Traumatic Stress and Homelessness: A Review of the Literature for Practitioners

Abstract

A growing body of evidence connects traumatic stress and homelessness, which illustrates the importance of trauma andresiliency-informed care (TIC) to appropriately serve persons experiencing homelessness (PEH). This paper reviews the literature on traumatic stress, including the biology of trauma as well as psychosocial, environmental, and systemic factors. These areas of knowledge constitute necessary elements when designing systems of care for PEH in order to provide effective services, avoid re-traumatization, and create healing environments to foster resilience. The authors identify trauma-specific evidence-based therapies, and comprehensive programmatic approaches that stem from established trauma-informed core values. Practical applications of the reviewed literature are utilized to demonstrate how organizations can adopt a trauma and resiliency-informed approach, based on both the reviewed literature as well as the authors' collective clinical experience. A key takeaway is an emerging consensus that service providers must consider trauma when designing and offering services to persons with a history of homelessness. The authors offer recommendations for future pathways to create outcome measurement tools for social service providers based on the theory of self-efficacy and using concrete, quantifiable variables.

Reclaimed Voices: The Silent Impact of Women’s Experiences of Homelessness

“…Haskell and Randall (2019) found that these experiences can be frightening and overwhelming, and result in a feeling of loss of control. There is a possibility that traumatic stress responses are woven into a person's behavior, perceptions, coping strategies, and how they respond to achieving self-sufficiency and positive outcomes (Hernandez & Wiewel, 2021). Traumatic experiences that take form through rape, assault, or other forms of violence tend to hold long-term impacts on the women (Haskell & Randall, 2019).…”

“…During the period of homelessness, a series of events help support its sustainability. The repetitive cycles that occur by enduring a lifetime of homelessness are often related to lived childhood experiences, which circle back to present life (Hernandez & Wiewel, 2021). Survivors of childhood abuse are at an increased risk of finding themselves exposed to other kinds of traumatic experiences later in life (Young et al, 2017).…”

“…The traumatic impact of losing housing contributes to post-traumatic stress disorder in its relationship to homelessness. Hernandez and Wiewel (2021) reported that the lack of resources to help cope with the imminent threats of becoming homeless needs to be better comprehended so it can lead to more informed conversations around the effects of traumatic stress for people who lose their housing. Thus, a more narrowed focus on the experiences that are occurring and guiding the individual while they navigate the way they respond to their traumatic experiences of homelessness.…”