Recovery Pathway

Notes: Consider moving to top. Adding

Intro: Describe effects of extreme trauma, why it makes therapy difficult, some people become frustrated with lack of results, never get the help they need. Pattern seen too often in cases of extreme trauma, especially when the primary cause of the trauma / significant traumatic events occurred in the home, such as in cases of domestic violence, familial sexual abuse, and sex trafficking.

Perhaps the most ambitious: This attempts to assist in a breakthrough in some of the most therapy-resistant obstacles caused by extreme trauma. Tackling one of the most difficult barriers to therapy, because without fundamental security, the base of Maslow's hierarchy,

Coming Home

First explain what was done at Haven House.

At Haven House, this starts with ascending an extra-wide, textured staircase Oversized elements (staircase, front door) and front door, castle elements (block walls, lion knocker) make it feel like a fortress automatic deadbolt, which helps those with anxiety know that the door is always locked as soon as it's closed.

At Haven House, since all the practical considerations have been well taken care of, the focus moved to harmony

Great care has been put into the entry experience.

At the very top of all priorities was safety: both actual safety and the perception of safety. (A close second was promoting sleep quality.) Each of these priorities are executed wildly differently at each facility. For example, a big challenge at Cloud Nine was to design a process by which women who are recovering from serious trauma can come home alone and feel safe, even at night. At Haven House, much of the travel is done in groups, a staff member is always here, if not a full house of people—the experience is very different. Since all the practical safety concerns are well taken care of, in a group living situation like this, how the women feel about their housemates is going to be the top variable affecting their sense of safety at home.

Coming home to a house full of people you get along with is an incredibly therapeutic experience in and of itself; however, living in an environment with people with whom you have constant conflict triggers the stress response, consuming precious mental energy and interfering with sleep, potentially exhausting a patient before they even arrive at Monima for therapy. For this reason, I concluded that the largest variable source of positive or negative effects of living at Haven House is the other residents, and the most effective measure to improve the perceived safety of the home would be to improve the interpersonal relationships of the residents, so I made dozens of design changes specifically to promote harmony.

A series of moments, experiences that are likely unique at least throughout their day, if not their lives.

Step 1: Gated Airlock

Airlocks can be implemented for enhanced security, controlling access to sensitive areas.

An airlock is a chamber or compartment, often with two airtight doors, designed to minimize the transfer of air or other substances between areas of differing pressure or cleanliness. It acts as a buffer zone, preventing contamination or pressure changes from disrupting the environment on either side of the airlock.

Key Moment: Seeing the first gate After living there a while, recognizing the gate will trigger anticipation of the entire process, calming by seeing a familiar waypoint that leads home, FIND OUT what the chemical response is to knowing a secret, since they'll know the fence contains a secret--a door that doesn't look like a door.

Key Moment: Opening the first gate Right from the very beginning, the experience of coming home to Cloud Nine is notably different. The opposite of ostentatious gate, hidden in plain sight--easily looked over as just a fence, speakeasy door, non-standard key, 5' wide, power-assist.

Key Moment: Closing the first gate (Or hearing it close, with auto-opener) Neurochemical effect: Lower cortisol, decrease amygdala activity

Key Moment: Walking through the airlock

Key Moment: Opening the second gate Viewing the tableau from a private place of safety -- exposure to nature can decrease amygdala activity

Key Moment: Closing the second gate

Step 2: Winding Path

Key Moment: Building up to center

Key Moment: Multiple elements align

Key Moment: Viewing the Lunar Beacon

Imageability -- "the quality of a built environment that allows it to be easily perceived, recognized, and recalled as a distinct mental image"

"Episodic memory involves the ability to learn, store, and retrieve information about unique personal experiences that occur in daily life." -- Dickerson B.C., Eichenbaum H. The Episodic Memory System: Neurocircuitry and Disorders. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2009;35:86–104. doi: 10.1038/npp.2009.126.