Tagged With "Substance Use"
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Why We Suck (at Self-Soothing & Self-Care): Dr. Dawn O'Malley
Without yoga and coffee, I'm kind of a jerk. These are my personal "puppy uppers and doggie downers" and prevent me from being cranky, quick to cry, and ready for conflict. Coffee and calming make life more manageable. Humans even seem tolerable. Without them I might veer into hating humans for being so needy which is not a great trait for a parent, partner or a professional. Or a self. My partner says coffee and exercise are acts of kindness, service as promote public safety. In other...
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World Premiere: Stress & Resilience: How Toxic Stress Affects Us, and What We Can Do About It [developingchild.harvard.edu]
By Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University, November 13, 2019 When the stress in your life just doesn’t let up, and it feels like you have no support to get through the day—let alone do everything you need to do to be the best parent you can be—it can seem like there’s nothing that can make it better. But there are resources that can help, and this kind of stress—known as “toxic stress”—doesn’t have to define your life. In this video, learn more about what toxic stress is, how it...
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Beyond Paper Tigers is Back!
Back for the second year, Beyond Paper Tigers conference will take place June 28th and 29th in Walla Walla, WA. Featuring Dr. Ken Ginsburg from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia as the keynote speaker, BPT builds on the story of one community and how they've learned that embracing trauma-informed care and implementing ACEs science truly takes a village. Operationalizing the latest in brain science, BPT will provide concrete strategies for intervention with youth, families, and communities...
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Beyond The Preventing Maternal Deaths Act: Implementation And Further Policy Change [Health Affairs]
By Katy B. Kozhimannil, Elaine Hernandez, Dara D. Mendez, Theresa Chapple-McGruder. Feb 4, 2019, Health Affairs Maternal mortality is a death that occurs during pregnancy or within one year postpartum from “a pregnancy complication, a chain of events initiated by pregnancy, or the aggravation of an unrelated condition by the physiologic effects of pregnancy.” In the United States, maternal mortality is a clinical, public health, and social crisis. Between 1990 and 2013, maternal mortality...
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Black Mothers and Our COVID-19 Legacy (Medium)
By Kendra F Montgomery Block, April 21, 2020 I have an urgent appeal from one Black mother to other Black mothers. Here are four things we can do to come out of this pandemic stronger — gleaned from my experience with the Black Child Legacy Campaign . The United States is a hard place to live if you are Black. Period. You can be old or young and Black; male, female or nonbinary and Black; poor or rich and Black. Our common Blackness subjects us to racial bias that negatively impacts our...
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Busy moms, Busy parents - engage your senses - a meditation aid?
Many of us forget that emotions are one of our sensory systems. Like smell, pressure, sight and hearing, it can go offline and need help to reset. When you are tired, hurting, thirsty, hot, your emotions get disregulated too. A reset (or regulating your senses) can help throughout the day. I just stumbled on the concept of meditation aids. If you're a busy mom or dad, consider an app that prompts you to stop and check in. Close your eyes and listen to a bell ring until it disappears. Those...
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CA announces robust perinatal depression prevention for Medi-Cal recipients
Melinda Coates experienced a tumultuous pregnancy. “I was really mentally upset literally from day one (of the pregnancy),” she says. (Melinda Coates is a pseudonym. To protect her and her children’s privacy and safety, we are not using her real name.) Coates had hoped to get counseling last October, when she was seven months pregnant. That’s when she enrolled in the state’s Medi-Cal program, shortly after she and her abusive husband moved to California, “but nobody was able to get me in...
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California unveils ACEs Aware initiative to screen for trauma
Will screening for adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in California be mandatory? No, but it’s recommended. Will there be training for physicians and staff on how to screen? Yes. Who will be reimbursed for screening patients in California? Physicians who serve patients in the state’s Medi-Cal program — for now. For more answers to these and other questions that surfaced during a Dec. 4 webinar introducing Californians to a new statewide initiative, read on. Come January 1, California will...
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Call for Abstracts for NCHDV 2020 conference
The National Conference on Health and Domestic Violence (NCHDV) seeks submissions that highlight research reports, practice innovations, advocacy initiatives, educational advances, and/or community programs that address one or more aspects related to domestic/sexual violence, other forms of violence, and health. The Call for Abstracts (CFA) invites leaders working in the fields of health and domestic/sexual violence to present their work at the 2020 Conference. Submission Deadline: Monday,...
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CMS Issue Brief: Improving Access to Maternal Health Care in Rural Communities
In an ideal maternal health system, all women would have access to comprehensive, seamless medical care with links to behavioral, economic, and social supports. Additionally, they would be engaged with this system before, during, and after pregnancy. Across the United States, many women are not receiving care in this ideal system, and women in rural communities face unique challenges that make it harder for them to reach this ideal or any care at all in some cases. Because maternal health...
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Come Chat with Dr. Claudia M. Gold: An ACE-Informed Pediatrician
Date: July 11th Time: 10 AM PST / 1 PM EST Location: Parenting with ACEs Group , Online Flyer: Attached below. Please share. Dr. Claudia M. Gold has practiced general and behavioral pediatrics for 25 years and specializes in early childhood mental health. She is on the faculty of the University of Massachusetts, Boston Infant-Parent Mental Health program, William James College, and the Austen Riggs Center where she is a Human Development consultant. Dr. Gold is author of the following...
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Consequences of Military Sexual Trauma for Perinatal Mental Health: How Do We Improve Care for Pregnant Veterans with a History of Sexual Trauma?
Sharing our recent editorial which includes a call for TIC in maternity care: "Nevertheless, there are ways in which VA may be able to augment the maternity care pregnant veterans receive to empower and facilitate more trauma-informed approaches to obstetric care. These include investing in programs to ensure peer support, possibly through use of mobile health technology; facilitating collaboration with maternity care providers through provision of handheld/electronic maternity records...
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Deeper than the Deepest Well
We now know that babies DO feel pain, and in fact, they are even more sensitive to it than adults. The study of baby’s experiences in utero and the first two years of life have led to the rise of early developmental trauma as a reality today, especially with the acceptance of implicit memory and that the body remembers.
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Donna Jackson Nakazawa Chats Live with Jane Stevens & You: Nov. 14th
Featured Guest: @Donna Jackson Nakazawa Topic: Well-Being, Self-Care & ACEs Date: November 14th, 2017 Time: 10 AM PST / 1 PM EST Where: Here / Chats Donna Jackson Nakazawa is an winning researcher, writer and public speaker on health and family issues. She explores the intersection between neuroscience, immunology, and the deepest inner workings of the human heart. Her most recent book, Childhood Disrupted: How Your Biography Becomes Your Biology, and How You Can Heal , examines...
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Dr. Gabor Maté & Full-Potential Parenting, Even When It Is Hard
Note: Allison Morris had dozens of experts in her summit series through Full-Potential Parenting. I took notes only on those by Donna Jackson Nakazawa , Gabe Maté and Sebern Fisher (coming later this month). Though the audios are no longer available, for free, they can be purchased for $100. or less (depending on the year), here. Forgive me for sounding like an advertisement, I don't know Allison personally. I am a huge fan of all parent-led resources and wish I discovered this series...
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Employer Behavioral Health Programs Need Opioid, Suicide Focus [Health Payer Intelligence]
Most employers plan to highlight behavioral and mental health in the future, but they will need to address opioid abuse and suicide to succeed. April 02, 2019 - Seventy percent of employers are either currently addressing or plan to address behavioral health over the next few years, according to a recent survey from Willis Towers Watson, but many of these initiatives fail to focus strongly on opioid abuse and suicide prevention. Programs that do not offer enough support for employees at risk...
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Facing Postpartum Depression: The Honesty, Courage and Support It Takes to Seek Help for PPD
“Nobody would believe what an effort it is to do what little I am able” – Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the Yellow Wallpaper, 1892 It is wonderful to see the birth of a child greeted with warm enthusiasm and support. We celebrate the joy of a growing family, and the excitement of a new life. Relatives and friends often provide gifts and extra help. But for some new moms, motherhood brings on many complex emotions besides the happy ones. While we may greet a new baby with happiness and delight –...
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Fairness for Breastfeeding Mothers Act of 2019 Signed Into Law [Cal WIC]
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fairness For Breastfeeding Mothers Act of 2019’’ A bill just signed into law by President Trump will require federal buildings that are open to the public and have public restrooms to also have designated lactation rooms for breastfeeding. The rooms will be available for use by members of the public as well as federal employees. The Fairness for Breastfeeding Mothers Act ( H.R. 866 ) was sponsored in the House by Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and...
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Family First Scholarships for 21st Annual Families and Fathers Conference
21st Annual Families and Fathers National Conference February 24-27, 2020 Hilton Los Angeles Airport 5711 West Century Boulevard Los Angeles, California 90045 I am honored to announce The Family First Scholarship supported by the Annie E. Casey Foundation as a Title Sponsor and State of California First 5 as a Co-Sponsor for the 21 st Annual Families and Fathers Conference, Next Level 2020! the terms "putting family first" and "it takes a village to raise a child" parallels with why we have...
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Family Resilience And Connection Promote Flourishing Among US Children, Even Amid Adversity (www.healthaffairs.org)
Abstract below and link to open access article written by Christina D. Bethell , Nangerel Gombojav , and Robert C. Whitaker and published in Health Affairs Link to open access article written by Christina D. Bethell , Nangerel Gombojav , and Robert C. Whitaker .
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Fathers & ACEs with Trauma Dad & Father's Uplift CEO: Tuesday, September 12th
What supports exist to "uplift" fathers who have survived abandonment, abuse or torture as children? Where can men go to discuss the joys, struggles and issues of being a father with ACEs? Where are the men who face hard, heavy and complicated realities to make life easier and lighter for all who come after? We found two of them and they will be the featured guests in the next Parenting with ACEs chat . Meet Charles Clayton Daniels, Jr. of Father's Uplift and "Trauma Dad" Byron Hamel. Both...
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Foster Care Entries for Parental Drug Use Surge [usnews.com]
By Katelyn Newman, US News & World Report, July 15, 2019. INCIDENTS OF CHILDREN entering America's foster system as a result of their parents' drug use have surged since 2000, new research shows, coinciding with the country's recent opioid crisis. Using case data from the federally mandated Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System, researchers from Cornell and Harvard universities found that 1,162,668 – or nearly 24% – of 4,972,911 entries of children into foster care...
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FREE Webinar Series - register now for first webinar on Fri 2-10-19
2019 Webinar Series Join us for a FREE webinar series deepening our understanding of specialized issues and populations in perinatal mental health! Designed for care providers who work with new families, join us as we learn about some of the complex issues impacting young families. The virtual trainings will take place quarterly on Fridays from 12-1pm (PST). The series is free to all but prior registration is required. Login information for each session will be provided upon registration.
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From Trauma-Informed to Asset-Informed Care in Early Childhood [brookings.edu]
By Ellen Galinsky, Brookings Institute, October 23, 2019 The focus on “toxic stress,” ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences), and trauma-informed care have been game-changers in the field of early childhood development. They have helped us recognize the symptoms of trauma, provide appropriate assistance to children, and understand that prolonged adversity in the absence of nurturing relationships can derail a child’s healthy development. Just look at the media’s and the public’s reaction to...
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From Treatment to Healing: Inquiry and Response to Recent and Past Trauma in Adult Health Care [Institute of Women's Health]
Abstract: In 2015, a national working group developed and published a conceptual framework for trauma-informed primary care (Machtinger, Cuca, Khanna, Dawson-Rose, & Kimberg, 2015). Since that publication, there has been increasing recognition that childhood and adult trauma underlie and perpetuate many physical and behavioral health conditions seen in health care settings and that addressing trauma could fundamentally improve the experience and efficacy of care for both patients and...
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H.R. 4215 Excellence in Maternal 5 Health Act of 2019
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Introduced in House (08/30/2019) Mr. Bucshon (for himself, Mr. Carson of Indiana, Mr. Burgess , Mr. Bilirakis , Mrs. Brooks of Indiana, Ms. Herrera Beutler , Mr. Long , Mrs. McBath , and Mr. Walden ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To improve maternal health care quality, to improve the training of health care professionals to reduce or prevent discrimination in certain health care services, to...
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Health Benefits of California’s Paid Leave Policy Out of Reach for Black Women [LA Sentinel]
By Tina McKinnor and Ashely Smith, June 13, 2019, LA Sentinel When you type “maternity leave” into Google images, White women dominate the search results. That is not a mistake. The algorithm is a reflection of who has been centered in policy conversations and benefited from paid family leave policies. We know personally: Black women in California are most in need of an inclusive paid family leave program, but least likely to have it. We come from different backgrounds. Tina worked for...
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Hearing "trauma-informed" during Dr. Ford's testimony gives me some hope
All politics aside, the testimony delivered by Dr. Christine Blazy Ford is both triggering and hopeful. Triggering for obvious reasons. Hopeful because ACEs science was so clearly woven to the testimony. Dr. Ford brought the neurobiology of sexual assault into her description regarding how her brain and body responded to trauma. I find listening this testimony triggering, however, I am holding onto the silver-lining is that trauma science may be elevated to a national platform. As difficult...
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Home Gun Safety Queries in Well-Child Visits [jamanetwork.com]
By Carole H. Stipelman, Greg Stoddard, Kyle Bata, et al., JAMA Pediatrics, October 28, 2019 Firearms are a leading cause of death in US children, and the rate of suicide by firearms in people aged 10 to 19 years has increased since 2008.1 In the United States, 4.6 million children (approximately 7%) live in households with at least 1 gun that is stored loaded and unlocked.2 Safe storage of guns and ammunition may decrease the occurrence of self-inflicted or unintentional firearm injury to...
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Re: How a famous hospital turned around its low rate of screening moms for depression [CenterForHealthJournalism.org]
I commend Cedars Sinai for the incredible work they are doing and we can all learn from successful models that screen, refer, diagnose and link to services. We need to learn from them and look closely at all the pieces they put in place to make it work because it can work! BUT.... One of my biggest concerns about proposed legislation which requires an unfunded mandate for screening is this...There has been and continues to be a HUGE shortage in system capacity to refer, diagnosis, treat and...
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Re: What if?
yes please Jane! Colorado did a huge statewide project and recommended it, but wouldn't it be great to connect us all doing this work?! Another great examples of ACEs connection!
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Re: A good New Year's Resolution: Moms need to remember themselves.
So beautiful. Thanks Anna. This is real. Incredible intergenerational relationship role modeling here. I think about these issues all the time as me, my parents, and my husband "pass the baby." It's definitely worth the effort to create special time together. I feel like Willow just verbalized what my daughter (almost 3) would if she could. I only hope me and my mom will be able to create these types of spaces for her to communicate and build with us!
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Re: Putting it together - Mental Health Consequences and ACEs - Presentation on 1/13/16 in Oakland!
Hi Barbara - it's not just for Kaiser and yes, I am going! There are at least two of us coming from Yolo County!! If you like, you could ride down with us...park your car in Davis?
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2020 Sex and Perinatal Mental Health Conference
Sex & Perinatal Mental Health Conference on January 13th and 14th, 2020 at The California Endowment. This dynamic training will delve into areas such as postpartum sex, birth trauma, cultural attitudes about sex, gender and sexuality, gender affirming care, personal stories and more. We have an amazing lineup of speakers and wanted to introduce you to a few over the next couple of weeks. Two day training that will explore how sex and sexuality impact and interact with mental health...
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A Brief Overview of Post-Partum Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (mathewsopenaccess.com)
Note: Parenting with ACEs can present us with extra challenges. Being pregnant, giving birth and breastfeeding can all be difficult for many of us. The stresses all parents experience can be compounded depending on our own emotional and physical well-being and the support we have (emotional, financial, family, community). In addition, we might have to consider thing such as going on, staying on or going off of drugs for some period of time during and following pregnancy. We don't talk a lot...
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A call to action for public health nurses during the COVID‐19 pandemic (Wiley Online Library)
Joyce K. Edmonds PhD, MPH, RN , Shawn M. Kneipp PhD , Lisa Campbell DNP . First published: 12 April 2020. https://doi.org/10.1111/phn.12733 Public health nurses (PHNs) are on the frontline of the public health crisis the world now knows as the COVID‐19 pandemic. They serve on mobile strike teams investigating case‐contacts, deliver education on self‐isolation and quarantine through hotlines and home visits, and interpret the rapidly shifting guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and...
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A Conversation with Nadine Burke Harris: How Should Pediatricians Address Childhood Adversity?
Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris is a masterful storyteller. I learned in a conversation with her at Wheelock College before her presentation for the Brookline, MA organization Steps to Success , that before she decided to become doctor, Dr. Burke Harris wanted to be an author. Only after the smashing success of her TED talk: How childhood trauma affects health across a lifetime , when she was approached by a literary agent, did she find her way to writing. Her newly released book The...
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A Message from the President of the Illinois Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Dear Illinois ACE Connection members, Children and families from all demographic and socioeconomic backgrounds in Illinois experience trauma, adversity, and chronic stress. Social determinants such as where we live, work, and play, can further exacerbate positive or negative physical, emotional, and behavioral health issues. The critical factor that determines if a child, family, and/or community can manage trauma, adversity, and chronic stress successfully is resilience : the process by...
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ACE-Aha Moments & Parenting: Meet Aprel Phelps Downey
Aprel Phelps Downey What was your ACEs Aha moment? When did you first hear about ACEs and what impact did/does it have on you? How do ACEs impact you as a parent? How is your parenting impacted by past trauma? What’s been most helpful to you as a parent parenting with ACEs? What’s been most challenging for you as a parent parenting with ACEs? What has parenting taught you? What have you learned? How do you manage complex family relationships? What inspires/encourages and helps you? I know...
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ACEs Research Corner — November 2019
[Editor's note: Dr. Harise Stein at Stanford University edits a web site -- abuseresearch.info -- that focuses on the health effects of abuse, and includes research articles on ACEs. Every month, she's posting the summaries of the abstracts and links to research articles that address only ACEs. Thank you, Harise!! -- Jane Stevens] Jackson DB, Chilton M, Johnson KR, Vaughn MG. Adverse Childhood Experiences and Household Food Insecurity. Am J Prev Med. 2019 Nov;57(5):667-674. PMID: 31522923...
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ACOG Article June 2019 Recorded Diagnoses of Depression During Delivery Hospitalizations in the US 2000 to 2015. [ACOG Green Journal]
The U.S. rate of depressive disorders recorded during delivery hospitalizations increased from 4.1 diagnoses per 1,000 hospitalizations in 2000 to 28. 7 in 2015. Rates significantly increased in 27 of the 28 states. ACOG Green Journal link to article :
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Addicts Among Us - a hopeful documentary about ACEs and addiction in Humboldt County, California (YouTube Video)
Addicts Among Us is a hour-long documentary investigating the connection between childhood trauma in Humboldt County and the region’s skyrocketing addiction rates. Addiction experts have zeroed in on adverse childhood experiences as a cause for addictive behavior. By examining local lives and stories, KEET examines this connection and efforts in the community to see this addressed. The associate producer of the video, James Faulk - one of the central interviewees of the film - attended First...
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Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study: Beyond Screening in Pediatrics
The evidence is clear. When bad things happen to us as young children, we are at significantly increased risk for not only mental health problems, but also a wide range of physical health problems including asthma, heart disease, and even early death. These "bad things" all involve disruptions in caregiving relationships. A national movement directed at screening for ACEs in pediatric practices has emerged from this work. My suggestion that the implication of the Adverse Childhood...
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Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)…Why is Hugging Sooo Very Critical?
"The reality of my own “adverse childhood experiences” is just catching up with me at age 73. My guess is I’m not alone."
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All hands on deck (from a distance): remote care for traumatized moms and babies
Dear colleague, Coronavirus is forcing providers and allied professionals serving mothers and babies to make unprecedented decisions. Should pregnant women needing care go through our hospital quarantine entrance? Should moms deliver without partners, family or doulas present? Be sent home early before key screenings or jaundice treatment are completed? To make matters worse, our systems aren't ready for basic remote care of mothers and infants now "socially distanced". Prenatal, post-partum...
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Re: Opioid exposed Newborns - are we missing the mark and forgetting about MOM?
Hi Rick - Thanks so much for reading and commenting! I am in awe of your resilience. You have survived a lot. The maternal infant dyad as a concept is very common in public health and those of us who specialize in Maternal Child & Adolescent Health (MCAH). There are organizations at the federal level who focus on this population as an opportunity for prevention and early intervention! Check out ACMHP and Maternal Child Health Bureau. Science, particularly research in epigenetics is...
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Re: When Your Kid is Too Good for Brené Brown
Thank you for your honest look at parenting and being brave enough to share them with us on ACN!
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Re: When Your Kid is Too Good for Brené Brown
Thanks Karen!!!! We don't have to have it all figured out from the get go, as parents, right? That's always news to me and a relief. And I'm so glad when I read writing of others that's about the learning curve that it helps me offer up my own less than moments, too. Plus, there is just such sweetness in some of what we learn and see and discover while parenting. That feels so important, too, and that Parenting with ACEs isn't only challenging. Cis
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Re: Learning To Care For My Newborn Was A Humbling Experience [npr.org]
Becoming a parent is a humbling experience - so much more incredible and complicated than I ever imagined. New parents need a circle of support - as often happens in other countries. And, in the US we need maternity leave policies that support families. Families that feel supported report feeling less stressed. Reduced stress is linked to decreased risk for child abuse. Lovingly caring for an infant that is awake and crying for nearly 48 hours is stressful! let's find ways to support...
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Re: Announcing the Parenting with ACEs Monthly Chat Series!
Cissy - What fantastic featured guests you have lined up for what looks like a deep and well rounded series of chats. Thank you for connecting all of us on the ACEs Connection Network to the opportunity to learn more from these ACEs leaders.