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With Covid 19 keeping most of us at home, now's the time to let our lives catch up to us and envision a new future.

Posted by Tim McKee – March 25, 2020 A few years ago, NAB author and thinker Bayo Akomolafe told me, “The times are urgent, so let us slow down.” I sensed right away what he meant by this apparent contradiction: that it is during acute periods of tumult that we most need spaciousness, patience, and circumspection. After all, it can be tempting in periods of rapid change to “rush in” out of fear that an extra pause or moment of hesitation will spell doom. Yet history has ample examples where...

TOP NEWS, National Conference of State Legislature March 26, 2020 Overview The U.S. Senate approved an estimated $2 trillion stimulus package to battle the harmful effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, though concerns with the unemployment provisions remain. A few highlights of what's included in the package: Creates a $150 billion Coronavirus Relief Fund for state, local and tribal governments. See estimated state allocations courtesy of Federal Funds Information for States. Provides $30...

How can we reduce ACEs and toxic stress during the COVID-19 pandemic? Many of us are concerned that increased stress might increase the risk for ACEs. For example, most child abuse happens when adults reach their breaking point. However, we are not powerless in the face of these challenges. HOPE - Healthy Outcomes from Positive Experiences - is a natural fit for ACES Connection, We invite you to join our new Balancing ACES with HOPE community . Let us know how you think HOPE about HOPE and...

By Mark Miller, The New York Times, March 24, 2020 Older Americans are at a high risk for serious illness from the coronavirus, and most who are over age 65 are covered by Medicare. Medicare already covers its enrollees for much of what they might need if they contract the virus and become seriously ill — and it has expanded some services and loosened some rules in response to the crisis . Here’s a look at what enrollees can expect from Medicare, some problems to look out for and some...

By Jacqueline Garcia and Jackie Botts, Cal Matters, March 24, 2020 More than 2 million undocumented workers, who do not quality for many state and federal benefits, are among the hardest hit Californians as the economy is battered by the coronavirus pandemic. Congress is working to provide an emergency relief fund that could benefit U.S. citizens and permanent legal residents. However, undocumented workers are not included. Also, undocumented workers do not qualify for unemployment...

Rafael's note: This is an inspiring story brought to my attention by ACEsConnection staff member Carey Sipp. Thought this might be helpful to life spirits in this stressful and traumatic time. By Gina Loveless, Men's Health, March 24, 2020 Before he even entered middle school, Lamont Nash had gone through the most terrifying event he’d ever experience. “My dad tried to kill me by drowning me in a tub of hot water," Nash says. "I went into an orphanage at the age of five, then into my first...

By Karen Gross, Teachers College Press, March 20, 2020 Just as we are hearing about positive research efforts to combat the coronavirus in the relative near term, we are learning that some statewide school systems may stay closed through the end of the 2019–2020 school year. As of this writing, one state—Kansas—has affirmatively closed all its schools until the next academic year. Other states will likely follow in the coming days, including California, Arizona and Texas. The critical...

It all started for me about two weeks ago. Even though I heard about Coronavirus here and there, it was just a distant conversation happening on the background for me. Until one day, I got home from work, and my husband said we had to start stocking up for the crisis . "Crisis? Which crisis?", I asked. "The outbreak! It is serious. My company is preparing us to work from home for at least four weeks". "Get out of here," I thought. He is known for being anxious and controlling, so I scratched...

How can health care providers take care of themselves, their colleagues and their patients during this COVID-19 pandemic? First and foremost is recognizing how the pandemic can stir up trauma from the past, said Dr. Alicia Lieberman, a psychologist specializing in trauma. “COVID19 is reawakening traumatic reminders in many of us and in the families we work with. And that often makes it difficult for parents to protect themselves and their children,” she noted. Lieberman, the director of the...

Before the pandemic, grandparents raising grandchildren were already in a precarious situation. They were struggling to meet the needs of children exposed to maltreatment and trauma while also supporting the family financially. But now, we fear, things have made a critical turn for the worse while those grandparents become unemployed, sick, or in the worst-case scenario, die due to Corona Virus.

“I know from personal experience that trauma can be life-changing, but I didn’t know that talking about trauma could change my life. And the lives of others,” said Theresa Caldwell, member of the Southside (TICN) Trauma-Informed Community Network , which is supported by the Crater Health District under the leadership of Dr. Alton Hart and Brian Little. The Network works to foster healthy communities through disease prevention and control, health promotion, environmental protection, and...