January 2020

Twitter once again connected me to another amazing person working to make this world a kinder, more gentler place for children and families. One of the most hidden, but vital aspects of family constellations are grandfamilies. Grandparents raising grandchildren (grandfamilies) at a time in their lives when they might be retired and slowing down a bit, can find themselves in the throes of crises picking up the pieces of a shattered family. Whether by illness, death, or unforeseen...

Las Cruces city council member Kasandra Gandara was the first elected leader in New Mexico to reach out to us in our role as advocates for ACEs prevention and co-authors of Anna, Age Eight: The data-driven prevention of childhood trauma and maltreatment . After reading the book at the beginning of 2018, Councilor Gandara called us, and it turned into a reunion of three former child welfare workers. We had collaborated years earlier when Gandara was working for child protective services and...

The artwork is an original piece titled "Someone at the Door" by Chicago artist Ken Shaw. I bought it about 35 years ago. (The first part of this piece was written in-the-moment, as an email to a friend following what, for me, was a traumatic experience. The second part of this piece was written about 10 days later, as part of a healing reflection. It occurs to me that this experience, and the reflections, might help someone else experiencing trauma and/or seeking compassion for self or...

I came across this webpage and wanted to share with my parent and caregiver small groups. My intern typed it up into a handout. Feel free to share.

How we care for the most vulnerable citizens in our community is a reflection of who we are…

No brief intervention or short-term infusion of services is a silver bullet that will overcome the long-term harm caused by structural racism, poverty, and multi-generational trauma.

Diane Petrella, MSW is a licensed psychotherapist and life coach specializing in mind-body-spirit approaches to self-growth, healing, and weight loss. Early in her career she co-founded the first child sexual abuse treatment program in Rhode Island and for many years routinely testified in court as an expert witness in the area of child and adult sexual assault and post-traumatic stress.

Hey folks, a little musical reprise from the Survivor Knights event at the Rotunda in Philadelphia, PA - Live performance of "Pirates" and "When Your Heart Follows A Lie" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1J7llqObqw Some tunes of mine addressing the traumas [ "Pirates" ] of life & the lies and the beliefs I [perhaps you have as well] have followed and then finding some truth...and love. These are some of the reasons these songs came to pass. “ PIRATES ” © Michael Skinner Music Walking...

For many who read this blog, speaking about depression may seem redundant. However, an enemy that isn’t acknowledged becomes a silent killer. So, for both those who understand too well what depression is and how it affects our lives and those who don’t know I am writing this post. Every human on planet earth experiences depression. There are no exceptions.

By Kyle Stucker, Fosters.com, January 22, 2020 Hilltop City education, public safety and social service leaders hope this spring to soft launch a new collaborative model for helping prevent and respond to childhood trauma. The goal of creating an Adverse Childhood Experience Response Team in Somersworth is to bring resources together better than ever before, more proactively refer families to individualized services, and more deeply implement trauma-informed care principles at all levels of...

By Quinn Stoddard, PSU Vanguard, January 21, 2020 On Jan. 15, at Multnomah County Central Library, an open discussion was hosted by the Indigenous 20-Something Project—“a movement [bringing] healing and wellness to an entire generation to stop the toxic impacts of intergenerational trauma.” Hosts and founding members of I20SP, Shalene Joseph and Josh Cocker, discussed different factors affecting indigenous communities and the power that historical wisdom has had in their efforts to foster...

By Mark McMillan, Pride Source, January 22, 2020 Warning: this column may contain content that may be triggering for some readers. This past year in my practice, I began to see both male and female clients who presented with a past history of child sexual abuse. Unfortunately, the statistics prove that someone misusing alcohol or other drugs most likely has some form of child abuse in their past as well. Add that this person identifies with the LGBTQ community, and the numbers change...