Our communities are being impacted by weather-related and human-made traumatic events with increasing frequency.  After experiencing a traumatic event, 1 out of 6 children will develop PTSD.  First responders and caregivers are overwhelmed with their own secondary trauma, and many still follow traditional practices of verbal and cognitive psychological first aid which often prove insufficient with children. 

Second Response recognized the undeniable link between body and mind in reducing the debilitating effects of trauma.  Since 2004, we trained more than 6,000 health care professionals, caregivers, teachers and parents and reached more than 400,000 children through our pioneering PLAYshops, carefully crafted nonverbal exercises presented as simple fun and games.  Backed by neuroscience and social science research, these forms of productive play adjust hormonal responses, restore body rhythms, and release muscular tension, often mitigating the onset of post traumatic syndrome pathologies.  By training school and hospital staff, social service providers, caregivers, first responders, and parents, we helped front line providers to restore calm themselves and provided them with an effective tool to address the emotional needs of the children and the families they serve.  To build continued resilience in communities where it is needed most, we look forward to further this training in anticipation of need rather than only in response to disasters.

Please visit our Second Response  website to learn more about our past activities. We welcome inquires for new training opportunities.