Triggering Topics Related Guidelines- Trauma, etc.
We rely on all members to help us to keep the forum and group chat room spaces a safe place for members to share and seek support.
Here are the 5 core community guidelines that are applicable to all the interactions in the 7Cups Communities and Group Chat rooms to guide your participation.
#1. Supportive & Encouraging
We encourage our members to give and receive support, sharing their stories and experiences in all times of distress and joy. Every member is welcomed to share their thoughts and emotions as well as listen and support other members in their distress and joy too.
#2. Respectful
We are with every member in their recovery journey and listen and support them without any judgment and with compassion. We are in a community space, so be respectful and appreciative of everyone’s opinions or personal experiences and thoughts. It is okay to have different opinions. If you see any disrespect or abuse, report it through relevant report forms.
#3. Safe
We support our members to talk openly about difficult subjects in a safe manner. Please remember community is a public platform so do not share any personal information or any experience that you are uncomfortable sharing. We recommend you to keep your shared focus point on your emotions and how you felt to get the support.
#4. Friendly
We welcome our members with kindness, warmth, and always there to support them. If you are a new member, make sure to introduce yourself in the forums or the group chat rooms. We are waiting for you.
#5. Comply with the Community Guidelines
We recommend and encourage our members to follow the community guidelines because they exist to protect their general, privacy, and safety interests in the community. Please do refer to the Community Guidelines
Along with the above guidelines, there are some specific guidelines for participation in the Trauma Support Group Chatroom and Forum Spaces or any other triggering topic-based chat rooms and forums as well.
#1. Add “Trigger Warning” at the start. If you feel your share could have some triggering elements, while posting in the forums or sharing in the trauma chatroom, please use the warning, “Triggering Share”, “Trigger Warning”.
#2. No in-depth graphical contents allowed. Please refrain to include any graphical contents, in-depth descriptions, or pictures that might be triggering for other community members.
#3. Abusive language, cursing, slang not allowed. During the share, cursing isn’t permitted and should be avoided or replaced with 5 asterisks (*****) We encourage you to vent and release your frustration, anger and express your thoughts and emotions that you experienced during abusive or traumatic experiences. But if you use cursing or abusive language to express those emotions, please use asterisks to avoid the chances of triggering someone else and maintain a therapeutic and safe environment to participate and seek support for all.
#4. Sharing & participating guidelines in any other general or support topic chat rooms. If the Trauma Support Room isn’t open, then in that situation you can participate in any other chat rooms to share or vent your thoughts, experiences, and emotions. But, please ensure to keep your share focused on your emotions, and no description or graphical contents allowed. And, during share, please remember to add the note, “Trigger Warning”.
If you are feeling triggered due to a share, it is recommended to step out of the chat room or forum and embrace self-care. You could try some steps of one of the growth paths available here or some mindfulness exercises.
Here are some Trauma-related resources and information that you may find helpful.
Having a bunch of different community guidelines all over the place is rather confusing. While these connect with the general community guidelines, the chatroom community guidelines and the guidelines on the trauma subcommunity section, they do not match.
I wonder about this part too:
If you are a new member, make sure to introduce yourself in the forums or the group chat rooms.
Does this mean people cannot just watch without introducing themselves? What if they choose to engage in 1-1 chats without introducing themselves in the forums or chatrooms? I thinking throwing this in with the guidelines, which are the rules, what I assume the intent of this is gets blurred. Or maybe the intent is you do not want people lurking?