ABSTRACT
X WHATARE TRAUMAANDSAFETY CONCERNS? For the purposes of this book, trauma is defi ned as an overwhelming and often unexpected event that results in extreme emotional, physical, or cognitive pain and suff ering. Trauma is typically associated with a specifi c critical event, or series of events, such as witnessing or experiencing physical, psychological, or sexual violence, extreme poverty or refugee conditions, or natural disasters (Herman, ). A trauma response includes the varied and complex symptoms that result as a natural reaction to the trauma experience. Together, these responses are described by Courtois and Ford () as a “biological and psychological survival mode” (p. ), even while the immediate risk of danger, disaster, or death are no longer present.
