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I 'm a small girl, with Big dreams, and an even bigger God on her side!😍 See that phone in my hands? That's where I restarted my Online Counseling practice. I had to give up on my dreams about 4 years ago, because my husband didn't believe in them and told me to choose between my dreams and our marriage. Eventually, I had to choose myself. I did my second counseling certification course on that phone. Then last year in May 2022, I started offering my Online Counseling Services using that...

I was blessed to have had the opportunity to speak at the Joint Citizens and Legislators Committee on Children last week here in Florence, S.C. I was given three minutes to testify on a topic close to my heart, trauma-informed systems, particularly schools. Here's the gist: My name is Jamie Matthews and I'm an elementary educator and school counselor turned trauma informed consultant and adverse childhood experiences advocate. I have been partnering with schools and organizations for over...

November is National Family Caregivers Month (NFCM), celebrated annually, a time to recognize and honor unpaid family caregivers across the country. It offers an opportunity to raise awareness of caregiving issues, educate communities, and increase support for caregivers. In recognition of NFCM, Courage to Caregivers is hosting its fourth annual Caring for the Caregivers Virtual Summit on Wednesday, November 1, and Thursday, November 2. The Caring for the Caregivers Virtual Summit is free...

If true, it would help explain why I, among other debilitating traits of core shame, have always felt oddly uncomfortable sharing my accomplishments with others, including those closest to me; and maybe even explain my otherwise inexplicable almost-painful inability to accept compliments. I’d always attributed it to extreme modesty. And the list goes on.

Music Monday w/Michael - A Cold Wind Blows "So many feel so alone all across this land. Can you tell me why you can't lend a hand?" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6R924Hv5hY Lyrics posted in the content section below the video @ You Tube

An abundance of research over decades has demonstrated the importance of relationships on the developing brain. Studies have shown that humans are biologically designed for relationships and now there are more recent research findings on the significance of timing. Babies are born with a primary need to have someone care for and provide for them. A newborn is completely dependent on at least one relationship with another person. Through having someone lovingly and consistently respond to...

There is one question that all helping professionals should be able to answer.... What is your scope of practice? Your scope of practice are your professionabl boundaries that highlight the skills, services & responses that are within your competency as an individual professional. One of the most important components of trauma-informed care is setting professional boundaries. Professional boundaries are an expression of your capacity. Your capacity being your ability to receive, contain...

Sharpen offers a variety of services to improve mental health outcomes and decrease heath disparities for both organizations and communities. The benefits of the Sharpen system include participant increase in: 1. mental health awareness and literacy through our award-winning, evidence based mental health trainings 2. access to evidence-based healthy coping toolkits 3. engagement in the discussion around mental health 4. connection to validated mental health screenings 5. trauma-informed...

Small reading nooks provide a great example of human scale for children at the Smithfield Elementary School. Source: HKS INC. By Erin Peavey, Psychology Today, September 23, 2023 Childhood can be hard even in the best of times. Children are inherently at a power disadvantage, still learning how to manage their emotions, and at the will of adults for food, shelter, and emotional regulation . Frustration, failure, and conflict are unavoidable, but not necessarily bad for children in the long...

From Trauma-informed Design Society, Photo: from article, Trauma-informed Design Society, October 5, 2023 (retrieved) What is Trauma-informed Design? Our physical environment can impact our emotions and behaviors, both negatively and positively. They have the ability to increase or reduce our stress. The spaces in which we live and receive services can communicate safety and promote supportive relationships, or they can symbolize lack of dignity and agency, encouraging re-traumatization.

Cool pastel hues encourage calm mental and physical states at Spacesmith’s Genovese Family Life Center for SCO Family of Services in Queens, New York. (Eric Laignel) By Ámbar Margarida, The Architect's Newspaper, October 4, 2023 Imagine you’re sitting in a waiting room. It’s hot, and your knees are tight to those of the people sitting across from you. You can feel the cramped space closing in. It’s uncomfortable, so you look to the walls: They’re empty and painted a drab beige, with the...

By Laura Gallant, Photo: from article, Healthy Outcomes from Positive Experiences (HOPE), April 20, 2023 Earth Day is this Saturday, and the HOPE National Resource Center wants to share ideas of actions that help protect the well-being of our planet, and the future of all children. When we promote practices that heal the Earth, we are celebrating all the amazing things this planet provides for us to create positive childhood experiences (PCEs), and happy, healthy children. This is at the...