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Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling

Trauma

Christ’s Body Keeps the Score

Trauma-Informed Theology and the Neuroscience of PTSD

by Preston Hill

Abstract: Recent findings in neuroscience and psychology indicate that “the body keeps the score” of PTSD. Concurrently, trauma-informed theology to date has deployed pneumatology to explain how God experiences trauma in the Christian narrative of salvation. Yet, in Christian theology, the divine person of the Holy Spirit has no assumed human body. This raises an important question as to whether a body is needed for God to keep the score of posttraumatic stress in a manner consistent with neuroscience and how this might shape one’s account of trauma in Christian soteriology. In this article, I take an analytic science-engaged approach to assess the viability of dominant proposals in trauma-informed theology which deploy trauma theory to assert God’s experience of trauma and explain this experience with exclusive reference to pneumatology. After reviewing clinical and scientific research on the neuroscience of PTSD which has been neglected in these approaches, I argue that Christology is a more obviously fitting locus for suggesting God’s experience of trauma within Christian soteriology than the person of the Holy Spirit. I conclude that since the body keeps the score of trauma from a scientific perspective, Christ’s body keeps the score of trauma from a science-engaged theology perspective.

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Richmont Receives Record Donation

Richmont Graduate University is honored to have received a grant in the amount of $150,000. This grant, made by an anonymous donor, will be used to support the work of the Richmont Institute of Trauma and Recovery. This record-setting grant is the second largest single gift received by Richmont.

In response to this record gift, Richmont President Dr. Timothy Quinnan commented, “Any University claiming such a title must be able to attract external support in significant amounts. In many respects, grant support is the highest form of peer recognition. Simply put, it says that knowledgable others believe your institution is engaged in work that competitors are unable to match.

The Richmont Institute of Trauma and Recovery is dedicated to providing education, training, and treatment to those impacted by trauma. To learn more about the trauma training and counseling services offered through the Richmont Institute of Trauma and Recovery, visit richmonttrauma.com.

Richmont Graduate University is a non-profit organization (501c3) and member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA). To learn more about ways to support Richmont, visit richmont.edu/give.

Richmont Trauma Center Open House and Play Therapy Room Grand Opening

Dr. Vanessa Snyder, Vice President of the Richmont Institute of Trauma and Recovery, welcomes open house guests.

pictured above: Kurt Idler, Suzanne Roski Idler, Patricia Roski, Dr. Timothy Quinnan, Renee Roski-Holdo (class of 2017), and Dominique Holdo (current student).

Saturday, March 2nd, the Richmont Trauma Center hosted an open house and grand opening of the Jeffery Harrison Roski Play Therapy Room. Trauma Center staff and Richmont Graduate University administration including President Timothy Quinnan were on hand for the occasion. The creation of the play therapy room was made possible by a generous contribution from the Roski Family Trust. Several members of the Roski family were honored guests present to participate in the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Suzanne Roski Idler, one of Mr. Roski’s daughters, spoke of how her parents always encouraged play while their children were growing up and of how commonplace it was for her parents to play alongside their children. She noted her dad would never have wanted to put his name on something, but the family decided the play therapy room was a fitting memorial for him.

Emme Blackburn cuts the ribbon on the play therapy room doll house.

Those who would like to contribute to the work of the Richmont Trauma Center can make a donation at richmonttraumacenter.com/donate Donors may choose to purchase a building block on the “Build Up a Child” wall at the entrance to the play therapy room to honor or memorialize someone or leave a message of encouragement. Guests at the open house were able to mark their desired block locations on a mockup of the finished wall.

The Richmont Trauma Center was created to provide quality mental health treatment to those impacted by single episode and complex trauma. Trauma Center counselors are honored to walk the journey with individuals and families as they work to heal and grow. The Richmont Trauma Center is located on the Atlanta campus of Richmont Graduate University. Counselors are available by appointment for individuals, couples, families, and children. The Richmont Trauma Center staff offers specialized services including:

The Richmont Trauma Center staff. front row: Ashley Mossy, Renee Holdo, Deanna Davis, and Vanessa Snyder back row: Erica Welsh, Lyresa McGriff, Monique Jones, Madelon Morgan, and Emma Donaldson

 

• Child-Centered Play Therapy
• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR)
• Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT)
• Bio-Feedback
• Neuro-Feedback
• Somatic Experiencing
• Certified Sex Addiction Therapy (CSAT)
• Art Therapy
• Trauma Sensitive Yoga
• Trauma-Informed Supervision

For more information on the Richmont Trauma Center, visit richmonttraumacenter.com

To schedule an appointment, call (770) 575-9393

Richmont Faculty Featured on WebMD

Atlanta Area Restaurants Helping to End Human Trafficking

Sadly, Atlanta ranks among the top cities in America for human trafficking. Friday, January 11th is National Human Trafficking Awareness Day and Marlow’s Tavern is partnering with the Richmont Institute of Trauma and Recovery the raise awareness and help put an end to trafficking.

Marlow’s Tavern has partnered with several Atlanta-area restaurants to host a fundraiser on January 11th to benefit Richmont Institute of Trauma & Recovery. The Richmont Institute of Trauma & Recovery offers expert training to professionals working with trauma survivors as well as help for those who have been victims of trafficking.  You can learn more about the institute at richmonttrauma.com. 

Marlow’s Tavern is joined by Babalu, Johnny’s Hideaway, Gunshow, Revival, Murphy’s, Seed Kitchen & Bar, Stem Wine Bar, and Drift Fish House & Oyster Bar to give back a portion of sales to Richmont Institute of Trauma and Recovery.

Make plans for lunch and dinner at one of these great locations and help bring an end to the tragedy of human trafficking.

Richmont Alumna Brings Healing to Human Trafficking Survivors

Emily Aikins makes the world a better place every day. She works with human trafficking survivors at Second Life Chattanooga.

Emily Aikins

Emily, director of survivor services, and her team at Second Life create spaces of trust and security for survivors to process and heal. “These women and men have been through a lot, and healing does not happen overnight,” Emily said.

According to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, minors are the most frequent victims of human trafficking in the state. Victims need access to trauma specialists.

There is a vacuum of services for victims of human trafficking, and Emily is on the frontlines. Never in her dreams, though, would she have thought she would be working with society’s most vulnerable.

Emily’s journey to Second Life began years ago as a whisper when she discovered her heart for teenagers.

While at college in Indiana, Emily worked with local high schoolers through Campus Life. She loved befriending these students and meeting them where they were at–brokenness and all. “These kids instantaneously stole my heart,” Emily said.

She found much of her time filled with these kids amidst laughter and tears, sharing their joys and their sorrows. Emily walked with teenagers through the best of times and, in some cases, the worst of times.

“These kids were funny, fearless and asked questions I didn’t have answers to,” Emily began. “I was honored to become the person in their lives with whom they felt safe. I found that I wanted to develop a professional toolset to help guide other students like the ones I got to know.”

She decided to pursue a graduate degree in counseling.

The spring semester before she graduated, Emily went to Preview Day at Richmont Graduate University’s campuses in Atlanta and Chattanooga. She liked the small class-size and the real-world counseling experience from on-site internships.

She chose to relocate to the Chattanooga campus. Emily began classes in the Scenic City where she learned a wide variety of psychological theories and perspectives, including human sexuality, which would later inform her work with human trafficking victims.

After graduating from Richmont with a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy, Emily worked as a counselor at Georgia HOPE and then the Bradley County Juvenile Court, working with teens.

“While in the juvenile court system, there were lots of hard moments,” Emily said. “The kids I worked with in the juvenile justice system look like problems to the rest of society. The focus was on the punishment for their behaviors. Instead, I was driven to discover the motive behind these behaviors. There was a larger story at play. They have been dealing with trauma their entire lives.”

She saw firsthand the results of lifelong trauma. Luckily, Emily was equipped to care for them well.

“I learned from classes at Richmont how to look survivors in the eyes and let them know they are a person, not a problem to figure out what to do with,” Emily said. “Everyone has a story. These were individuals who have lived really hard lives. And I was able to see and hear the humanity in the situations, and help them rewrite their stories moving forward.”

These experiences caused Emily to look more deeply into trauma-related fields. She remembered the CEO of Second Life Chattanooga speaking at a class while in grad school about the prevalence and devastating trauma of human trafficking.

She pursued work with Second Life Chattanooga, and she was hired.

“As part of a statewide network, Second Life Chattanooga has helped to position Tennessee as the leading state in the country in the fight against human trafficking,” Emily said. “We do our work every day guided by hope, passion, and an unshakeable belief that we can and will see human trafficking defeated. I’m thankful for Richmont’s emphasis on working with survivors of trauma, because this has been the primary work of my career.”

Emily changes lives every day. She makes the world a better place today and for generations to come. It began with the decision to go to Richmont.

Come and find out how you could change the lives of individuals forever. Learn how a degree in counseling will equip you to better love and minister to the hurting and broken. Take your first step. Contact Richmont.

 

 

 

 

 

Richmont Trauma Response Team to Aid in Hurricane Harvey Relief Efforts

Richmont’s Trauma Response Team will travel to Corpus Christi today to provide to services to those impacted by Hurricane Harvey.  Hurricane Havey made landfall on Corpus Christi on August 25th as a category 4 hurricane with winds over 130 mph.  Corpus Christi and the neighboring communities of Port Aransas and Rockport saw significant damage as Harvey made landfall and then continued on to Houston.  Richmont is partnering with The Field Innovation Team (FIT) to provide support and recovery to the Corpus Christi community.  The Trauma Response Team will be doing field work in trailer parks, providing compassion fatigue support for first responders, and will be connecting victims with FEMA services.

Richmont’s Trauma Response Team will include faculty members Vanessa Snyder Ph.D. (Team Leader), William McGee Ed.D, and Lorrie Slater Ph.D. as well as Richmont graduate JJ Widener.  The team will be posting updates from Corpus Christi throughout the next week to richmonttrauma.com.

Richmont Graduate University provides Master’s level degree programs and continuing education for Professional Counselors and Marriage and Family Therapists.  Richmont’s Institute of Traumatology provides advanced training in Trauma Counseling which prepares students to work with clients who have suffered complex trauma or who are victims of traumatic events.

The Richmont Institute of Traumatology works in collaboration with Green Cross Academy of Traumatology to train individuals in the vital work of domestic and international trauma relief. We are proud to partner with Green Cross, the world’s premier certifying body for traumatologists, and all members of the Richmont Team have earned GCAT certification.

For more information about Trauma Training and for updates regarding Trauma Team’s trip, visit:  richmonttrauma.com