Keepin' It Teal

Art therapy is a technique rooted in the idea that creative expression can foster healing and mental well-being. Art, either creating it or viewing others’ art, is used to help people explore emotions, develop self-awareness, cope with stress, boost self-esteem, and work on social skills.

Karis Bouillion is a counselor with STAR in the greater baton rouge area. Karis has her masters in clinical mental health counseling from John Brown University. In her practice, she utilizes a variety of interventions and techniques in counseling, from art therapy to trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy and play therapy for younger survivors. She’s also fluent in Spanish so that she can be of service to our Hispanic communities and immigrants.

Can you have legal representation if you don't report to the police? Can you get a restraining order without reporting to the police? Also, did you know that it's incredibly important to have a knowledgeable attorney assist when petitioning for a restraining order or to represent your needs during a trial? These are all topics that we discussed when talking with LaFASA's staff attorney, Sean Cassidy. Often survivors are not able to retain legal services because they cannot afford the cost, they are intimidated by the justice system, they're worried about re-traumatization, and/or they are not aware of their rights. LaFASA’s legal program answers the call of survivors in need of legal assistance. If you're into the criminal and legal side of advocacy or if you watch L&O:SVU, we encourage you to listen to this podcast. You won't want to miss it! Go to our website for information about the rights of survivors here: http://lafasa.org/main/publications_and_resources

In light of February being Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month, our talk will center around campus sexual assault and safety. Safety means different things to different people. What are the perceptions of campus safety to students? What is true campus safety? This conversation highlights what students should actually do to promote a safe campus. Supplemental information for students and students at HBCUs provided.

Every survivor has a different idea of what accountability looks like after a sexual assault. While some may want to pursue the traditional criminal legal response, others may be more wary of these systems. What does accountability look like for a sexual assault survivor who does not support the current iteration of the criminal justice system? Can survivors and criminal justice reformer work together to make a more just, equitable system? What does a world look like where both those survivors and those who cause sexual harm are treated holistically and given space to heal. Join Brittany Hunt, LaFASA’s Justice System Coordinator, and Katie Hunter-Lowrey, the Crime Survivor Organizer with the Promise of Justice Initiative, as they discuss these questions and more. https://promiseofjustice.org/

There is no single approach that has been proven to be the most effective when treating survivors of incest, CSA, and sexual assault. In our experience, by using empathy as the main motivator, poetry and narrative therapy approaches can be integrated by survivors to not only allow them to process and reauthor their story of abuse, but also to provide a support system among others who have also faced similar experiences. There are numerous websites that publish survivors’ creative arts and many poetry books and anthologies published by survivors and their allies. We will give an overview of poetry therapy and then a practical guide to adding this unique approach into practice, whether as a counselor or as a survivor or a loved one of a survivor.

The prompt discussed in the podcast is here: http://www.georgeellalyon.com/where.html

For excellent supplemental resources, visit the LaFASA webpage: http://lafasa.org/main/lafasa_podcasts

Working through aspects of Post-Traumatic Stress (PTS) using self-defense can be helpful to many survivors of violence find new joy in life. Feeling in control and empowered is the goal when you train in martial arts, especially according to David Vincent. Anybody, regardless of your physical ability or your emotional status, can train in this discipline. Listen to this incredibly interesting take on self "offense" and why this type of training can help people be the best they can be.

This podcast details a Trauma-informed perspective on:

- Understanding privilege and how stress and damage to one’s psyche impedes connection

and, therefore, empathy

- Privilege as different types of "wealth" and "currency”

- Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

- How trauma impacts the brain and nervous system

- How trauma becomes cyclical -- trauma creates bad behaviors and bad behaviors create trauma

- All bad behaviors stem from a need to soothe a dysfunctional nervous system

Survivors of sexual assault, and trauma in general, often will experience tertiary effects due to trauma. Tertiary effects are long-term effects that are set off as a result of a primary event. These kinds of changes in behavior can include loss of concentration skills, lack of ambition, but also a loss of ability to maintain financial stability. Adults who experienced violence as a child may not even recognize their lack of ability to manage money as a tertiary effect. In this podcast, LaFASA talks with finance expert Crystal Campbell about this issue. Crystal gives simple and easy to follow advice on how to grow financially and maintain financial security. Her knowledge can be applied by anyone.

Jessie Nieblas, Brittany Hunt, and Kelli Knight of LaFASA discuss the unique challenges that survivors face in the aftermath of a disaster. In light of Hurricane Laura ripping through Louisiana, we understand survivors of sexual assault have the added trauma and PTS that comes into the recovery equation. This is a great conversation that delves into challenges presented by residing in shelters or with family members (who could potentially be the perpetrator), social inequalities, responding to a survivor who discloses an assault during recovery, and never forgetting self-care.

NOTE: This podcast was recorded prior to the Corona pandemic. 

The 2020 Fall Semester is going to look very different at colleges across the state as attempts to keep everyone safe and healthy are being made, however - at LSU - Lighthouse services are still available to students. In this podcast, LaFASA talks with Susan Bareis with the Lighthouse program at LSU as well as Summer Steib who is Director of the Women's Center at LSU. The Lighthouse Program provides free and confidential interpersonal violence prevention, support, and advocacy to the LSU campus community. The program assists student-survivors of sexual assault, interpersonal violence, stalking, and harassment.