These Trauma Pages focus primarily on emotional trauma and traumatic stress, including PTSD (Post-traumatic Stress Disorder) and dissociation, whether following individual traumatic experience(s) or a large-scale disaster.
(HREA) is an international non-governmental organisation that supports human rights learning; the training of activists and professionals; the development of educational materials and programming; and community-building through on-line technologies. HREA is dedicated to quality education and training to promote understanding, attitudes and actions to protect human rights, and to foster the development of peaceable, free and just communities.
Transitional justice is a response to systematic or widespread violations of human rights. It seeks recognition for victims and to promote possibilities for peace, reconciliation and democracy. Transitional justice is not a special form of justice but justice adapted to societies transforming themselves after a period of pervasive human rights abuse. In some cases, these transformations happen suddenly; in others, they may take place over many decades.
The international community now recognizes that accounting for what happened during the conflict, seeking justice for those who were wronged, and promoting peaceful reconciliation among combatants and their broader societies are among the most important needs of countries emerging from violent conflict. While much has been written about posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)the psychological distress that individuals may develop following exposure to an upsetting event outside the range of normal human experiencethe role that trauma plays in these processes on the broader societal level is less well understod.
The Association of Traumatic Stress Specialists (ATSS) has internationally recognized certifications for trauma responders. It is a membership Association which develops standards of service and education for those who provide critical emotional care to trauma victims and survivors. ATSS has always endeavored to recognize and support both service providers and the consumers affected by all aspects of trauma in the international setting. ATSS is dedicated to excellence in training, education and experience to ensure that victims of crime, abuse, war, terrorism and disasters receive the most compassionate and effective care as possible.
The psychological suffering of children during war is an often overlooked, yet crucial, outcome of armed conflict. Many children have lived through conflict, political violence, displacement and starvation. This paper examines some of the issues surrounding the psychological costs of war.
No one knows how long a war will last or how it will affect our lives. We may feel uncertain about the future and anxious about events that are out of our control. You may react differently to a war today because of the impact of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Terrorism creates fear and uncertainty about the future. Because terrorist acts are random and unpredictable, war today poses a new kind of threat, one with which Americans have had little experience. You may feel more afraid, insecure, and vulnerable as a result of concerns that the United States could be attacked again.
When a natural disaster affects a community, the resulting trauma can reverberate even with those not directly affected by the disaster. Disasters of this type can be sudden and overwhelming. In addition to the often catastrophic toll on lives and property, a disaster like a tsunami(tidal wave), hurricane or fire can have an impact on those who have lost loved ones and even those who feel more vulnerable as a result of learning about the disaster.
The goal of the International Trauma Treatment Program is to undermine the use of torture through establishing an international network of practitioners who fight torture by transforming torture victims into survivors. By preparing practitioners from war zones to treat, and to train other practitioners to treat, trauma survivors in their home countries, we seek to leverage our resources by creating a snowball effect that greatly increases the number of practitioners worldwide who fight torture.
The DMHI was founded in 1993, and was designated a South Dakota Board of Regents Center of Excellence in 1997. The mission of the DMHI is the promotion, development, and application of both practice and research in disaster mental health.
The Program for Torture Victim provides medical, psychological, and case management services to survivors of torture.
Adapting to a new environment is a complicated and overwhelming experience for all new immigrants and refugees who have fled unsafe conditions in their native countries. For refugees who are also survivors of politically motivated torture, this transition is even more difficult because of the physical and psychological consequences of the torture they endured.
PsySR uses psychological knowledge and skills to promote peace with social justice at the community, national and international levels.
Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition International (TASSC) is the only organization founded by and for survivors of torture. It was established in 1998, on the guiding principles that torture is a crime against humanity and that survivors are the strongest and most effective voice in the campaign to end the practice of torture.
The institute work to increase understanding of the psychological impact of trauma and to help victims of violence restore meaning and wholeness to their lives. In meeting these goals, we are committed to clinical service, professional training, community education, and research.
The Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of Torture is a treatment program jointly supported by Bellevue Hospital Center and the NYU School of Medicine. The Program was established in 1995 to provide multidisciplinary treatment and rehabilitative services to survivors of political torture and their families.
The Sidran Institute (USA), a leader in traumatic stress education and advocacy, is a nationally-focused nonprofit organization devoted to helping people who have experienced traumatic life events.
The thousands of Americans who directly experienced the terror attacks on New York and Washington, and the millions who saw the resulting death and destruction on television, may encounter behavioral and emotional re-adjustment problems. Many post-traumatic stress symptoms are normal responses to an overwhelming stressor which may change our assumptions and create distress, but will reside in intensity with time. Experts agree that the amount of time it takes people to recover, depends both on what happened to them and on what meaning they gave to those events.
We need to ask why children join armies. If we are to prevent children fighting we need to understand the conditions under which children become soldiers and work to improve these conditions. One such context, that of Sri Lanka, may shed some light on the issues.
The Boston Center for Refugee Health and Human Rights aims to provide comprehensive health care for refugees and survivors of torture and related trauma coordinated with legal aid and social services; to educate and train agencies and professionals who serve these communities; to advocate for the promotion of health and human rights in the United States and worldwide; and to conduct clinical, epidemiological, and legal research for the better understanding and the promotion of health and quality of life for survivors of torture and related trauma.
War Child is a network of independent organisations working across the world to help children affected by war. War Child UK was founded in February 1993 by Bill Leeson and David Wilson, two film makers, after they had returned from the former Yugoslavia having made a film for the BBC Arena programme about the role of artists in war. We are committed to protecting and supporting children affected by armed conflict. We empower them to claim their rights, develop to their full potential and contribute to a peaceful future for themselves and their communities. Together we help children and young people make their voices heard.
Florida Center for Survivors of Torture is a regional treatment center for refugees and others who are survivors of torture and extreme trauma. Gulf Coast Jewish Family Services is the lead agency in a collaboration with three area resettlement agencies (Catholic Charities of the Diocese of St. Petersburg, Lutheran Services Florida and World Relief) and the University of South Florida`s Medical School and School of Public Health.