Youth today are growing up in increasingly complex environments, and this includes being exposed to trauma.
Traumatic exposure is widespread, can result in cognitive and emotional dysregulation and is linked with long-term negative outcomes.
This makes youth development programs incredibly important so that youth have the necessary tools, support and community to be able to build resilience and thrive.
As a childhood burn survivor, I have personally experienced the enduring effects of early trauma. This lived experience has deepened my understanding of the complexity of trauma and its long-term impact on an individual and how it impacts youth differently at different stages of their life.
Trauma expert Gabor Maté emphasizes that trauma is not what happens to us, but what happens inside us when we are not adequately supported.
For youth to heal and thrive during and after trauma, strong support systems and a sense of community are essential. Youth may not have access to support from a trauma specialist, and the help they need may instead come from trusted adults, mentors or community members who are part of their everyday lives. This support may even come from your youth development program.
Resiliency is built by a combination of individual, relational, environmental and systemic factors. 4-H helped me build that resiliency, particularly through my involvement in the 4-H horse project at both the county and state levels. Youth development programs like 4-H can help trauma survivors build life skills and resilience.
In my forthcoming memoir and workbook "Survivor not Victim, Stories Behind my Scars and the Path to Thriving," I break down survivor lessons I have learned that are necessary for moving to thriving after trauma. Below are a few of these lessons that youth development programs implement to support youth who have experienced trauma.
How youth development programs help
Community and belonging
Trauma has a way of making one feel isolated, alone on an island; being a part of a community and finding belonging is vital for moving forward, rather than being held back or stuck.
In fact, "The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma" discusses how “being able to feel safe with other people is probably the single most important aspect of mental health; safe connections are fundamental to meaningful and satisfying lives.”
Passions and agency
Pursuing one's passion is so important and can bring light, motivation, joy and spark one's interests in new ways. It can give survivors a catalyst to move out of survival mode and into thriving. Exploring and pursuing one's passion may even develop skills that lead to an interest and help youth determine a career path. It did for me!
Pursuing one's passion also teaches agency.
“'Agency' is the technical term for the feeling of being in charge of your life: knowing where you stand, knowing that you have a say in what happens to you, knowing that you have some ability to shape your circumstances,” according to "The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma." Gabor Maté adds that “the exercise of agency is powerfully healing."
Teach values
Youth development programs also help young people learn core values that they may not otherwise learn.
4-H teaches youth open-mindedness, perseverance, hope for the future, kindness, respect, responsibility, personal integrity, a sense of wonder, the ability to work well with others and leadership skills. This helps survivors stay grounded and live with these values in and out of the program, especially when they may not learn or have them modeled in other areas of their life.
Youth development programs like 4-H can enhance overall wellbeing, increase competence, encourage healthier decision-making and empower young people to contribute positively to their communities.
How youth development professionals can support youth
As youth development staff, we can start by reframing our thoughts from asking, “What’s wrong with someone?” to “What has happened to someone?”
We can also recognize that trauma shows up in different ways for different people. In doing so, we avoid stereotypes and assumptions.
In addition, we can:
- Provide safe environments
- Focus on empowerment
- Teach health-promoting activities
- Learn trauma-informed practices and apply them to our programs
- Understand how to avoid triggers that may re-traumatize youth
Lastly, we can teach and model self-regulation skills.
Even individuals who are not trauma specialists can profoundly impact the lives of youth who have experienced trauma by offering safety, a sense of belonging, opportunities to explore their interests and passions, and guidance in living according to positive values.
More from Extension
Anderson, M. L. (in press). Survivor not Victim, Stories Behind my Scars and the Path of Thriving [Unpublished manuscript].
Anderson, M. L. (in press). Survivor not Victim, Path of Thriving Workbook [Unpublished manuscript].
Maté, G. (2021, July 22). Trauma Is Not What Happens to You, It Is What Happens Inside You [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmJOuTAk09g
Melissa Persing, (n.d.). Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). University of Minnesota Extension. https://extension.umn.edu/building-youth-resilience-resources/adverse-childhood-experiences-aces
Shaikh, M., & Forneris, T. (2024). A RE-AIM evaluation of a sport-based trauma-sensitive youth development programme. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 22 (4), 845–865. https://doi.org/10.1080/1612197X.2023.2180068
Van der Kolk, B. A. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. Penguin Books.