Sometimes Kids Just Need Shoes

In the perfect world, all youth live at home with loving and supportive adults, reach developmental milestones without problems and go forward with a positive sense of self, a strong identity, skills to function more independently and competently, and know that they are loved by adults and other important people in their lives unconditionally. In the real world, however, there are too many children, youth and young adults who live in neglectful and abusive situations; exhibit behaviors so bad that they have exhausted most resources and more importantly, the patience of others; have made poor decisions that have led them into the juvenile justice system or have mental health symptoms that make supervised environments the only safe place for them. It is these youth who are clients of Community Treatment Solutions (CTS).

We know that the majority of youth in our care have experienced at least one traumatic event in their lives and that this event, and how they were able to cope with it, can have serious adverse effects on a youth’s life. This seems like such an obvious statement but we need to look at the impact that these events can have on a youth.

Let’s better understand trauma. The common components of traumatic events is that they caused intense fear, helplessness or horror and that the event was unexpected, the individual was unprepared and that there was nothing the person could do to prevent it from happening . Chronic traumatic events, such as the ones experienced by youth in our care, are called complex trauma and often results in emotional dysregulation and loss of safety, direction and ability to detect or respond to danger cues. If these events occur and the youth has positive and supportive relationships with significant adults, the stress response can be alleviated. In addition, some youth are just resilient. Resiliency is the ability to adapt and stay whole and move forward in the face of chronic stress and adversity. Without positive adult support and/or inherent resiliency, trauma can lead to behavioral, physical and mental health problems.

The youth in CTS programs are the latter. While some may have been diagnosed with some kind of mental illness, the majority are reacting to their situations. We know that we can support them in dealing with their trauma. Accordingly, we have moved away from the medical model to providing services that are trauma focused and strengths based and the outcomes for the youth in our programs are positive. The responsibility to learn techniques and treatment options is on us and I know that having trained and skilled professionals has facilitated the CTS youths’ success.

Despite all the learning, technology and obligations as an agency, our only real obligation is to the youth and we always keep one thing in mind---sometimes kids need shoes before they can participate in treatment. That is, they need to have their basic needs and safety met consistently and unconditionally. This is how you build trust with youth so that they can participate in their recovery. Clinical expertise is great but can only be used once a youth feels safe enough to trust and engage with you. In addition to these basic needs, traumatized youth also need to have experiences that are fun and bring them joy. They need to have people in their lives that are positive. Sometimes, they need to feel that they are the center of someone’s universe. They need to have the opportunity to learn new things, have hobbies and make mistakes without being rejected. They need to have time to relax and not be afraid.

What youth need to thrive is not negotiable, but certainly varies. But first, they often need shoes.

Susan Buchwald

CEO, Community Treatment Solutions