The EBTS was born in the present need of more effective working with traumatized children and families. The situation in the world is frightening, and as professionals, we must find new ways of supporting stabilization of traumatized families in collective traumatised society.

The EBTS-Programme is a Psychodrama based short term stabilization method developed for traumatised families, and refugee, asylum seeking and immigrant families. In the EBTS-Training psychologists, social workers, educators, and other professionals learn to conduct the EBTS-Programme in groups of families.

EBTS re-connects traumatized children to their parents and thus to their most important resilience resource – attachment. EBTS uses the language of the children: Playing. It combines psycho-education on trauma with children-psychodrama playful stabilization techniques. It provides helpers with the latest knowledge in the field of trauma using experience- and action-oriented methods. The EBTS stabilizes children, parents and helpers.

The EBTS-Programme includes 10 sessions. The first four sessions focus in psychoeducation for parents, with such themes as experiencing trauma and its impacts in brain functioning, body and social interaction, stabilization, self-care and resilience. The following five sessions include structured playing with children and a sharing process for parents. The last session is for parents – sharing and reflection about the process.

EBTS-Programmes for parents and children are conducted by EBTS-Leaders, who are trained in the EBTS-Training. It provides professionals with an action-oriented first-aid kit for the rehabilitation of traumatized children and the reinforcement and stabilization of the the parent/child relationship. Everyday playful exercises and rituals can reduce physical states of anxiety in parent and child.

The training consists of 5 days. It includes self-care exercises for professionals, too, and the topic of secondary trauma.

The impact evaluation of the EBTS-Programme found that there is a decrease in PTSD symptoms in children (Gotseva-Balgaranova et al., 2020). The research of the learning in EBTS-Training showed that the used principles and applied methods have a positive impact (Kauppila, in press-a.)

EBTS was an Erasmus+project

EBTS was piloted in Bulgaria, Germany and Finland 2017-2019 by financing of EU. Now it is implemented for example at the Turkish/Syrian border, funded by GO, Germany, and in Leszno, Poland for Ukrainian refugees.