At the heart of the argument over whether the economy should be open or closed is an explosive question that is often ignored: “How much is a human life really worth?” Put another way, “Do we save thousands of lives or do we save the economy which affects millions of people?” Either way, almost everyone is facing a traumatic experience.
Stillness is like a balm that calms our frazzled soul. Mindfulness allows us to slow down and better respond to anxiety-inducing challenges we so often face. Gratitude gives us perspective, and self-awareness helps us recognize and understand our emotions, and that builds strength and resilience.
By Manisha Aggarwal-Schiefellite, The Harvard Gazette, August 3, 2020 Experiencing adversity early in life has a direct effect on a person’s mental and physical health as they grow, and certain kinds of trauma can affect the pace of aging, according to new Harvard research. In addition to being risk factors for anxiety, depression, and stress, early life experiences like poverty, neglect, and violence are powerful predictors of physical health outcomes like cardiovascular disease, diabetes,...
By Gabriella Velasco and Martha Fedorowicz, Housing Matters, August 5, 2020 In June, the Housing Matters editorial team , spurred by the national uprisings against police brutality and anti-Black structural racism , and the uneven effects of COVID-19 pledged a renewed commitment to racial equity. To manifest this promise, we committed to “reexamine evidence and assumptions in order to advance antiracist housing policy and practice,” and as a first step, we are reviewing five years of Housing...
By Chana Joffe-Walt, The New York Times, July 23, 2020 “Nice White Parents” is a new podcast from Serial Productions, brought to you by The New York Times, about the 60-year relationship between white parents and the public school down the block. We know American public schools do not guarantee each child an equal education. Two decades of school reform initiatives have not changed that. But when Chana Joffe-Walt, a reporter, looked at inequality in education, she saw that most reforms...
By Clare Ryan and Berry Streets, The Sector, June 23, 2020 Children who have experienced trauma may find it more difficult to regulate their emotions and behaviours than other children. Understanding the impact trauma can have on brain development can help inform practical responses to these children’s needs. This short article describes how practitioners can use strategies that help calm children’s bodies in order to help calm their minds and emotions – specifically, the...
Psych Central published my latest article on trauma and it's one you don't want to miss! Through my work with children coping with Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) the historical trajectory became very clear to me. Often childhood trauma doesn't start with the child who was traumatized, but it starts with the parents and grandparents of that child who were overwhelmed by adversity and never had help. Unprocessed emotional trauma is likely to be passed on in some capacity to at least the...
Elizabeth Powr,. M.Ed. of The Trauma Informed Academy (TIA), announces The Sacredness of Trauma (TSoT), and interactive online program for faith communities. TSoT helps people recognize that “what happened to you” instead of “what’s wrong with you” is the central question required for compassion and care. This six hour program is offered as a five week series beginning August 18 and as a one day program on August 22. “Trauma includes the separation from each other that accompanies COVID, the...
Are you a reader? We've compiled a list of our favorite resources for supporting your mental health. Check them out here and stay tuned as we are hoping to update this list with even more titles soon! https://brickelandassociates.com/books/
It’s sure been a huge change for everyone, especially Family Home Child Care Providers. So much required for providers due to Covid-19. 50% of providers have closed Temporary or permanently in Solano County. We’ve loss staff and our enrollment is low. But cost in supplies and equipment needed to keep the children and providers safe have increased. Something I’ve been working on is bringing more awareness around the importance of early learning and care. Especially since the government has...
T he world is learning more about the uncommon but puzzling ways Covid-19 can show up in kids, keeping worried parents on the lookout for symptoms of the disease. We should also be concerned about how toxic stress brought on by the pandemic, or made worse by it, will affect children’s developing brains and bodies and their future health. In millions of households, kids are experiencing an incredible amount of stress and anxiety. They’ve lost the stability and safety of schools and day cares,...
Becky Haas and Marlo Nash, co-authors of this article partnered to achieve a two-part goal. The first, to describe a systems-level need for early childhood, child maltreatment prevention and child welfare systems to integrate in response to the COVID pandemic. The second, to build off of the big picture need for change to offer a concrete, practical example for action centered on ensuring early care and education providers are equipped to recognize and respond to trauma in young children,...
Sixty years ago this summer I told. My parents fought to have my perpetrator removed from the organization - to no avail. They were accused of being the ones with the problem because they could not forgive, forget and move on. Thank God, my parents did move on. They left that group. Their belief in me and their sacrificial actions gave me the foundation to thrive. However, the abuse became flesh and dwelt inside me and for decades I suffered great gynecological problems. Recent studies link...
Mytrae Meliana (pronounced “My-thray-yee”) is a holistic psychotherapist, trauma expert, speaker, author, and women's empowerment and spiritual teacher. She mentors women to heal from trauma, detox from patriarchy, and claim their truth, power, heart, and purpose.
By Carolyn Jones, EdSource, August 6, 2020 When Amistad continuation high school closed its campus in March due to the pandemic, the staff went into overdrive to stay in touch with students. They called all 205. If a student’s phone was disconnected, they went to the student’s house. If no one answered, they asked neighbors. “The effort was relentless,” said David Gustafson, principal of the public school in Indio, near Palm Springs, that serves students who’ve been expelled or are at risk...