Wellness, Exposure to Trauma, and Vicarious Traumatization: A Pilot Study

Due to the increasing number of clients seeking counseling who have experienced trauma, counselors are at a greater risk for developing vicarious traumatization and becoming impaired. Wellness has been described as helpful in managing the effects of working with clients who have experienced trauma and in mitigating impairment. The current pilot study examined how exposure to client trauma experiences impacted counselors' (N = 68) wellness and how exposure to client trauma along with wellness influenced vicarious traumatization. Participants had an average of 12.9 years of experience and a caseload on which most clients reported a trauma history. The expectation that greater exposure to client trauma would influence wellness was not met. However, results indicated that counselors with higher levels of wellness along with exposure to client trauma exhibited significantly lower levels of vicarious traumatization. The pilot study builds awareness of vicarious traumatization and highlights the importance of wellness.