November 2017

The jury is decidedly out on the academic track record of Head Start, the education-oriented pre-school program for low-income families invented in the 1960s and federally proliferated in the early 1980s. Critics will point to large impact studies that show early academic gains fade by third grade. Proponents will say that those gains would stick if the students ended up in better public schools. But Youth Services Insider had never seen Head Start mentioned as a possible preventer of foster...

I just wanted to pass along the link to this article, as I'm pretty sure there are more than a few here who suffer from fibromyalgia... http://healthiculture.com/fibromyalgia/newsletter/3stress/3stress-1.php

Focusing on your health is important as you heal after trauma. I had learned a lot about trauma. I understood the impact but having been fortunate with a healthy body, the long term impact had not showed up in my biology except for very painful migraine headaches and depression. But the toxic level of stress I had lived with my whole life had not registered yet. Back then, my self-care mostly consisted of numbing the pain. It just hurt too much to think about it. I was in too much pain and...

Those who struggle in social situations may be at greater risk for mental and physical health problems, according to a new study from the University of Arizona. That's because people with poor social skills tend to experience more stress and loneliness, both of which can negatively impact health, said study author Chris Segrin, head of the UA Department of Communication. The study, published in the journal Health Communication, is among the first to link social skills to physical, not just...

When people don't get enough sleep, certain brain cells literally slow down. A study that recorded directly from neurons in the brains of 12 people found that sleep deprivation causes the bursts of electrical activity that brain cells use to communicate to become slower and weaker, a team reports online Monday in Nature Medicine. The finding could help explain why a lack of sleep impairs a range of mental functions, says Dr. Itzhak Fried , an author of the study and a professor of...

Bob Thompson, the city coordinator of Appleton, Minnesota, had a bright idea in the spring of 1990. Thompson, a thin man now in his seventies who has the polite reserve of a long-time Minnesotan, was looking for a way to replace the agriculture industry that had served as the rural town’s economic backbone for generations. After some research, it came to him: a prison. I met with Thompson in Appleton. He told me about his failed attempts to lure a casino and furniture manufacturer to...

Living through multiple adverse experiences—such as the death of a parent, growing up in poverty, physical or sexual abuse, or having a parent with a psychiatric illness—before the age of eight may be linked to depression and physical health problems in kids as young as nine to 15, new research suggests. Further, the researchers have identified a potential pathway in the brain to explain how such stressful experiences influence poor health in kids. The researchers found that a key brain...

In highly competitive industries, like politics or finance, many people assume that you need to be cutthroat and merciless to be successful. Otherwise, you won’t win the hard battles or take big risks for big returns. But a 2016 study found that U.S. senators displaying more ruthless, psychopathic behaviors had less support among colleagues for their proposed bills. And now, another study recently published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin reveals that walking all over others...

This month marks one year since the passage of Proposition 57 , a California ballot measure that prohibited district attorneys from filing charges against youth as young as 14 directly in adult criminal court through a practice known as “direct file.” The initiative passed with 64 percent of the vote, signaling strong popular support for curtailing prosecutorial authority and expanding access to the rehabilitative benefits of the juvenile justice system. While juvenile courts are premised on...

At a community building in the small town of Port Townsend, Washington, the cast of “Queer Survival Quest” is gathering before tonight’s play. Mel Edwards, 22, puts on eyeliner. Max Stewart, 14, hands out pretzels. Jax DeLuna, 19, has brought a blanket. He groans and drags himself to a quiet corner. Last night’s performance was three hours long, and tonight’s will be, too. Seven young people, ages 14 to 23, are all transgender (an “umbrella term,” the program explains, “for any gender...

Professional artists work alongside African American urban youth 15-24 years-old to collect stories, reframe and retell them to promote understanding, pride, intergenerational relationships and literacy.

Yesterday, you ran 5 miles, prepared dinner for several nights, completed a complicated work project and organized your entire office. Or you checked off every task from your very long to-do list. Your focus barely waned and the day almost felt seamless. Today, you showered, put cream cheese on a bagel, and feel like a zombie (or whatever has less energy than that). Your brain is bare. In fact, you can barely string together simple sentences. Everything feels like it requires so much effort,...