Workshop Series for First Responders

The three-part workshop series is educational in nature, is ideal for first responders who work with others’ stress and trauma such as those in the fields of medicine, law, child trafficking recovery, mental health, caregiving, wellness, law-enforcement, life and fire safety, and education, and is not billable to insurance. The workshops below build one upon the next, therefore it is highly recommended that they are completed in order.

Workshop Series Part 1: How Stress and Trauma Impact Those We Help

Dr. Cynthia Yesko is a counselor and an educator who will provide an overview of the impact of a stressful or traumatic event on the first victim, or the person who directly experiences the trauma. She will explain how the victim may feel overwhelmed, unsafe, and disconnected from others and may even develop acute stress or even post traumatic stress disorder. The victim might exhibit symptoms that impact their physiological sensations, feelings, behaviors, and beliefs. Dr. Yesko will explain how holistic counseling and complementary therapies can help them heal from the impact of stress and trauma.

Workshop Series Part 2: How Stress and Trauma Impact The Helper

Dr. Cynthia Yesko will provide an overview of why first responders who help others during stressful and traumatic events are called the second victims when the impact of others’ stress/trauma begins to change the helper’s own body sensations and feelings, behaviors, and beliefs. She will explain how prolonged exposure to stress can interfere with the body’s natural relaxation response and may even contribute to the helper developing symptoms that are similar to what the first victim experiences. She will provide psychoeducation about tools and resources that help professionals determine if they have been impacted by others’ stress and trauma.

Workshop Series Part 3:Wellness for the Helper

Dr. Cynthia Yesko will teach first responders various techniques to promote greater wellness for the helper. She will focus is on how the first responder can reset the body’s natural relaxation response should it be impacted by others’ stress and trauma. Wellness workshops are educational in nature, are not counseling sessions, and are not billable to insurance.