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Hi Folks, The month of May recognizes Mental Health Awareness and National Trauma Awareness The May Surviving Spirit Newsletter - sharing Hope and Healing Resources for Trauma, Abuse & Mental Health is posted at the website - http://newsletters.survivingspirit.com/index.php It can be read online via - http://newsletters.survivingspirit.com/pdfs/2022-05-The_Surviving_Spirit_Newsletter_May_2022.pdf or this - http://ml.survivingspirit.com/dada/mail.cgi/archive/newsletter/20220501202915/ To...

The state in which a baby is born and lives in their first 3 years can make a difference in whether they have a strong start in life. But even more critical than the apparent geographic differences are the disparate experiences among babies of different races, ethnicities, and income levels, with inequities starting even before birth. Often driven by systemic racism, these disparities persist even in states where babies overall are doing better than in other states. A nation that tolerates...

Prevent Child Abuse Illinois (PCA Illinois) recently announced the release of a statewide environmental scan survey to assess the awareness of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) among Illinois residents, and we need your help! Please help us get the data we need by sharing this survey with your colleagues, students, and networks. The more Illinois residents we reach, the more accurate our data will be, which will help ensure our future public awareness campaigns and educational efforts are...

By The Imprint Staff Reports, Photo: Unsplash, The Imprint, May 2, 2022 Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) signed a bill last week that will provide free college and technical school tuition for Mississippi foster youth through a scholarship fund. “We have a responsibility to ensure those children growing up in foster care have the opportunity to turn their struggles into strengths,” Reeves said in a press release. House Bill 1313 will establish the State Representative Bill Kinkade Fostering...

By Linda Poon, Photo: Joseph Romeo Photography, Bloomberg City + Green, May 2, 2022 The entrance to Washington, D.C.’s newest elementary school building leads right to an open-space library painted in blue, green and yellow, with a makerspace that hangs above like a treehouse. On the side, a massive touchscreen invites students to tap away at an interactive dashboard with real-time data detailing how the building is performing for a new climate reality. “Students can see bar charts of how...

By Sarah Gantz, Photo: Tyger Williams/The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Philadelphia Inquirer, May 3, 2022 Rutgers researchers made a startling discovery when the pandemic curtailed routine medical visits: Going virtual to test cutting-edge therapies reached more diverse patients. Clinical trials test the effectiveness and safety of new medications or devices. Yet the vast majority of such studies do not enroll participants that represent America. Black patients account for, on average, just 5%...

By René Marsh, Image: Screenshot from article, CNN US, April 30, 2022 Lake Powell , the country's second-largest reservoir, is drying up. The situation is critical: if water levels at the lake were to drop another 32 feet, all hydroelectricity production would be halted at the reservoir's Glen Canyon Dam. The West's climate change-induced water crisis is now triggering a potential energy crisis for millions of people in the Southwest who rely on the dam as a power source. Over the past...

By Josh Gerstein and Alexander Ward, Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images, POLITICO, May 2, 2022 The Supreme Court has voted to strike down the landmark Roe v. Wade decision, according to an initial draft majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito circulated inside the court and obtained by POLITICO. The draft opinion is a full-throated, unflinching repudiation of the 1973 decision which guaranteed federal constitutional protections of abortion rights and a subsequent 1992 decision –...

The month of May recognizes Mental Health Awareness and National Trauma Awareness. On that note, I'd like to share a few resources that I had the honor of participating with that address trauma, abuse and mental health. The Brave and Unbroken Podcast is brand new – recorded in March and aired in April. The other two resources are video clips shared at my You Tube Channel. Please note, I am currently working on my You Tube Channel to share more resources, music and conversation – I have...

As part of its initiative to help organizations and systems supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) move toward trauma-informed care (TIC), the Traumatic Stress Institute (TSI) recently held two webinar sessions. Entitled "Is Your IDD Organization or System Ready Yet for Trauma-Informed Care?" the webinars reviewed the benefits of TIC, discussed the progress of its 2021 pilot learning collaborative, and provided a framework for readiness assessment. Over 350...

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I can't think of a better guest than Dr. Gabor Maté to discuss what happens to a child when he faces abuse and neglect while growing up. This was one of my all-time favorite conversations. We discuss Authenticity vs. Attachment, why a young, traumatized person is attracted to gangs, what happens to a young brain when it's traumatized and Dr. Maté answered questions sent in by men from prison. - Fritzi Horstman, Founder, Compassion Prison Project