10 hour course for CPSs and pre-CPSs

This course offers an in-depth exploration of trauma at the individual, community, generational, and systemic levels. Participants will go beyond the familiar fight-or-flight narrative to understand a broader range of trauma responses, and how these experiences shape worldviews and influence later social determinants of health.

Through a combination of self-reflection, community-based practices, and harm-reduction approaches, participants will learn how to effectively partner with someone “living in” trauma. These skills will be reinforced through roleplays and live practice opportunities. The training also addresses engagement strategies for survivors of domestic violence as well as community members traumatized by having caused trauma (moral injury).

In addition to personal and interpersonal tools, the course provides frameworks for enacting systems-level change through community building and trauma-informed policy development. Central to the training is the recognition that trauma is a social issue impacting everyone. By approaching trauma from a public health perspective, Kiva Centers promotes collective healing models that strengthen resilience and expand resources for individuals, families, and communities.

At its core, the Peer Trauma Guide represents a paradigm shift: moving from asking “What’s wrong with you?” to “What happened to you?”.

For more information on Peer Trauma Guide training, please email cbassett@kivacenters.org.