Tagged With "left brain right brain"
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Building Strong Brains Series
The state of Tennessee in the USA has a comprehensive programme to build strong brains by reducing ACEs and combating toxic stress in children and youth. A really positive tone of the programme is that it emphasises Hope by reinforcing that while ACEs science is a FACT it is not FATE. The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) website has a series of 6 short videos outlining the various components. The last 2 videos show how to get buy-in for your initiative from law enforcement agencies, state...
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How You Can Participate
Here at ACEs Caribbean Community, we want you to be involved in shaping the content and activities of our shared space. So please introduce yourself , take advantage of the upcoming Calendar Events listed, suggest activities in which we can all engage, and post to the various categories of the blog. We have categorised posts into various Blog Categories (see right panel) to make it easy for members to find the information most relevant to them. Please consider serving as a moderator for any...
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Re: #ChooseToChallenge - What leads to a man assaulting a woman or a child?
Yes, this phrasing, versions of which are used in Jamaica too, assumes/suggests that the woman is always 'the victim’. And when we speak of GBV here, in the region, we rarely talk about emotional/verbal abuse. Put that into the equation and we’ll have a much clearer picture of the scale of women’s violence against men and boys in the Caribbean. In many ways, emotional verbal/abuse is just as egregious and harmful as physical abuse by men. In some cases, it is worse. I had a conversation...
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Young Black Men's Mental Health During Covid-19
Research from the UK suggests that men from racialised backgrounds are reporting higher levels of mental distress during the pandemic compared to white men (Proto et al., 2021). Contributing factors include bereavement, loneliness and worries about coronavirus and misinformation.
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Building a Multi-System Trauma-Informed Collaborative.
Since the effects of childhood trauma do not play out in isolation, an effective response to child trauma should benefit not only children but the communities in which they live. This feeds into what we know from studies about factors that impact a child's growth - they occur within the family, community and also are climate-related. Multiple studies reveal the extremely high percentage of youth in contact with the law and under the care of social services who have been exposed to violence...
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UK 'Punishing Abuse' Report Finds Many Justice-Involved Youth have Trauma Histories.
A published study from West Midlands in the United Kingdom, titled "Punishing Abuse", has confirmed what many have long suspected - many youth are being punished in the criminal justice system for acting out in the aftermath of childhood trauma. It looked at 80 youth, 67 of whom were male, and many of whom were of Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic (BAME) heritage. They included White and Black Caribbean youth, some of whome were born in and others whose parents came from the Caribbean island...
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Happening Now! Hello again. The webinar we...
Happening Now! Hello again. The webinar we posted about in the calendar is on right now! Adverse Childhood Experiences: The Importance of Law Enforcement Recognition and Intervention. It's tremendous to see experienced law enforcement officers training their peers in understanding the role childhood adversity plays and how to intervene responsibly. More info is available at the Justice Clearinghouse website. Be sure to check out some of their upcoming webinars which we've posted in our...
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Are ACEs Overplayed?
Hello everyone! It's Friday again. To send you into the weekend, we want to ask you to put your thinking caps on. In reading the literature, it is clear that there is no unanimity with respect to the role that the Adverse Childhood Experiences study should have in guiding public health. One nation in which there has been much thought given to the issue is Scotland. In 2019 two advocates squared off to share their respective points of view as to the value of the ACEs research and how best it...
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'A lot of grief and anxiety' for kids, youth after living with COVID for 1 year, says psychotherapist. [CBC article]
Around the world, the 1 year anniversary of Covid-19 interrupting our lives was observed in different ways. For many, the concern is for the children and young people who are experiencing Covid-19 as an adverse childhood experience. The clinical observations of a Canadian psychotherapist may well be true for the Caribbean region as it relates to how children are coping one year on. Alyssa Strachan, based at the Delton Glebe Counselling Centre in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada has been helping...
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Technology to the Rescue in Saint Vincent
Good morning, beautiful Caribbean people.😀 With various parts of the main island of Saint Vincent still under the periodic onslaught of the La Soufriere volcano, thousands of people have been relocated to shelters or are seeking refuge on other islands. There is undeniable fear, stress and anxiety affecting many of them from having to flee for their lives from this active volcano. Natural disasters such as these can wreak havoc on people's mental health due to the ongoing Trauma. Therefore,...
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May 3 to 7 - The Treating Trauma Master Series: A 5-Module Series on the Treatment of Trauma
Hi everyone. Sorry to interrupt your Sunday. However, we think that this info is important and requires a timely response. The US based National Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioral Medicine (NICABM) is offering a series of 5 modules on the treatment of trauma featuring some well-known experts in the field. They include Bessel van der Kolk, MD (featured in the cover image of this blog post), Pat Ogden, PhD, Ruth Lanius, MD, PhD, Dan Siegel, MD and Stephen Porges, PhD. The 5...
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Action on ACEs Conference 2021: From ACEs to Resilience (June 10)
Hi ACEs learners. We're trying to ensure you have access to credible information and training on ACEs by sharing links to such events. Today is no exception. The organisation, Action On ACEs, based in Gloucestershire, UK is hosting a free virtual conference on Thursday 10th June 2021 from 9:30 am to 3:30pm UK time. The conference, ‘From ACEs to Resilience’ will focus on "resilience, how to build it in children and young people and how we can support adults who have experienced ACEs. It will...
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Being Defined By Your Worst Past.
Good Tuesday morning everyone. As we navigate the various systems of our nation, one in which trauma often manifests is the penal and criminal justice system. In our nation, thousands of men and boys and hundreds of women and girls are warehoused in some form of youth detention, pre-trial detention or incarceration after having been failed by dysfunctional or abusive families, and ineffective educational institutions. Often bursting at the seams due to overcrowding, these places of detention...
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PACEs Connection: Not just another social network
At last week’s fabulous HOPE Summit, one person told me that they didn’t realize all the things that PACEs Connection does.
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Immature Brains Cannot Regulate Themselves Alone.
Kudos to Gerry Diamond who shared this image on Twitter. His handle is @gerrydiamond71 As Gerry put it, this challenge of regulation also is seen in young people who have unaddressed ACEs and Trauma. They often present with arrested emotional development. Parents and caregivers, including teachers, may need to remember that the young minds in their care are not yet equipped to make the mature choices or decisions the adults hope they will make. Being mindful of the fact that emotional...
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Oprah & Dr. Bruce Perry book on Childhood trauma: What Happened to You?
What Happened to You? Oprah Winfrey and renowned brain development and trauma expert, Dr. Bruce Perry, discuss the impact of trauma and adverse experiences and how healing must begin with a shift to asking, 'what happened to you?' rather than 'what’s wrong with you?' Through wide-ranging, and often deeply personal conversation, Oprah Winfrey and Dr. Perry explore how what happens to us in early childhood – both good and bad - influences the people we become. They challenge us to shift from...
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Barbados Research into Childhood Malnutrition and Maltreatment.
Happy Friday everybody! As you know, with that comes some weekend reading for you. Today, we are sharing a report from research conducted in Barbados that links childhood malnutrition and maltreatment to personality disorders which persist into adulthood. It is the work of Rebecca S. Hock and her colleagues using data from the 47 year longitudinal Barbados Nutrition Study. Published in Psychiatry Research (Volume 269, November 2018, Pages 301-308), the work, " Childhood malnutrition and...
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Can a Flavonoids-Rich Diet Buffer the Effects of ACEs on Depression?
Happy 4th of July Weekend to all our US based Community members! For the rest of us it's a regular Friday where we can research and expand our knowledge. Today the focus is on diet and how it can play a role in buffering the effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences on depression. It is the work of Alison Tan and her colleagues, published under the title " Adverse childhood experiences and depressive symptoms: Protective effects of dietary flavonoids " in the Journal of Psychosomatic Research...
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What Do We Do Once We Realize the Prevalence of Adversities?
When people hear about the mental and physical health risks of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and toxic stress, one of the first questions is, “What do we do about this?” Awareness of the prevalence of adversity and the impact of stress on the brain and body leads to the possibility for prevention and response. Whether you are acting within a family, agency, organization, business or community, the next steps should be taken knowing that we will all work together to bring about change.
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Adversities. Resilience. Gratitude.
Adversity can be a powerful word especially when you are a Trauma Counsellor aware of ACEs. This revolutionary study on the impact of our Adverse Childhood Experiences has provided us with so many answers as to why we are the way we are. At least it did for me and the people I work with every day. It has also raised many important questions. One being, how can one build resilience through past adversities? How did I do it? Having done the ACE test and getting a maximum score of 10 on it, I...
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California PACEs Connection initiatives spark new connections in regional meeting
Among PACEs Connection initiatives around the country, it’s well known that our social network is something like a bustling, giant town square where people share ideas, resources and any number of conversations about how to prevent childhood adversity and promote positive childhood experiences. On May 14, PACEs Connection assembled a virtual town square gathering of PACEs initiatives in California, where we have 58 initiatives sparking action all across the state. Speakers at the gathering,...
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Wrestling Ghosts Watch Weekend on PACEs Connection (June 11-13th) & Zoom Discussion with Director Ana Joanes on June 15th at 7p.m. EST.
Wrestling Ghosts is the fourth and final film in the Transform Trauma with ACEs Science Film Festival series. The film can be watched, free of charge, on PACEs Connection from Friday, June 11th through Sunday, June 13th where it will be streamed all weekend. The streaming will be followed by a Zoom discussion with Wrestling Ghosts Director, Ana Joanes, and the co-sponsors of the Transform Trauma with ACEs Science Film Festival (CTIPP, PACEs Connection, & the Relentless School Nurse) on...
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Wellness Wednesday - Resilience Prescription
Hi everyone and welcome to another Wellness Wednesday! Today we have an account from a psychiatrist who, after many years studying trauma and the experiences of trauma victims, had the misfortune to become one himself. In a rather dramatic turn of events, Dennis S. Charney was shot by a former co-worker and survived to write about it and to grow from the experience. In his own words, he describes how the situation challenged him to dig deep and uncover the resilience he needed to take him...
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Building a Restorative Restart to School in the Fall
As we look towards the reopening of in-person instruction in the fall, planning and reimagining for a restorative restart to our school systems that emphasizes student and educator mental health is a priority. In addition, there is a windfall of one-time funding coming to districts from federal and local funds for just this purpose. Recently a wise educator said to me, ‘you know, if you want to get to the hearts and minds of school leaders to make changes for the fall you need to do so by...
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When Self-Care Doesn't "Work"
You can't fail at self-care. If something isn't helpful, maybe you haven't yet found your own way.
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Racism as an Adverse Community Experience
By Christina Velez, The Relationship Foundation July 15, 2021 Have you ever questioned the ways that racism and trauma intersect? As a person of color, I know I have. Racism is a core determinant of health which often leads to social inequities. From watching PBS’s video on “Mental Fitness for Resilience-The Trauma of Racism” it was interesting to learn how racism and trauma, often converge in inseparable ways. Dr. Terri D. McFadden, a general pediatrician, and professor at Emory University...
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Free Webinar: Trauma and Nutrition
Proper nutrition is a key ingredient in rewiring your client's traumatized neural pathways. Research shows that nutrition is often not part of trauma treatment. Nutrition and trauma are on two different planets. This free webinar training by Dr. Sells is for professionals who want to understand why nutrition and trauma are not typically linked in treatment and how to bridge this gap with step-by-step tools, case examples, and handouts. Wednesday, July 21 12 - 1 pm EDT Click HERE to register...
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What HOPE Adds [positiveexperience.org/blog]
By Bob Sege, 7/22/21, positiveexperience.org/blog Summertime offers a chance to pause and reflect. This past year our team has had the good fortune to meet with, teach, and learn from dozens of organizational leaders and well over 10,000 participants from around the country and beyond. HOPE resonates with the values and work of so many other programs, organizations, and frameworks. At the same time, HOPE coalesces many years of research, thinking, and practical experience. What does HOPE...
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How to Nourish Your Resilience in a Time of Trauma (yesmagazine.org)
We are in a historic moment of trauma in the United States. How do we face these things fully, let in the devastation, and then both heal and act? Can we navigate through this toward healing? Toward racial, economic, and gender justice? Can we use this moment to alter the trajectory of climate change toward sustainability? Somatics and neuroscience reveal that we have inherent needs as humans—safety, belonging and dignity. We have essential material needs too, like healthy food and clean...
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Juvenile Justice Video Explains Ways to Elevate Care for Youth in Custody [aecf.org]
By The Annie E. Casey Foundation, July 26, 2021 A short video produced by the Annie E. Casey Foundation identifies eight principles that every juvenile justice system should embrace right now to transform care for youth in custody. These principles are designed to help all young people realize their potential — regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender, neighborhood or personal history. The video introduces ways that jurisdictions can immediately and meaningfully elevate the standard of...
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Institutional Child Sexual Abuse: Problem and Prevention
Despite institutional child sexual abuse being a known and alarming issue, most recently highlighted by investigations of the Boy Scouts and USA Gymnastics, little is known about the extent of the problem and best practices for prevention.
Yesterday, PACEs Connection hosted a webinar with Dr. Billie-Jo Grant and Terri Miller, experts in school employee sexual misconduct. They cover the scope of the problem, why it is so difficult to address, and best practices for prevention.
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Six Months and Counting!
Happy birthday to us! Happy birthday to us! Well, sort of. This week marks just over 6 months since ACEs Caribbean Community (ACEs) was formed here on the PACEs Connection platform. Actually, the platform name change from ACEs Connection occurred during our first month here. In that time, we have been pleased to see a coming together of like-minded individuals from within and outside of CARICOM (the Caribbean Community), all with a passion for helping people thrive after childhood adversity.
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How Every Child Can Thrive By Five - Molly Wright
"What if I was to tell you that a game of peek-a-boo could change the world?" asks seven-year-old Molly Wright, one of the youngest-ever TED speakers. Breaking down the research-backed ways parents and caregivers can support children's healthy brain development, Wright highlights the benefits of play on lifelong learning, behavior and well-being, sharing effective strategies to help all kids thrive by the age of five. She's joined onstage by one-year-old Ari and his dad, Amarjot, who help...
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Brain scans of Black women who experience racism show trauma-like effects, putting them at higher risk for future health problems [theconversation.com]
By Sierra Carter , Georgia State University , the Conversation, September 15, 2021 Black women who have experienced more racism throughout their lives have stronger brain responses to threat , which may hurt their long-term health, according to a new study I conducted with clinical neuropsychologist Negar Fani and other colleagues. I am part of a research team that for more than 15 years has studied the ways stress related to trauma exposure can affect the mind and body. In our recent study...
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ACEs, Food Addiction, and What Most Weight Loss Programs Get Wrong According to Dr. Felitti and Dr. Alman
We know a high ACE score is connected to a higher likelihood of “substance-related disorders.” However, sometimes it’s overlooked that food can be that substance of choice, too—not just drugs or alcohol. Learn about food addiction and ACEs, and a weight loss solution that heals from the inside out endorsed by Dr. Felitti, the CO-Principal Investigator of the ACE Study.
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How to Help Yourself if you’re On a Waiting List for Therapy
One of the positive outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic is that it has increased mental health awareness. Limiting our activities and contact with others has led to so much talk about fear, loneliness, disconnection and mental health. These experiences have made people notice their needs and feel more comfortable seeking help. More people now seek therapy For some, actually getting help has been easier because they could reach out from their living rooms and receive virtual therapy. Yet for...
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Book Review: Rohan Bullkin and the Shadows—A Story about ACEs and Hope
Juleus Ghunta’s empowering book Rohan Bullkin and the Shadows—A Story about ACEs and Hope , vibrantly illustrated by Rachel Moss, is a much-needed story of a boy who experiences Shadows that interfere with his ability to read because they make his mind “flicker like a hurricane,” go blank, and sometimes race and “refuse to shut down.” This is an affirming, normalizing contextualization of how bad events and scary experiences, now understood from the science of adverse childhood experiences...
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Join us October 27, 2021 for the inaugural event in our Trauma-Informed Criminal Justice System series, “The Relationship between PACEs and the Criminal Justice System”
Please join us for a new series entitled: Trauma-Informed Criminal Justice. This monthly series will feature conversations facilitated by Porter Jennings-McGarity, PACEs Connection Midwest and Tennessee community facilitator and criminal justice consultant, with special guests to discuss the need for trauma-informed criminal justice system reform. Using a PACEs-science lens, this series will examine the relationship between trauma and the criminal justice system, what needs changing, and...
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How We Heal from Adverse Childhood Experiences
It’s not time, but an integrated recovery plan that heals.
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Beginning the Healing Journey: Return to the Resilient Zone
Dysregulated stress is central to the ACEs/health outcomes link. The healing journey starts with regulating stress arousal that is stuck on too high or too low.
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Positive Effects of Giving Thanks: Not Just for the Holidays
“He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not but rejoices for what he has.” ~Greek philosopher, Epictetus It is that time of year in which the leaves are changing color, the days are getting shorter, and as we prepare for family meals and holidays, we witness a lot more folks talking about what they are thankful for. The days leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday lend themselves to a shift in our focus onto what we appreciate in our lives, and we notice folks...
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A Trauma Informed Approach to Vaccine Fear
PLEASE SIGN ON TO THIS MEMO TO SUPPORT OUTREACH ALONG THESE LINES TO THE ADMINISTRATION! If the goal is to impact meaningful change, it might prove helpful to view vaccine fear through a trauma informed-lens. There is an intentional shift from the use of the word “hesitancy” and instead using the more specific and appropriate term “fear”. We are more likely to change that which we better define and understand. The following memo has been developed with input from an interdisciplinary team of...
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Why, this 'Giving Season', we are grateful!
As 2021 comes to a close, we want to take a few moments to reflect on this busy and fruitful year as we ask you to remember PACEs Connection in your year-end giving. Despite this physically and emotionally challenging time, we have so very much for which to be grateful, and we would love to share our gratitude list with you. When we practice gratitude, we’re actually practicing a very PACEs-Connection thing to do: helping our brains. Brain imaging studies, says Dr. Daniel Amen, show that “...
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The Launch of Heal Trauma Global: Culturally Attuned Trauma Training
Being Trauma-Informed means that we are Culturally Attuned. Heal Trauma Global is a sister company to Heal Historical Trauma and was cultivated to fill a wide gap in stress science & trauma training. The trauma-informed movement is beautiful! It's wonderful that as a society we are moving in a direction that honors an individual's past as part of the driving force behind current behaviors. Yet, time and time again, I have attended trainings that are labeled as Trauma-Informed only to...
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Free Webinar about the Brain Science of Opioid Addiction
You are invited to a free webinar on Wednesday, January 12 from 10:30 a.m.- 12:30 p.m. to learn about the brain science of opioid addiction. Register Here Register Here
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Adverse Childhood Experiences, the Brain, and Exercise: How exercise strengthens the brain wounded by toxic childhood stress
Even small amounts of exercise can quickly and dramatically improve mood, brain health, brain function, and the ability to cope with stress, while preparing the brain to rewire the hidden wounds from childhood.
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Re: Adverse Childhood Experiences, the Brain, and Exercise: How exercise strengthens the brain wounded by toxic childhood stress
Sorry no longer working? On Thu, Jan 20, 2022, 18:56 PACEsConnection < communitymanager@acesconnection.com> wrote:
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Building the Movement workshop series
If you haven't already been joining our Building the Movement workshop series, I wanted to personally invite you to join the next free, virtual workshop that aims to provide stakeholders, advocates and practitioners the tools to integrate trauma-informed, resilience-focused and healing-centered approaches and principles into their daily operations. Please join us on Friday, March 4, 2022, from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. ET (10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. PT) as we focus on populations with high prevalence of...
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Nightmares and ACEs: They No Longer Need Rule the Night
Recurring nightmares lead to much needless suffering for survivors of adverse childhood experiences—suffering that goes well beyond disturbed sleep. Five steps help take back the night.
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The Surviving Spirit Newsletter March 2022
Healing the Mind, Body & Spirit Through the Creative Arts, Education & Advocacy Hope, Healing & Help for Trauma, Abuse & Mental Health “ Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars”. Kahlil Gibran The Surviving Spirit Newsletter March 2022 Hi Folks, The latest edition of the Surviving Spirit Newsletter - sharing Hope and Healing Resources for Trauma, Abuse & Mental Health is posted at the website -...