trauma experts concur trauma healing or recovery typically involves distinct stages or phases, providing a structured framework for the journey toward wholeness and restoration. In Trauma and Recovery, a benchmark book for understanding trauma, author Judith Herman establishes a pathway to trauma recovery. She categorizes trauma care into three stages: safety, remembrance, and reconnection.

These three stages are interconnected and build off one another. Each stage is crucial in the process of integrating various aspects of trauma recovery into a person’s life to move them toward establishing meaning to what happened to them without overwhelming or destabilizing them. Clinical trauma experts typically align with these three distinct stages when it comes to trauma recovery, although the specific titles used for these stages may vary based upon the modality or therapist’s approach.

Trauma recovery instantiates the fact that God designed us to need others as we go through life. “Recovery can take place only within the context of relationships, it cannot occur in isolation.”* The church, therefore, should be a primary place people can turn to for help when trauma is experienced. While others can offer support, the church holds out the Cure. We bring people to the One who says, “Fear not, for I am with you” (Isaiah 41:19); we take them to Jesus, who understands trauma because he himself endured it as well.

Stage One: Safety and Stabilization

For us as believers, establishing a traumatized person’s safety should be a natural element of our care. As Christians, we find safety and security in our Lord. God is called our Rock, our Fortress, and our Protector (Psalm 18:2); our Provider (Genesis 22:14); our Shelter (Psalm 9:9-10), our Comforter (2 Corinthians 1:3-4); and our Defender and Trustworthy Deliverer (Psalm 144:2). All these names remind us first and foremost, we are safe with God. As the church seeks to provide care for those who have been traumatized, we must remember we image God best when safety is our constant priority.

So, what does it look like to establish safety with someone who has experienced psychological trauma? First, make sure they are physically safe. Are they currently in a situation where the threat of continued abuse or emotional or personal harm is present? If so, suggest protective options through resources or support systems. Support groups, prevention helplines, and safety hotlines can offer immediate assistance to individuals who are in distress and can be easily accessed in your area though an internet search. Tangible resources such as housing, transportation, and financial aid may also be needed in the process of establishing physical safety.

Action steps toward physical safety must be initiated by the individual who is seeking support. Your role is not to take control of the situation but to offer guidance and respect the agency of the person in need of care. Trauma, by nature, causes a sense of powerlessness, leaving the person to feel helpless about change or getting out of the terrible event or circumstances they have endured. Respecting a person’s voice and giving them options in their care restores confidence, encourages resilience, and affirms to them you are a safe person.

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* Herman, Trauma and Recovery, 53.