We tell clients to write the first response that comes to mind . Some clients write their answers at home and we discuss them in our next session ; others write their responses immediately . Their answers typically become the basis of our work together , and help me understand the client ’ s frame of reference . Then I use counseling techniques to encourage insight and knowledge , and to aid decision-making .
Counseling Tips continued from page 10
Susan Branco , PhD , LPC ( VA ), LCPC ( MD ), NCC , ACS , BC-TMH , is a practicing counselor and a tenure-track assistant professor in the Counselor Education program at St . Bonaventure University . Her research interests include transracial adoption and mental health , Colombian adoption policy , and clinical training and supervision practices for BIPOC counselors . Email contact : sbranco @ sbu . edu
Anna Maria Mora received her two master ’ s degrees — an MEd and an MA — from Columbia University . After graduating , in Psychological Counseling , she returned home to Trinidad and Tobago . To address the dearth of mental health services for children and adolescents there , she founded The Counselling and Activity Center for Children and Adolescents . In addition to authoring two books , “ Parents , Are You Listening ?” and “ Children , Are You Listening ,” she is also a past president of the Trinidad and Tobago Association of Psychologists and the International Association for Counselling ’ s regional representative for the Caribbean .
Some employees I work with experience systemic racism-related trauma because they live “ on the wrong side of the tracks .” To hide where they live , many give their employers the address of a relative living in a more socially accepted neighborhood .
( https :// bit . ly / 3vrm3UE ), and the Trauma Symptoms of Discrimination Scale ( TSDS ) https :// bit . ly / 3BWICDf .
Finally , pursuing healing with similar principles for non-race-based trauma — including grounding , resourcing , pacing , and trauma-informed tenets — is also very important in the counseling process . One excellent resource for clinical mental health counselors and clients is the book , “ My Grandmother ’ s Hands : Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies ,” by Resmaa Menakem , LICSW , https :// bit . ly / 3iOww7y . Menakem also offers a webinar training series via the Cultural Somatics Institute ( https :// bit . ly / 3jhChuA ).
THE ADVOCATE MAGAZINE : What counseling approaches have you found to be the most effective with clients affected by systemic racism-related psychological trauma ?
DR . SUSAN BRANCO : It is always important to “ broach ” issues of race , ethnicity , and culture with a client to better understand how their identities impact their lived experiences . ( See Resources box on page 13 for information on broaching .) Clinical mental health counselors who broach at the start of the counseling relationship create a welcoming environment where clients will be authentically known and their important identities may be explored . Also , offering psychoeducation on race-based or racial trauma can support a client to better understand their experiences .
Selecting appropriate assessments to gather more information about the client ’ s experiences with racism , discrimination , and microaggressions also helps to spotlight racial trauma and can support a client ’ s exploration . Two assessments I like are the UConn Racial Ethnic Stress and Trauma Inventory ( UnREST )
ANNA MARIA MORA : First , the counselling psychologist must possess highly developed empathic skills , because empathetic interactions not only encourage clients to examine their feelings , but help them feel understood by the counselor . I use the client-centered approach with clients affected by racism-related trauma , and , when needed , Erik Erikson ’ s Psychosocial Stages of Development . All 10 stages , and their corresponding psychosocial crises , are described in detail in te handout “ Grounds for Growth : The Human Development Program ’ s Comprehensive Theory ,” by Uvaldo Hill Palomares and Gerry Ball . ( See the handout at https :// bit . ly / 3nOBZgf Eight of Erikson ’ s stages are also summarized online at : https :// bit . ly / 3vF8EZ2 ).
Erikson ’ s theory describes the stages of life as challenges to be navigated throughout the life span . The challenges we must overcome include mistrust , shame and doubt , guilt , inferiority , alienation , role confusion / diffusion , isolation , stagnation , and despair . People affected by systemic racism-related psychological trauma face these same challenges . Following is an example of a dialogue between a clinical mental health counselor and a 16-year-old male student of African descent who is working out his identity while observing some of the ways that systemic racism affects students like him . continued on page 12 The Advocate Magazine Summer 2021 American Mental Health Counselors Association ( AMHCA ) www . amhca . org
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