Understanding TBRI: Building Connection & Healing
Tools and Techniques for Creating Safe, Healing Homes
Ever wondered how to truly connect with kids who’ve faced tough times? At Coyote Hill in Mid-Missouri, we’re all about Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI), a game-changer in building strong, healing relationships. Think of it as a roadmap to understanding and supporting children who’ve experienced trauma. Let’s explore how TBRI can make a real difference.
What is TBRI?
TBRI, developed by Dr. Karyn Purvis and Dr. David Cross at the Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development at TCU, is a holistic approach. It’s not just about changing behavior; it’s about healing the whole child. It focuses on creating safety, connection, and empowerment, recognizing that trauma can rewire a child’s brain.
Integrates attachment theory, sensory processing, and neuroscience.
Key Concepts:
Addresses the impact of complex trauma on children.
Emphasizes the importance of felt safety and secure attachments.
Understanding Trauma’s Impact
Trauma can leave deep scars, affecting how kids see themselves and the world. It can lead to fear-based behaviors, making it hard for them to trust and connect. As Dr. Bessel van der Kolk explains in “The Body Keeps the Score,” trauma lives in the body, not just the mind.
Trauma disrupts a child’s sense of safety and connection.
How We Help: The TBRI Approach
TBRI gives us practical tools to build trust and create a healing environment. It’s built on three core principles:
Engagement
Empowering
Correction
Explaining The Three Main Principals of TBRI
Engagement:
- Creating a sense of safety and connection through playful engagement, matching affect, and using a soft voice.
- This is all about “meeting the child where they are” and building trust through non-threatening interactions.
Empowering:
- Helping children learn self-regulation and develop healthy coping skills.
- Providing structure and predictability to reduce anxiety.
- Addressing the childs physical needs, because trauma can cause sensory processing issues. For example, check out this great resource on sensory diets from The Restore Network: Empowering Principle Sensory Diet.
Correction:
- Teaching children life skills and helping them make healthy choices.
- Using proactive strategies like “redos” and “compromises” to address challenging behaviors.
- Focusing on teaching rather than punishment.
Hurt that occurs in relationships can be healed through healthy, safe relationships.
Recommended Resources
Books
- “The Body Keeps the Score” by Bessel van der Kolk
- “The Connected Child” by Dr. Karyn Purvis, Dr. David Cross, and Wendy Lyons Sunshine.
YouTube Videos
Podcasts
Foster the Call Conference
- Join us at our Foster the Call Conference to learn more about TBRI and other essential foster care topics: Foster the Call Conference.
Get Involved with Coyote Hill
Whether you’re looking to learn, support, or become a foster parent, we’re here to help.
We hope this resource helps you understand the power of TBRI. At Coyote Hill, we’re dedicated to creating safe, loving homes and building strong connections with children in Mid-Missouri. Join us in making a difference!
