Our Origin Story
Care Without Harm – TIC Empowerment Consulting LLC was born from a journey of survival, recovery, education, and transformation.
For many years, I experienced firsthand how trauma can shape a person’s choices, relationships, behaviors, and sense of self. My own life was affected by childhood trauma, domestic violence, addiction, incarceration, and the belief that substances were the only way to escape emotional pain. But my story did not end there.
Recovery gave me the opportunity to rebuild my life, continue my education, and transform painful experiences into purpose. I earned my GED while incarcerated, pursued higher education, obtained a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in social work, and became a Licensed Social Worker and Licensed Independent Chemical Dependency Counselor. I went from needing support to becoming an EMDR trained therapist, clinical leader, supervisor, educator, and advocate for others.
Throughout my work in behavioral health and substance use treatment, I began to recognize an important truth: people can enter helping professions with the best intentions and still unintentionally cause harm when they do not understand trauma.
A client’s behavior may be labeled as manipulative, resistant, attention-seeking, or noncompliant when it may actually represent fear, survival, emotional dysregulation, or an unmet need. Employees may be expected to care for others without receiving the education and support they need to manage burnout, compassion fatigue, and secondary traumatic stress. Organizations may focus on correcting behavior without first asking what happened, what the person needs, and how safety and trust can be restored.
I created Care Without Harm because I believe we can do better.
Our mission is to help professionals, leaders, and organizations understand trauma and put that understanding into practice. Through engaging, practical training, we help people move beyond simply knowing the language of trauma-informed care and begin applying its principles in everyday interactions, policies, leadership decisions, documentation, and service delivery.
Care Without Harm is more than the name of a business. It is a commitment to protect dignity, recognize resilience, maintain healthy boundaries, and provide services that promote healing rather than reinforce shame.
My past is not something I hide—it is one of the reasons I understand this work so deeply. I combine lived experience with clinical education, professional leadership, and years of work in behavioral health and substance use treatment. I know what it feels like to be misunderstood, and I also know the power of being seen, supported, and given the opportunity to change.
Care Without Harm was created from the belief that when we change the way we understand people, we change the way we care for them.
This is where lived experience meets professional knowledge—and where compassion becomes meaningful action.
Erica Short, MSW, LSW, LICDC
Founder, Care Without Harm – TIC Empowerment Consulting LLC
EMDR Trained Therapist