Many of our Coachella Valley communities and schools participate in disaster preparedness such as what to do in the case of an earthquake or school shooting. But none of these trainings prepare us on how to psychologically help one another during traumatic times.
The Community Resiliency Model® known as CRM®, was created by Elaine Miller-Karas, a former emergency room nurse and social worker. Its mission is to train community members to not only help themselves, but to help others within their wider social network. It educates people about the biology and neurophysiology of trauma as well as teach simple biologically based wellness skills which can help reset and stabilize the nervous system.
Through CRM® individuals learn to read sensations connected to their own well-being which is called the “Resilient Zone”. CRM®’s goal is to help create a “trauma-informed” and “resiliency-focused” communities that share a common understanding of the impact of trauma and chronic stress on the nervous system and how resiliency can be restored and increased using this skills-based approach.
CRM® has been used worldwide including the United States, Mexico, Haiti, Guatemala, Iceland, Northern Ireland, Germany, the Ukraine, Serbia, Turkey, Sierra Leone, the Ivory Coast, Darfur, Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Africa, Nepal, China and the Philippines. Most recently Elaine and CRM® was commission by his Holiness the Dali Lama to develop CRM® as part of his Social, Emotional Ethical Learning Project (SEE). She returned from India a little over a month ago.
CRM® is a “research informed” intervention as evidenced by the State of California Mental Health Services Act. Loma Linda University, Claremont, Cal State Dominguez Hills and Emory University have partnered with Elaine and CRM® to provide ongoing research.
It is my hope in the next several articles to present more in-depth information on CRM® skills so that communities and schools may utilize these skills to help one another become more trauma informed and resilient in the face of disaster.
I am a trained CRM® teacher and welcome questions from the community at large including school districts, religious organizations, homeowner associations, schools, law enforcement and leaders of our Coachella Valley. This model is easily taught and the skills are applicable to all ages. If you would like more information on CRM® go to https//:www.traumaresourceinstitue.com. I can be reached at Barbara@wellnessbasedtherapy.com