Social Problem and Personal Statement Part 1: Trauma and Resilience of the Karen Population

Traumatic and stressful experiences usually characterize migration and resettlement processes. Immigrants may experience pre-migration trauma in their home countries and trauma during and their migration (Goodman et al., 2017). Immigrants are at a more significant risk for pre-migration exposure to violence making them susceptible to trauma- and war- connected mental health conditions such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and psychological distress (Arnetz et al., 2013). In the recent years, the resilience concept as a protective factor against the trauma-related psychological disorder development has garnered growing consideration. The Karen population from Burma that has settled in Saint Paul, Minnesota has found sources of resilience to help them get through the hardships (Voigt, 2016). This paper highlights the essentiality of acknowledging the resilience of refugees and the need for social workers to have a better understanding of the different methods of coping with traumatic events or new and challenging displacement circumstances.

The World Health Organization presents a definition of health that encompasses more than the mere absence of a disease and entails the presence of the conditions and capacity that promote wellness (Goodman et al., 2017). Ideally, refugees move from a distressing life to a new world where they relearn to live and survive. They grapple with the new language, work, food, and interactions that affect emotional strains on them. They face discrimination and mostly have to choose between abandoning their heritage, committing to their culture or striking a balance between the two (Arnetz et al., 2014). Such emotional and logistical stressors pose a significant threat to the behavioral and psychological well-being of refugees of all ages.

After resettlement, mental health concerns like depression and PTSD are major concerns for refugees. Refugees learn to face the traumatizing post-migration experiences. Their resilience is measured in all spheres including the places they try to get social services, the schools they go to and the communities in which they settle (Voigt, 2016). It is vital that social service providers and social workers become aware of the contributors to resilience to offer the necessary resources and support while facilitating a positive resettlement experience for the refugees.

The Karen Population of Minnesota

Through the years, there have been an increasing number of immigrants resettling in the United States. In the state of Minnesota, there have been more than 90,000 refugees since 1979, and the population keeps increasing (Voigt, 2016). With the increasing refugee population, social workers face newer challenges and have to discern the factors that contribute to resilience for better service provision.

Some of the people settling in Karen are refugees. With their origin in Burma, they were forced out of their villages after civil wars in the 1990s. They fled to Thailand, but their illegal status exposed them vulnerabilities such as exploitation, violence, and harassment from the Thai police and authorities (Voigt, 2016). They stayed in the Thai camps for more than twenty years. While in the camps, they grappled with cases of malnutrition, rape, drug and alcohol abuse, crime, and domestic violence. They did not enjoy educational and vocational training services and the freedom to work or farm, which led to feelings of despair.

The Karen population decided to leave the refugee camps in Thai and moved to the United States. They were drawn to the United States because of the hope a better future with better job opportunities and education. However, they also dealt with issues such as lack of English skills, concerns about the high costs of living in the U.S, uncertainty about being able to find a job, and reluctance to leave behind the Karen community and culture (Voigt, 2016). The issues of discrimination, family changes, access to healthcare were also matters of concern to them.

Trauma Mental Health Issues among Refugees

Mental health is important for refugees considering the several traumas they have encountered in their lifetimes as well as the cultural dissimilarities (Goodman et al., 2017). Mental health concerns result from both pre-migration factors within home nations like loss of security, social support, income, employment and home as well as post-migration stressors like social, language, cultural, and economic barriers. Higher levels of PTSD are associated with resettlement stressors and discrimination. Refugees also experience trauma before and after migration resulting from witnessing of torture and killings, rape, being threatened with a weapon, incarceration, physical injury, and torture, as well as starvation (Voigt, 2016). Trauma results in high rates of adjustment disorders, brief reactive psychoses, somatization disorders, anxiety, depression, and PTSD.

Several studies indicate that refugees continue to struggle with mental health concerns several years after resettlement. The cultural...

Refugees carry their physical scars and burdens of oppression, disease, or war (Voigt, 2016). It is upon the social workers to provide individualized services and assistance and accommodate even those considered different from their cultural norms. Cultural sensitivity and competence remain essential when identifying and delivering mental health needs of refugees.
Resilience among Refugees

Outside of the psychological framework, traumatic experiences can also produce sources of resilience, coping mechanism, and extraordinary strength (Goodman et al., 2017). Toughness is the fundamental process of human beings adapting to circumstances and is influenced by an individual’s context or culture. Voigt (2016) provide that resiliency factors will help in the transitional period when they are resettling in a new nation. Therefore, social workers should understand these factors to assist refugees comfortably. Immigration researchers have identified protective factors among refugees including cultural, familial, and community strengths or supports (Goodman et al., 2017). Some of the factors that refugees consider sources of support that have helped them during resettlement include internal processes such as faith and beliefs and external processes cultural norms, family and social supports, and government resources.

External Processes

Access to external support plays a significant role in coping and developing resilience. Having a supportive family and community presents a better resettlement experience (Goodman et al., 2017). When refugees meet others with shared language or origin, it offers the opportunity for them to develop friendship and social support. Government resources and social services such as English classes, help with cultural orientation, and rent payments facilitate coping and development of resilience.

Internal Processes

This entails the refugees’ way of thinking, faith, and beliefs. Some refugees purposefully destruct themselves from their experiences as a coping mechanism while others depend on God or Allah for spiritual support (Goodman et al., 2017). Faith communities bring these groups together and offer social, financial, and emotional support.

Implications for Practice

Social workers can only provide the best services to refugees once they discern the factors that support the development of resilience and coping (Goodman et al., 2017). Understanding these factors help them empathize with the refugees, and respond to the refugee resettlement difficulties. It would be more beneficial is the social workers slowed down their activities to understand the resettlement process fully and incorporate it into practical approaches (Voigt, 2016). Refugees desire being understood, feeling safe, and having a good support system. Social workers should be educated on the trauma among refugees. This will empower them and enable them to provide services necessary to help them cope and develop resilience during resettlement (Arnetz et al., 2014). Therefore, social workers should devise methods of breaking the barriers such using cultural brokers and language interpreters.

Social work agencies have the responsibility of developing an environment that accommodates the needs of refugees. It entails establishing programs to offers assistance to the refugees. Social workers should also increase awareness of the experience of refugees among the communities to demolish the systemic barriers and promote tolerance and acceptance for dissimilar cultures within the community. Xenophobia and racism are contributed by the locals’ misconceptions about refugees. Social workers should advocate for immigration policies, which ensure that social service agencies embrace cultural humility, and conform their practices to accommodate the requirements of several cultures and provide an environment that is tolerant and accepting.