Lunch & Learn: Psychological Insights From Hurricane Melissa

How do we support clients through crisis when the world around us is also destabilising—especially when the digital systems we rely on suddenly fail?

In this Lunch & Learn, Counselling Psychologist Dr Dominique Fray-Aitken draws on her lived experience of being caught abroad during Hurricane Melissa, alongside her trauma-informed clinical background, to explore psychological responses to environmental threat, uncertainty, and digital disconnection—both for clients and for clinicians working remotely.

This session is particularly relevant for clinicians supporting individuals in:

• disaster-affected regions
• rural or infrastructure-limited areas
• conflict-affected countries such as Ukraine
• environments where power outages and unstable internet are routine

The session will examine:

• acute trauma and scarcity responses during crisis
• digital dependence and psychological vulnerability
• maintaining therapeutic presence amid outages and disruption
• practical preparation for continuity of care in unstable settings

Participants will leave with the ability to:

• recognise trauma responses in clients and clinicians during crisis
• understand how digital loss intensifies vulnerability
• apply trauma-informed strategies during disrupted care
• increase preparedness for safe, ethical remote practice