May 2016

A father in county jail is ordered to take a parenting class, but isn’t too enthusiastic about it. As part of the class, he learns about the ACE Study, and does his own ACE score. “Oh my god!” he announces to the class. “I have 7 ACEs.” His mother’s an alcoholic. His dad’s been in and out of jail. He himself started dealing drugs at age 11, and doing drugs at 14. “I’ve got two kids at home experiencing the same things I did,” he says. The light bulb goes on. A few days after a woman who’s...

O.k., we're growing here and that's exciting. If you are willing to share, please do tell me a bit about you and what you are looking for/hoping for and wanting to add or get as it relates to parenting and ACEs. This part of my introduction, the questions, is sincere. I REALLY do want to learn more about you. What are your experiences, questions and needs? How has learning about ACEs impacted you? What are your struggles and your successes as a person or a parent with ACEs? What tools or...

I learned about the CDC-Kaiser Permanente ACE Study and 10- questionnaire survey only two years ago, and it’s fair to say I’ve been obsessed with it ever since. I’m a mother, a trauma survivor, an activist and a writer. For years, I’ve written personal essays , profile pieces and a few research-style papers about post-traumatic stress disorder, developmental trauma and interpersonal violence. Yet, something was missing. In my own recovery, I’d often say, in therapy and to friends and lovers,...