Trauma-Informed Website Resources

Updated February 2025 - Are you hoping to make your website or app trauma-informed? Terrific! You are in the right place to learn more to learn more about trauma-informed digital design.

If you are seeking consultation or support when making trauma-informed technology, visit the Trauma-Informed Technology website.

I’ve pulled together many resources on trauma-informed design here and now manage this website with co-organizers. If there are other helpful resources you’d like to suggest, please contact me.

Below you’ll find some of my original resources on trauma-informed digital design, still an emerging area in tech.

 

Resources to help you LEARN

What is Trauma-Informed Design? (19 min video above) - A short explanation of trauma-informed design as it relates to websites/apps/digital tools. It includes my experience and a few practical tips.

More on Trauma: If you want to understand trauma and its impact better, The National Child Traumatic Stress Network has FREE classes available. There are many experts talking on all sorts of trauma topics. You just need to sign in and register, but there’s no cost for learning.

Thanks to receiving Aquent's Design for Good Grant, I worked on a project with the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCCADV) You can find more details here about the trauma-informed project and these 3 resources below:

Learn with Others

Trauma-informed design discussion group: I founded and co-organize a trauma-informed design discussion group that you can join. We have monthly calls on the 3rd Wednesday of the month that you can participate in. We are a group of designers/social workers/others that discuss how people apply trauma-informed principles to digital projects. Request to join our Trauma-informed Design Google group.

Upcoming talks. I’m speaking for a few groups in 2023 on trauma-informed design and research. See upcoming events on my About page.

Poster created with Do’s and Don’ts for designing for those who have experienced trauma

Poster created with Do’s and Don’ts for designing for those who have experienced trauma

Here are the Do’s and Don’ts from the poster in text form:

Do

Design with mobile and touch in mind (e.g. use click-to-call phone numbers)

Progressively disclose information

Make sure safety alerts and info on getting help is unmissable

Be inclusive of all people

Use quotes and/or images from real people (if safe to do so)

Don’t

Assume your visitors are on a desktop or laptop computer

Overwhelm with two many options

Bury safety alerts and info on getting help on a cluttered web page

Assume survivors all identify the same way

Use triggering images that depict violence or uninformative stock photos

 If you have questions about any of the above, please contact me.

The Zombie Business Cure Book Available NOW

So happy to announce that my book is out now! You can buy it at Amazon here!

Do you know an organization whose communication is lifeless or indistinguishable? The Zombie Business Cure can help. 

The book covers:

  • content strategy

  • communication planning

  • some UX case studies

It's full of practical tips! It can help whoever is managing communication for an organization (or aspires to do so). This might be a:

  • small business owner

  • non-profit executive

  • marketing or public relations professional

  • business or communication student

Do you know someone who it might be able to help? If so, maybe you could buy a copy as a gift. 

The Zombie Business Cure Book Coming Early 2017

Cover of The Zombie Business Cure book

I'm happy to share with y'all that the book I've been working on for the last two years will be out in stores in early 2017.  I'm currently finishing up the last chapter with my co-author and friend, Dr. Julie Lellis, a professor of strategic communication at Elon University. 

Our book helps small business owners and communication professionals in larger organizations to be more mindful and authentic in their communication. 

We include case studies and examples in the book of organizations such as:

  • Starbucks
  • Buffer
  • Lululemon
  • Allstate Insurance
  • The Unipiper
  • Nat's Hard Cider
  • Duke University Lemur Center
  • Meals Plus
  • and many more!

This will be a short blog post as I'm so tired of writing already. I'll keep you posted as the book becomes available.

Thanks to everyone for their support!