What if the most profound impact on a person’s healing journey comes not from someone they’ve known forever, but from a “magical stranger” who shows up at just the right time? In this episode, we sit down with Daniel Polk, my brother (!) and a former executive chef who spent over a decade in the fast-paced, high-pressure world of restaurant kitchens—mentoring young cooks, shaping their confidence, and witnessing the power of community and leadership. But deep down, he felt called to something mo...
Feb 24, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 42
Can we protect students from the full effects of childhood trauma? If we can effectively support their parents, then: YES—and the research proves it. In this episode, we dive into the power of Protective Factors—the outcome-changing and relationship-affirming supports that help students stay engaged in school despite Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). Learn how family and community support can transform a child’s academic success and what YOU can do to make a difference. What You’ll Learn: 📉...
Feb 19, 2025•43 min•Ep. 41
Episode Summary: The fires sweeping through Los Angeles have left many feeling overwhelmed and unsure how to move forward. In this episode, Julia Rose has a message for those navigating this crisis up close. She discusses the importance of prioritizing your safety and taking care of the basics during crises like this. Whether you’re directly affected or supporting others, this episode offers clear steps to help you navigate this challenging time with resilience and care....
Jan 11, 2025•13 min•Ep. 40
Episode Highlights: In this episode, the fascinating science and profound impact of hope was explored through a compelling historical research study. Drawing from Dr. Bruce Perry's teachings and the host’s personal experiences as a trauma survivor and therapist, Julia examines how small moments of intervention can ignite lasting change in those experiencing trauma. Highlights: The Science of Hope: Understanding hope as a belief in possible future positive outcomes through a landmark scientific s...
Dec 31, 2024•11 min•Ep. 39
Episode Highlights: Ever wonder why some stress makes us stronger while other stress can break us down? Not all stress is created equal. In this groundbreaking episode, the complex world of stress is demystified, revealing three critical types that can dramatically shape our lives and our students' experiences. Whether you're a teacher, parent, or someone seeking to understand human resilience, this episode offers a powerful lens into how stress shapes our lives - from childhood through adulthoo...
Dec 17, 2024•15 min•Ep. 38
Episode Highlights: Dive into the psyche of human interaction with Julia Rose Polk, trauma therapist and host of the Trauma Camp for Teachers podcast. In this episode, we explore: The 'Why' of the Brain: Understanding the fundamental reasons behind human behavior can revolutionize how we interact with students, colleagues, and loved ones. Three Primary Drivers: Discover the core factors behind why people act the way they do, and how to apply this understanding in your teaching, leadership, and p...
Dec 10, 2024•14 min•Ep. 37
In this insightful episode of the Trauma Camp for Teachers podcast, host Julia Rose McDermott-Polk, a licensed marriage and family therapist, delves into the critical topic of building resilience versus vulnerability in children. Dispelling the myth that children are inherently resilient, Julia explores: The Misconception of Resilience: Why the belief that children can bounce back from any adversity is not only flawed but potentially harmful. The Role of Stress: Understanding the types of stress...
Dec 04, 2024•15 min•Ep. 36
Episode Highlights: In this second installment of a two-part series, we explore the six core components of safety that counteract trauma responses in the classroom. Building on last week's discussion of trauma components from Dr. Judith Herman's work, we examine how creating safety makes teaching more effective by working with, rather than against, students' neurobiology. Key Takeaways: • The reason safety is crucial for effective teaching • Discover the relationship between trust and learning r...
Nov 26, 2024•20 min•Ep. 35
In this episode: host Julia Rose Polk, a trauma therapist and trainer, delves into the essential topic of trauma and its impact on educators and their students. Julia explores the six core components of trauma, based on the groundbreaking work of Dr. Judith Herman. Understanding trauma is crucial for teachers seeking to create safe and supportive learning environments. Julia shares insights into how specific experiences can manifest in the classroom and affect student behavior. This episode aims...
Nov 20, 2024•19 min•Ep. 34
In this episode: Julia Rose shares a powerful personal journey from witnessing burnout at a renowned trauma treatment center to experiencing her own physiological breakdown. Learn how self-care transformed from an abstract concept to a vital necessity in her trauma healing journey and professional development. Episode Highlights: Discover why self-care goes beyond basic practices like baths and naps Understand the critical connection between burnout, trauma, and the necessity of setting boundari...
Nov 13, 2024•15 min•Ep. 33
In this episode: Julia Rose explores a groundbreaking moment in trauma-informed education: the 2015 Peter P. vs. Compton Unified class action lawsuit. Learn how this first-of-its-kind case qualified trauma as a “disability” under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Episode Highlights: Discover the 3 essential tiers of trauma-informed schools Understand why becoming trauma-informed is a multi-year journey, not a quick fix Learn how this landmark case set a legal precedent for s...
Nov 06, 2024•11 min•Ep. 32
Before you are a Teacher, you are - and will always be - a Human Being. And Human Beings require Care . Period. Full-stop. The End. Okay, maybe not "the end"... but certainly our beginning of acknowledging the Care we need, and prioritizing it as an essential component of living and sustaining us in the work we love to do. In this episode, I share another powerful mini-training, walking you through the Four Tiers of Teacher Care. (And if you listen through to the end, you'll hear several persona...
May 20, 2021•44 min
A Social Story is something that helps us create a comprehensive narrative around significant and impactful experiences in our lives, and is especially helpful for those experiences that involve trauma, loss, change or confusion. And for kids... it means everything to have an adult sit down to help us make sense and make meaning of what is going on around us, or what has happened to us. **It's a tool that (if used as much as is needed) can literally can help us process through the emotional resi...
May 05, 2021•48 min
What do you do when a student discloses some sensitive information to you? How to you respond to the student *and* the situation effectively? In this episode, listen to another mini-training about how you can handle a student disclosure with care and compassion, the three steps that you can use to scaffold your response, and some nuanced considerations that will keep you headed on the right path. Meaningful Highlights from this Episode: We always need to respond to the HUMAN first. The POTENTIAL...
Apr 28, 2021•42 min
Trust . Sometimes we adults take this bonding mechanism for granted. We assume it will occur naturally over the course of a relationship. Well, for kids who've experienced harm from the folks who are there to keep them safe, the idea of "trust" becomes infinitely more complicated. In this episode, I share with you a brief mini-training I did for my membership community a few years ago (it's now deceased - tear*), and it's all about how to build trust with distrustful students. Meaningful Highlig...
Apr 22, 2021•21 min
Here are some questions for you: What happens when we (the provider) are the ones in a traumatized state? What happens when a high-functioning individual finds themselves in a low-functioning, barely-keeping-their-head-above-water state? What happens when we go into a state of Collapse? Well, this episode is the bite-sized version of my experience climbing out of psychological collapse . When a human is in a state of "collapse," it means that their internal state is experiencing so much stress a...
Apr 13, 2021•18 min
What if Violence were like a contagious disease? Well, according to our guest on this episode: It absolutely is. Dr. Gary Slutkin is the Founder and CEO of Cure Violence Global , which seeks to reduce violence globally using disease control and behavior change methods. His work has resulted in 40-70% reductions in violence in cities around the globe. Listen in to hear about his three-pronged approach to how we can treat - and cure - violence just like we would with a contagious disease. Episode ...
Dec 28, 2020•1 hr 7 min
How many times have you been lectured on the importance of Self Care? And yet, how often do you struggle to actually integrate Self Care practices into your daily routine? In this episode, therapist and supervisor Misty Ryman helps us bridge that gap between the idea and the practice of self-care by introducing us to her approach of “Micro Self-Cares.” These small, relevant and meaningful shifts are what can make the long-term difference between buffering our sense of wellbeing or burning oursel...
Dec 23, 2020•52 min
It's pervasive... It's insidious... And it might be (if we're being honest here)... a compelling, even tempting self-narrative for many of us white folx . White Savior Complex (WSC) is alive and well, and it's a storyline that on the surface might appear to be helpful, but is actually deeply harmful to those it reaches. In this episode, I speak with teacher-turned-PhD student, Ms. Duane , about WSC and the ways it manifests and impacts the students and families we serve. She walks us through the...
Dec 14, 2020•1 hr 8 min
Listen to the second clip from Julia Rose's keynote presentation at the Trauma Informed Schools Institute , an annual conference hosted by Resilience Impact. Explore all seven stages of the newly revised Path of Progress and how it will walk you through the journey of becoming a trauma-informed teacher, and building trauma-informed classrooms and schools. Biggest Takeaways You Don’t Want to Miss: Identify the seven (7) stages of becoming "trauma-informed" and what each entails. Learn how the new...
Nov 16, 2020•36 min
Listen to a clip from Julia Rose's keynote presentation at the Trauma Informed Schools Institute , an annual conference hosted by Resilience Impact. Explore how our current climate is akin to enduring an avalanche, and learn the four steps for climbing out of it. Biggest Takeaways You Don’t Want to Miss: Identify the avalanche metaphor and how it applies to our current situation. Learn the four (4) ways to climb out of an avalanche. Episode Show Notes: www.traumacamp.com/22 Want to Join Our Comm...
Nov 09, 2020•16 min
[2020 ELECTION EDITION] In this episode, we explore the levels of stress present in individuals and communities across the country as we approach the 2020 election. Walk through the four stress-responses, how they are manifesting individually and communally across the nation, and how to track these within yourself. Biggest Takeaways You Don’t Want to Miss: - Learn about the four (4) stress-responses: Flock, Freeze, Flight and Fight - Explore examples of how it’s presenting in individual people a...
Nov 01, 2020•22 min
ATTENTION FOLKS: I get a little personal in this one! Having been cracked wide open by this last year, I share some personal reflections on how I've been showing up (or not showing up) in 2020, what has kept me stuck in hiding, and what is moving me through it. Take a listen as we explore a new vision of what being a "professional" looks like, and what it would mean to show up as the full and fallible people that we are. Episode Show Notes: www.traumacamp.com/20...
Oct 25, 2020•22 min
How do we effectively teach students when many of our children, their parents and the teachers themselves are in active states of crisis? What forms of education are essential and what types are actually arbitrary at a time when children and families are experiencing varying degrees of threat? In this episode, clinical psychologist Dr. Barbara Stroud is here to share insights and ideas with teachers for how to re-imagine education in this time of global crisis. It’s time to repurpose the One Roo...
Aug 21, 2020•1 hr 4 min
How do we teach our Black students from a place of Freedom instead of Fear? How can we discipline instead of punish, respond instead of react, connect instead of crack-down? These are all questions we explore with our guest today, Aretha Hampton, LCSW , who shares her story as a mother to a black son who experienced harsh punishment from a teacher for an innocent mistake... or was it even that? This episode is all about learning, exploring, sitting in the complexity, reflecting and growing toget...
Jun 25, 2020•1 hr 8 min
Trauma-informed Reflective Supervisor and Occupational Therapist, Julia Bantimba, is here to introduce teachers to Reflective Practice and specifically - her model of Reflective Practice “On-the-Go.” This practical tool is one way for teachers to access the ongoing support they need to provide sustainable, regulated, reflective care day-in and day-out. Biggest Takeaways You Don’t Want to Miss: Reflective Practice is an essential component of relationship-based organizations Traditional models of...
Jun 18, 2020•56 min•Ep. 17
[ATTENTION] It has come to my attention that the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office is investigating sexual assault allegations against previous guest, Adam Foss. Foss denies the allegations. [ Details at WBUR ] Sexual assault is a criminal matter, and is something I work tirelessly with my direct clients to heal from. Moreover, I know how painstakingly hard it is for survivors to speak out and to be believed. With this said, I am not not equipped to review these allegations in any author...
Jun 04, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 16
Protests have erupted around the country after the horrific killing of George Floyd. In this bonus episode, I'm inviting you to use this moment to learn about and practice what I call: Non-Pathologizing & Loving Limit-Setting . I show you two recent examples of these concepts in practice in speeches by Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottom and Rapper / Activist Killer Mike.
Jun 02, 2020•24 min
Let's break down - through the lens of understanding trauma in human beings and communities - what is going on as people collectively respond to the murder of George Floyd, and how this response is connected to unaddressed patterns of Police Brutality and the legacy of White Supremacy that we all still live with. [PLEASE NOTE] The woman I mentioned who spoke of the origination of American "looting" other people is: American activist, Tamika D. Mallory, who organized the largest march in the hist...
May 31, 2020•40 min
Best-selling author, John Lee, outlines the core experiences of emotional regression - What is is, Why it happens, and the 5 Ways we can grow ourselves back up! (Plus, we discuss his aptly titled book: Growing Yourself Back Up: Understanding Emotional Regression .)This is a MUST-LISTEN for all educators! Important Takeaways You Don’t Want to Miss: How regression is linked to our own childhood trauma, and how unearthing it can unlock us from our past. The difference between Anger and Rage, and wh...
May 25, 2020•1 hr 18 min
