January 2021

By Julia Barajas, Los Angeles Times, January 12, 2021 Sometimes it’s karaoke. Sometimes it’s multiplayer games like skribbl or Among Us. Whatever it is, middle-school student Tiggerina Virgen never skips her after-school program — even though it means more time on Zoom. During one meeting, Alejandrina Arizmendi-Ramírez, a recent college graduate who runs the sessions, found out that Tiggerina had an F in science. She quickly mobilized support for Tiggerina, making sure she submitted missing...

By Alycia Hardy, Center for Law and Social Policy, January 13, 2021 A relatively simple question my seven-year-old son asked as I watched the coverage of the Capitol insurrection. I had many answers for him. Answers I could easily verbalize to adults, the simplest being that this is what happens when white supremacy culture is threatened. When those who have historically held a position of power feel their power being shifted using the very systems and structures they built to protect it,...

New toolkit shares community-led strategies for creating social connection Five years ago, a diverse group of community-based coalitions rooted in neighborhoods throughout the country began to explore how they might better support mental health and wellbeing for boys and men of color and for military service members, veterans, and their families. With support from Prevention Institute and funding from Movember, coalitions from cities like Honolulu, Boston, and New Orleans and rural areas in...

Q: What information can I give parents about head banging? What can they do about it? At what point does it become a concern of safety or need for further intervention? A: As is true for many aspects of behavior and development, any parental concern needs to be taken in context for how the child is doing overall with any other concerns you may have. However, in general, head banging is a common childhood behavior. Typically, this occurs when children are frustrated or overwhelmed. You can...

Dear Friends and Allies On behalf of the millions of California’s children entitled to mental health support and services, we are pleased to share this groundbreaking report: “ Meeting the Moment: Improving EPSDT Implementation in California to Address Growing Mental Health Needs .” READ THE REPORT Envisioned by the California Children’s Trust (CCT), and written by the National Center for Youth Law (NCYL) and the National Health Law Program (NHeLP), the report offers advocates and...

This is the subject of a Zoom conversation with a sensational panel of educators/psychologists on January 27th at 5:00 p.m. --- for free. The flyer is attached. Meet Ed Wang (Harvard Medical School; MGH); Pat Neal (experienced educator; counselor; leader of non-profits); Sakina McGruder (elementary school educator; member Delta Kappa Gamma Women Educator Honor Society). Now, the answer to the question in my view is yes. But, we need to act on not just talk about change. We need trauma...

Join the Community of Practice (fee free) to connect with other adults who are important to children. Discussions anchor in 3x3” blog post(its) like the one below. More information @ www.jodiwert.com

In this episode of Transforming Trauma, host Sarah Buino facilitates an important discussion between NARM creator Dr. Laurence Heller and Dr. Christina Bethell, researcher, author, policy advocate, and professor at Johns Hopkins University and the Bloomberg School of Public Health.

EmpowerSurvivors is a peer-led and operated 501c3 nonprofit organization located at 1940 Greeley Street South, Suite 210, in Stillwater, MN 55082. It is our belief that together we can heal from childhood sexual abuse and we invite you to join us today! Come join us weekly via Zoom for classes and groups specifically designed for those affected by childhood sexual abuse and trauma! Never has there been a better time to connect with others, join a healing community of survivors, and begin...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-VAUnGV1Vs ( Editor's note: This interview is close to 1 1/2 hours. YouTube provides a timeline of the topics covered if you click on "More" in the description.)

People have asked me why I had not written about the events of last Wednesday, January 6 — a traumatizing day that will be seared in our long history of trauma in this country — sooner than this evening. Basically, I was waiting for the other shoe to drop, because this isn't over.

With the stressors that have mounted in the United States over the last year, the course, " Your Healing Narrative: Write-to-Heal with Neural Re-Narrating ", offered an oasis in the storm. I was fortunate to get a sneak peek last month, and think it's the bees' knees for what ails us, which is STRESS, STRESS, STRESS. Those of us in the ACEs community understand that our childhood trauma can magnify stress and/or reveal stressors that we've never thought about until they spring out of our...