The information in this program outline is provided by the program representative and edited by the CEBC staff. The I Feel Better Now! Trauma Intervention Program has been rated by the CEBC in the area of: Trauma Treatment (Child & Adolescent).

• Types of Maltreatment: Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse, Physical Neglect, Emotional Abuse, Exposure to Domestic Violence
• Target Population: At-risk children ages 6-12 with a history of trauma or loss.

The I Feel Better Now! Trauma Intervention Program is a comprehensive trauma intervention program modified from the original Structured Sensory Intervention for Traumatized Children, Adolescents and Parents (SITCAP) program initially researched in 2001. The I Feel Better Now! Trauma Intervention Program is a 10-session group program designed specifically for at-risk, traumatized children, ages 6-12. The I Feel Better Now! Trauma Intervention Program integrates cognitive strategies with sensory/implicit strategies. The I Feel Better Now! Trauma Intervention Program is designed to alter the iconic memories of trauma to allow children the opportunity to achieve the successful cognitive reordering of their traumatic experiences. This sensory-based intervention, which is followed by cognitive or explicit strategies, supports victim to survivor thinking and changes in negative behaviors, and allows traumatized children to become more resilient.

Education

• Provides empowerment, sense of safety and reduces anxiety.
• Use of structuring statements to identify process and what to expect.
• Use of specific resource material, You Are Not Alone, provided to help normalize symptoms and reactions.

Debriefing Session

• Each adolescent is scheduled for an individual, one-hour debriefing session prior to beginning the group process.
• Alleviates the need for children to reveal difficult details in the group setting.
• Continued normalizing of symptoms and reactions.

Focus on Themes, Not Behaviors

• The process does not direct itself to attempting to treat behavior but rather the sensory experiences of trauma that fuel and drive the child’s behavior.

Intervener as Witness vs. Clinician

• Must be involved in the child’s telling of their experience by being curious about all that happened.
• Must be very concrete and literal in response to all the elements of the experience, its details and the visual representations provided by the child.
• Intervener must not analyze.
• Must see how the victim now views himself and the world around him following the trauma.

Drawing/Sensory Component

• The experience of trauma is stored in implicit memory and is transcribed into iconic representations/visualizations.
• Iconic symbolization is the process of giving our experiences a visual identify. Images are created to contain all the elements of that experience – what happened, our emotional reactions to it the horror and terror of the experience.
• Drawings provide representation of those “iconic” symbols that implicitly define what that experience is like for the child, how that child now views themselves and those around them.
• Drawing becomes a vehicle for communicating and externalizing what that experience was like.

Trauma Specific Questions and Details

• Trauma specific questions have been designed to help in the telling of the story and the provision of those details that allow intervener witnesses to better understand what the experience has been like for the adolescent.
• Details can provide a sense of control as well as sense of relief.
• Details also can provide information that helps to make sense out of what happened and may still be happening with the child.

Cognitive Reframing

• Scripted in I Feel Better Now to insure that the victim is provided a “survivors” way of making sense of their trauma experiences.
• The goal is to help move participants from “victim thinking” to “survivor thinking” which leads to empowerment, choice active involvement in their own healing process, and a renewed sense of safety and hope.

Parent Component

• Learning about trauma helps parents to more adequately respond to their child.
• Education helps parents who themselves have been traumatized.

I Feel Better Now! Trauma Intervention Program was designed with a child component that addresses the following presenting problems and symptoms:

• All symptoms and problems that fall under the PTSD diagnostic subcategories of re-experiencing, avoidance, and arousal.

Age range: 6 – 12

Developmental Delays:

This program was not developed for children with developmental delays, and has not been tested for children with developmental delays.

I Feel Better Now! Trauma Intervention Program was designed with a parent/caregiver component that addresses the following presenting problems and symptoms:

• Has a child exposed to trauma or loss.

I Feel Better Now! Trauma Intervention Program was designed to be conducted in a group setting; but has not been tested for use in a group setting.

Recommended group size:

6-8 participants.

Recommended Intensity:

One 60-minute session per week.

Recommended Duration:

Eight to ten sessions in length.

This program is typically conducted in a(n):

• Community Agency
• Hospital
• Outpatient Clinic
• Residential Care Facility
• School

This program does not include a homework component.

I Feel Better Now! Trauma Intervention Program has materials available in a language other than English:

Spanish

For information on which materials are available in this language, please check on the program's website or contact the program representative (contact information is listed at the bottom of this page).

The typical resources for implementing the program are:

• One facilitator
• Program manual and workbook
• 8X11 white paper
• Colored pencils
• Table and chairs

• Minimum 2-day training from TLC Institute required.
• Minimum 1-year group experience with elementary school aged children.
• Supervision provided by a Master's Level TLC Institute trained professional.

There is a manual that describes how to implement this program, and there is training available for this program.

Training Contact:

• Caelan Kuban
  ckuban@tlcinst.org
  phone: (313) 885-0390

Training is obtained:

Onsite or via TLC Institute national training conferences.

Number of days/hours:

3-6 days of training at 6 hours/day.

Additional Resources:

There currently are additional qualified resources for training:

• William Steele
  email: steele@tlcinst.org
• Cindy Ciocco
  email: cindy.ciocco@millvillenj.gov
• Roger Klein
  email: rogerjklein@yahoo.com

This program is rated a "3 - Promising Research Evidence" on the Scientific Rating Scale based on the published, peer-reviewed research available. The practice must have at least one study utilizing some form of control (e.g., untreated group, placebo group, matched wait list study) establishing the practice's benefit over the placebo, or found it to be comparable to or better than an appropriate comparison practice. Please see the Scientific Rating Scale for more information.

Child Welfare Outcome: Child/Family Well-Being