How can you help a colleague overcome trauma?
Conference – 18 November 2025
Bruno Humbeeck is educational psychologist, Doctor in Education Sciences, Lecturer at the University of Mons and Head of the Centre de Ressource Éducative pour l’Action Sociale (CREAS), he works on research projects on school-family relations and society at the Centre de Recherche en Inclusion Sociale
« Only those who have not experienced trauma find resilience easy » Bruno Humbeeck (LinkedIn)
One of my colleagues has just suffered a terrible blow. He/she has been struck by a horrible family tragedy. He/she has just gone through a personal ordeal. He/she has just experienced a professional setback from which He/she is clearly unable to recover. While he or she has experienced humiliation due to their reorientation in the service, I have just received a promotion.
How can I support him/her?
How can I help him/her get through this ordeal?
What can I do for him/her?
Beyond conventional phrases, what words could really be useful?
Which gestures best show empathy without seeming intrusive?
How can I encourage him/her to pick themselves up?
In other words, how can I be a true guardian of resilience for him/her?
During this conference, we attempt to answer these questions and many more, focusing on how to adopt appropriate behaviours and attitudes to help a colleague cope with adversity and support them in demonstrating resilience.