Complex Mental Health Concerns

Survivors with severe mental health disabilities who have experienced traumatic events, including domestic and/or sexual violence, face unique stressors and challenges. This presentation will provide an overview of the primary severe mental health conditions and the associated symptoms and challenges.  The association between trauma, stress, and severe mental illness will be explored, along with common challenges to assessment and care, such as symptom overlap and diagnostic overshadowing. Strategies for supporting survivors with severe mental health disabilities to self-regulate will also be discussed.