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By Voices of Youth Count. Voices of Youth: Alanna’s Story Alanna is a 23-year-old woman living in Philadelphia. 1 She was placed in foster care at the age of three, along with three siblings, because her mother was using drugs. Alanna and her siblings spent 7 years in foster care. They were initially placed together in a foster home that Alanna described as abusive. According to Alanna, the child welfare agency “did nothing” the first time Alanna reported the abuse. After she reported the...

One of the messages that’s been drilled into us by popular culture is that “you have to love yourself before you can love someone else.” This is something people tell you when you get your heart broken and you feel like you must be… no good! And for a lot of years, every time I heard this I felt like a different species than everyone else. Because there were times when I didn’t particularly love myself – and here and there when I was younger, times when I hated myself. But there was a never...

Quest is an important film about trauma, love, and resilience. I know the film maker of Quest, and I know how passionate he is to help people understand about Adverse Childhood Experiences and what can happen when one person believes in you. Santiago Rizzo tells a compelling story of his childhood that all should see. His passion is contagious, and his willingness to speak about trauma, the power of love, and the need for honesty is powerful. I suggest folks go and see this film, and then...

By Brenidy Rice and Judge Ann Gail Meinster, Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, July 17, 2019. Modern courtrooms function more like emergency rooms than traditional courtrooms. The sound of the gavel replaces the siren. Clerks, judges and attorneys are the first responders while the podium becomes the center for the differential diagnosis and treatment. More than ever before, courts are inheriting and being asked to resolve fundamental societal issues that bring people into contact with...

By Abby Goodnough , Josh Katz and Margot Sanger-Katz, The New York Times, July 1 7, 2019. Three decades of ever-escalating deaths from drug overdoses in the United States may have come to an end, according to preliminary government data made public Wednesday. Total drug overdose deaths in America declined by around 5 percent last year, the first drop since 1990. The decline was due almost entirely to a dip in deaths from prescription opioid painkillers, the medicines that set off the...

By P. Berman, A. Hosack & K. Hecht Davy is scared. I must be calm. No matter what Davy says, I need to stay calm so he can feel less scared. Claire was still feeling shocked by Davy’s reaction to Larry’s picture; she hadn’t known he was having nightmares about Larry. She had just hoped he didn’t remember those bad times. However, he did and that was that. She had to shake of her own feelings for now, she could get comfort from the Carsons for herself later. Her Davy needed her. She dried...

When it comes to finding tools to help you properly address trauma within the family system, what is the single greatest challenge or frustration you’ve been struggling with?

https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/op-ed/bs-ed-op-0722-trauma-act-20190722-ayl64qnotrhvpkidtojjur43xa-story.html

By Victoria Knight, Kaiser Health News, July 18, 2019. Therapist Andrew Bryant says the landmark United Nations climate report last October brought a new mental health concern to his patients. “I remember being in sessions with folks the next day. They had never mentioned climate change before, and they were like, ‘I keep hearing about this report,’” Bryant said. “Some of them expressed anxious feelings, and we kept talking about it over our next sessions.” The study, conducted by the...

By Andrew Curry, Science, July 18, 2019. ZURICH, SWITZERLAND— The children living in SOS Children's Villages orphanages in Pakistan have had a rough start in life. Many have lost their fathers, which in conservative Pakistani society can effectively mean losing their mothers, too: Destitute widows often struggle to find enough work to support their families and may have to give up their children. The orphanages, in Multan, Lahore, and Islamabad, provide shelter and health care and send kids...

By Richard Morgan, Vice, July 18, 2019. It was an early summer morning at the San Ysidro Health Center, situated on the Mexican border. A flu outbreak gripped a nearby ICE detention center, where a larger humanitarian crisis continued to unfold, threatening the future of hundreds of children. In a small conference room, brimming with 20 or so of the San Diego area’s most diverse academic and activist minds, Nadine Burke Harris sat at the head of the table. The 43-year-old pediatrician from...

Blooming Buddies Workshop has released a new episode called, Sonny Calms Down! Enjoy this clever message that addresses upset and frustration in a safe and thoughtful way. Annie has done it again! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUPEka9Xp04&feature=youtu.be Annie and her bud Sonny happily enjoy their efforts after planting a new row of flowers in the Blooming Buddies Workshop garden. But sunny smiles turn upside down when their hard work is unexpectedly jumbled. Grab your sun hat and...