Tagged With "Dare To Share Your Untold Story"
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A New Documentary About Breaking the Cycle of Trauma is Launching This Fall!
We are thrilled to announce the premiere of Wrestling Ghosts , a documentary about breaking the cycle of trauma, at the LA Film festival on Sept. 27th. “Incredible. Haunting and strange and beautiful and incredibly moving.” -Dan Cogan, Founder Impact Partners Wrestling Ghosts follows the epic inner journey of Kim, a young mother who, over two heartbreaking and inspiring years, battles the traumas from her past in order to create a new present and future for her and her family. In this...
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A New Word to Help Children and Adults with High ACEs: Lasticity
We can talk about grit, resilience and mindsets all we want. These approaches, while useful in a limited way, operate off a deficit model. There is something wrong in individuals that needs to be fixed -- repaired. And, there is a built in assumption that those who have high ACEs can return to the status quo ante -- they can bounce back. But, these are flawed arguments and here's why. Those with high ACEs are forever changed; they cannot bounce back. (There are neurological reasons among...
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A song of acceptance
Hello my musical friends. A cover tune to share, a favorite of mine, a song of acceptance, for me, it asks the question, will you take me for who I am? For those who have encountered rough times in life, acceptance is not always part of the landscape. Take care, Michael. Live Performance of "If I Were A Carpenter" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLJzSKBvb2U
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Anna, Age Eight: The data-driven prevention of childhood trauma and maltreatment
ENDING AN EPIDEMIC OF CHILDHOOD TRAUMA REQUIRES COURAGE, COMPASSION AND A PLAN. ANNA, AGE EIGHT PROVIDES THE SOLUTION. NEW BOOK ANNA AGE EIGHT: THE DATA-DRIVEN PREVENTION OF CHILDHOOD TRAUMA AND MALTREATMENT By Katherine Ortega Courtney, PhD and Dominic Cappello If one in eight children suffered from an unknown but debilitating virus, outrage would boil, editorials would harangue public officials, and agencies would mobilize to counter the threat. The CDC would scramble resources to develop...
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[Announcement] 3 Part-Series on ACEs from "Terrible, Thanks for Asking" (Podcast) [ttfa.org]
Hosted By Nora McInerny, Terrible, Thanks for Asking, October 28 2019 'Terrible, Thanks for Asking' the award winning podcast hosted by Nora McInerny and produced by American Public Media (AMP), challenges real people to candidly discuss their feelings. Beginning November 5, 2019 'Terrible, Thanks for Asking' will be asking guests to share the experiences and challenges they encountered while growing up with ACEs. With the knowledge that adversity and trauma has harmful implications later in...
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Beyond Silence Speaks up for Mental Health (29 minutes documentary - National Council of Behavioral Health)
The National Council, in partnership with the Be Vocal: Speak Up for Mental Health initiative recently released Beyond Silence, a new Be Vocal documentary. The film follows three people who share one common experience—their lives have been transformed by speaking up and breaking through the silence often associated with mental illness. Watch the film and find more information, tools and online resources for #BeVocalSpeakUp here . About the Documentary Meet Jeff, Lauren and Lloyd, three...
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Book Review: Juvie Talk: Unlocking the Language of Juvenile Justice [JJIE.org]
Juvie Talk: Unlocking the Language of Juvenile Justice Richard Ross Richard Ross Photography 2016 271 pages “Juvie Talk” is a visual diary of juvenile justice, taking the reader on a journey to meet young people across the country who share their stories with a startling and refreshing open and honest dialogue. They speak of their parents, their siblings, their foster homes, their struggles and experiences, often with violence, abuse and drugs. They speak of their ambitions, their schooling,...
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Book Review: Juvie Talk: Unlocking the Language of Juvenile Justice [JJIE.org]
Juvie Talk: Unlocking the Language of Juvenile Justice Richard Ross Richard Ross Photography 2016 271 pages “Juvie Talk” is a visual diary of juvenile justice, taking the reader on a journey to meet young people across the country who share their stories with a startling and refreshing open and honest dialogue. They speak of their parents, their siblings, their foster homes, their struggles and experiences, often with violence, abuse and drugs. They speak of their ambitions, their schooling,...
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Broken Places after Screening Summary & Resources
Almost 2,500 ACEs Connection members signed up to watch the Broken Places documentary online on March 21st, which was made available for Vimeo streaming all day. We are grateful to KPJR Films for sharing this documentary and helping make this event happen (special thanks for the hard work of @lynn waymer, Keely Badger, @Gail Kennedy, and @Carey Sipp. Following the event, we had a one hour chat with featured guests and many of you have asked...
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Dr. Claudia Gold: Empathy & Listening as ACE-Informed Practice
"You are absolutely not doomed from having ACEs."
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Dr. Dan Siegel: What Hearing “Yes” Does to Your Child’s Brain (mindful.org)
Yes is more than a word. It’s a state of being, of relating, and a gateway to curiosity, growth, and resilience, according to internationally recognized educator, neuropsychiatrist, and bestselling author Dr. Dan Siegel. He and co-author Tina Payne Bryson have written a new book that offers parents everywhere a roadmap for developing and growing their child’s inner spark and internal compass to guide them throughout their lives. It’s called, “ YES Brain: How to Cultivate Courage, Curiosity,...
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Dr. Gabor Mate speaking at ACEs to Assets in Scotland June 11, 2019 (https://www.youtube.com)
The latest gift from @ACEAwareNation #ACEsToAssets conference. @DrGaborMate talking about self-regulation, self-acceptance, self-healing, forgiveness, my favourite #AliceMiller, and good ways to intervene for child welfare. Gems of wisdom. So thankful for the access generously provided for those of us unable to attend in person.
My biggest take aways: encouragement to "Keep doing what you're doing..." and validation that historical "evil is an emanation of the traumatized human unconscious."
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Finding My Way Back
Have you ever felt you have painted yourself into a corner? Better stated perhaps, find yourself standing in the crosshairs of your own truth. Well, that’s me and here we are. In the last year, I have been going through a rebranding process, still the same heart, still the same mission, but a tweak to messaging and language so it was clear what the work was ultimately about. Simultaneously, I have been stewarding the completion of my book, my own story. Now, here I sit ready to pull the...
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Ground-breaking Bible study on trauma-informed ministry/ACEs now available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble
I've been busy trying to make the study as accessible and available to those interested in sharing trauma-informed principles within their churches and fellowships, and I am pleased to announce a few new developments: First, the study is available as an e-book on both Amazon and Barnes and Noble. In fact, to celebrate the release of the book on Barnes and Noble, you can get the study for half price through June 15. Just use the code BNPCHRIS50) at check out! Click HERE to go directly to the...
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Healing Justice: Holistic Self-Care for Change Makers
Announcing the publication of a new book, Healing Justice: Holistic Self-Care for Change Makers , published this month by Oxford University Press. Here's a brief description: "In the context of global oppression, intergenerational trauma, burnout, and public services retrenchment, this book offers a framework, critical inquiries, case studies, and practices for social workers, counselors, activists, and other helping professionals. Drawing from the East-West modalities of mindfulness and...
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Healing the Wound That Won't Heal: the Reality of Trauma
“Healing the Wound That Won’t Heal: the Reality of Trauma.” In this book I share my in-depth work to understand the psychology and neurobiology regarding trauma and neglect in the first two years of life. My father was suffering extreme shell-shock due to his WWII mission to bomb the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. He was too ill to care for himself: yet, I was left with him everyday as my mother worked as a waitress. When I was thirteen-months-old, he died on the floor in front of my...
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Healing Your Attachment Wounds: How to Create Deep and Lasting Intimate Relationships (soundstrue.com)
As a pioneer (Expert Diane Poole Heller, PhD) in bringing the fields of Attachment theory and trauma resolution together in radically new ways, I am thrilled to announce the launch of my new six audio-CD set, Healing Your Attachment Wounds: How to Create Deep and Lasting Intimate Relationships , published by Sounds True. For those who don’t know me, I'm a psychotherapist specializing in trauma recovery and the healing of early Attachment wounds, specifically how they later affect our adult...
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Interview with Hilary Jacobs Hendel
I first came across Hilary Jacobs Hendel’s work when I read a New York Times article in which Hendel, a practicing psychotherapist and writer, described the “Change Triangle,” an upside down triangle that explains how emotions work. The Change Triangle is also a roadmap that teaches us how we can use emotions as guides to both heal trauma and attain a more vital and calm state of being. As a follower of Hendel’s blog—and an avid user of the Change Triangle to understand my own inner...
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It's Not Always Depression was the Winner of the 2018 Best Book Award in the Mental Health/Psychology Category
To prevent and treat trauma, we all benefit from receiving a basic education in how emotions work in the mind and body. Sadly, we don't get this education in our formal schooling. So we must take it upon ourselves to learn.
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Judging Me, by Mary Elizabeth Bullock
Last week I had the pleasure of attending Day 1 of the CAMFT "Advancing the Art and Science of Psychotherapy" conference in Orange County, where I got to hear Gabor Mate and Vincent Felitti weigh in on the impact of ACEs. What a singular experience to hear this dynamic duo on stage together! (My husband remarked that I was "lit up like a Christmas tree" when I got home that night.) While discussing the meaning of "resilience," Dr. Felitti recommended the book Judging Me, by Mary Elizabeth...
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Listening to Killers: Bringing Developmental Psychology into the Courtroom in Murder Cases
Only 1/1000 have an ACE score of 9 or 10. In his new book, James Garbarino, shows us how we as society create killers through overwhelming ACEs . He is empathetic and paints a portrait of the reality most killers are...
Ask the Community
Jemma's Journey
This is a review from the Like Minds Like Mine newsletter: Mt. Maunganui (New Zealand) psychologist Janet Peters, who has been involved with the New Zealand Mental Health Foundation's Like Minds Like Mine programme for over...
Ask the Community
Supporting and Educating Traumatized Students: A Guide for School-Based Professionals
Greetings everyone. I'm new to this site, although thought I would share a book I recently co-edited that has only served to increase my interest in supporting students with ACEs, with particular emphasis on providing those supports within schools....
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The Archaeology of Mind: Neuroevolutionary Origins of Human Emotions (Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology) Hardcover – September 17, 2012 by Jaak Panksepp and Lucy Biven
A look at the seven emotional systems of the brain by the researcher who discovered them. What makes us happy? What makes us sad? How do we come to feel a sense of enthusiasm? What fills us with lust, anger, fear, or tenderness? Traditional behavioral...
Ask the Community
The Trauma of Everyday Life by Epstein (2013)
"Trauma does not just happen to a few unlucky people; it is the bedrock of our psychology. Death and illness touch us all, but even the everyday sufferings of loneliness and fear are traumatic. In The Trauma of Everyday Life renowned psychiatrist and...
Ask the Community
Workbook for Adults Caring for Children Who Have Experienced Trauma
Greetings - A colleague invited me to jump in here and mention my own book as a resource for folks involved in this community. My name is Sue Badeau, I live in Philadelphia and have been involved in the Trauma community for many years including the National Child Traumatic Stress Network Advisory board for a decade and worked with Multiplying Connections locally for several years helping to develop curriculum and training. My daughter (and artist) and I have created a book entitled "Building...
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The implicit bias of, “Mental Illness” and “mentally ill”, a lexicon of hurt.
How can we heal from the implicit bias of “ Mental Illness ” and “ mentally ill ”? I hear these words and it sounds like fingernails scraping down the chalkboard. “ The stain of dehumanization colors the mind, body and spirit and it is not so easily washed away.” - Michael Skinner Recently I read a blog post at the ACEsConnection website, “Erasing My ACES” by Sirena Wheeler. It was posted on April, 19, 2020. It struck a chord with me, many in fact and it put me on a spiral down memory lane.
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The New Science of Empathy and Empath (soundstrue.com)
Empathy doesn't make you a sentimental softy without discernment. It allows you to keep your heart open to foster tolerance and understanding. In my new book The Empath's Survival Guide , I discuss the following intriguing scientific explanations of empathy and empaths. These will help us more deeply understand the power of empathy so we can utilize and honor it in our lives. The Mirror Neuron System Researchers have discovered a specialized group of brain cells that are responsible for...
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The Relentless School Nurse: Coronavirus a Book for Children
I am excited to share this children's book that explains the coronavirus to children! Thank you to Donna Gaffney for sending this my way! Retrieved from: https://nosycrow.com/blog/released-today-free-information-book-explaining-coronavirus-children-illustrated-gruffalo-illustrator-axel-scheffler/ The book answers key questions in simple language appropriate for 5 to 9-year-olds: • What is the coronavirus? • How do you catch the coronavirus? • What happens if you catch the coronavirus? • Why...
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The Relentless School Nurse: Healing Our Ghosts Podcast Has Launched
Healing our Ghosts is a new podcast by Ana Joanes, filmmaker and creative spirit who brought us Wrestling Ghosts, a groundbreaking documentary about parenting with ACEs. This new podcast has a unique vision: The premiere episode of Healing Our Ghosts is with one of my all time favorite people, Cissy White. She is a brilliant writer, who speaks nationally about the impact of trauma and her healing journey. Cissy believes that trauma survivors must be leading this work and that it is not...
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The Relentless School Nurse: "Unless Someone Like you Cares a Whole Awful Lot, Nothing is Going to get Better. It's Not." - Dr. Seuss
The opening quote in Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha's gripping book, What The Eyes Don't See, struck me right in the heart: "Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." so says Dr. Suess. Caring is something that may be in short supply during our current political climate. Grappling with caring, too much or too little is worth a moment of self-reflection. We have to know what we care about, and lead with our "why," in order to make an impact. Dr. Mona...
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The Soulful Journey of Recovery is out TODAY!!!
A groundbreaking new book from the publisher of the New York Times bestseller Adult Children of Alcoholics …The book that started it all! "Tian Dayton picks up where Janet Woititz author of Adult Children of Alcoholics left off…..for those who have grown up in a family with addiction, mental illness, or other adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), the heartache and pain doesn’t end when they grow up and leave home. The legacy can last a lifetime and spread to generations unseen. In The...
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The Surviving Spirit Newsletter May 2020
Hi Folks, The May edition of the Surviving Spirit Newsletter is posted at the website - http://newsletters.survivingspirit.com/index.php or PDF - http://newsletters.survivingspirit.com/pdfs/2020-05-The_Surviving_Spirit_Newsletter_May_2020.pdf To sign up for an e-mail copy, please write to me @ mikeskinner@comcast.net or sign up @ Website via Contact Us, Thanks! Michael . “ Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much.” - Helen Keller The Surviving Spirit Newsletter May 2020 – please...
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Trauma-informed Healthcare Approaches: A Guide for Primary Care
Our recently published book, Trauma-informed Healthcare Approaches was written to share basic principles of trauma-informed care and ACEs science with general medical practitioners and administrators. As the recent #METOO movement has demonstrated, interpersonal trauma is widespread. A growing literature has demonstrated the impact of traumatic experiences on mental, physical health and wellbeing. Trauma survivors commonly access healthcare but their histories and needs are commonly...
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UPDATED Information Regarding Broken Places, Cracked Up, Paper Tigers & Resilience: Hosting a Film Screening to Start or Grow an ACEs Initiative: How-to Guide
Movie screenings of documentaries, such as Paper Tigers or Resilience are popular ways to introduce communities to ACEs science. Cissy White provides details about how to put on a screening event.
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Updating Our Resources - Will You Help?
When it comes to finding tools to help you properly address trauma within the family system, what is the single greatest challenge or frustration you’ve been struggling with?
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Why I believe Gregory Williams, and his book, Shattered By The Darkness, will help save lives and revolutionize healthcare.
When you first hear about it, it sounds unlikely, fact that something that happened to someone in utero, at the age of two months, or four years, or any time in childhood, is what is killing them as an adult, or making them want to die, or making them want to hurt themselves or others. Yet the connection between childhood trauma and adult disease, mental illness, addiction, suicide, violence – most all of society’s ills – is as irrefutable as the myriad truths revealed about it in the...
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Why We Shouldn’t Shield Children From Darkness (www.time.com) & Note
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New Book: Crazy Was All I Ever Knew By Alice M. Kenny (pseudonym)
To this day, I still think of my childhood home as "the crazy house." Like me, millions of adult Americans are living with the effects of the precarious childhoods they experienced as offspring of mentally ill parents. If you are one of them, you can no doubt relate to my book. As a child, you most likely lived in a crazy house of your own. As an adult, you’ve probably retained and may even relive memories of your tumultuous upbringing. Crazy Was All I Ever Knew combines memoir with...
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New book explores storytelling and resilience.
“Run,” he would shout. On two legs, I couldn’t match the speed of a terrified calf or steer, but I was plenty fast, especially in a sprint, so I’d launch myself across the gravel in front of our trailer while my father stood about ten yards behind me twirling his rope.
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New book release “The Trauma Banquet”: The truth about how to overcome adversity
I am a Professor of Clinical Psychology at The University of Queensland, Australia. I recently released my memoir “The Trauma Banquet”. In this book I share about my ACEs and how I learnt to be resilient in the context of their enduring pervasive echoes. I have been practicing psychology for almost 40 years and I have engaged thousands of clients in psychotherapy. As a full professor I have also been teaching psychology and conducting research, which has focused on building resilience in the...
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Parenting through the Storm Book Review
Parenting Through the Storm: Find Help, Hope, and Strength When Your Child Has Psychological Problems , is written by Ann Douglas. The author, a member of this group and network , has a warm, open and honest tone. She's a parent and gets that parents and kids are sometimes or even often scared, struggling and in crisis. She knows. She writes about the time she almost lost her daughter, thirteen at the time, to death by suicide. Her daughter was vomiting and sleeping, restlessly, all night...
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Peer Program Uses Writing as a Tool for Trauma Recovery
For the past several years, a small yet dedicated group of writers has gathered at Pathway’s Peer Support Program in Ashland, Ohio to explore ways to use writing for overcoming life’s challenges, healing from trauma and adversity and building social connections with others. Tapestry of Our Lives is the result of their hard work. The writings in this anthology are rooted in adverse life experiences and childhood trauma, such as physical, sexual or psychological abuse or severe neglect.
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Playing for Their Lives: The Global El Sistema Movement for Social Change Through Music (ssir.org)
In the world’s happiest country, we encountered one of the world’s most challenging Sistema environments. The United Nations World Happiness Report has ranked Denmark the happiest nation on earth, using internationally agreed-upon measures—of wealth, health, social welfare, generosity, and freedom—to rate happiness in 150 countries . Just outside of Aarhus, the Gellerup district is the largest housing project and the poorest neighborhood in Denmark. Fully 88 percent of its population is...
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QUEST Movie: A Benefit for the Coalition on Homelessness
Quest-The Truth Always Rises" is an important film about trauma, love, and resilience. I know the film maker of Quest, and I know how passionate he is to help people understand about Adverse Childhood Experiences and what can happen when one person believes in you. Santiago Rizzo tells a compelling story of his childhood that all should see. His passion is contagious, and his willingness to speak about trauma, the power of love, and the need for honesty is powerful. I suggest folks go and...
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Self-Compassion for Teens
With teens today facing unprecedented levels of toxic stress, self-compassion is one way to nurture inner wisdom, promote self-kindness, and self-heal. Christopher Germer, author of the Mindful Path to Self-Compassion says my forthcoming book, Self-Compassion for Teens: 129 Activities & Practices to Cultivate Kindness is "just the ticket for parents, teachers, and counselors who know the burdens of modern teens and want to help." Tara Brach, author of True Refuge and Radical Acceptance...
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Sex Trafficking Prevention: A Trauma-Informed Approach for Parents and Professionals (Book Resource)
Just a quick post to share this book resource I heard about this morning from Beth Grady . The author is Savannah J. Sanders and here's a bit more about her and this book, from Amazon (where I've just ordered my own copy): Drawing from her own experience being trafficked plus her insights gained from years of advocacy and anti-trafficking work, the author speaks directly not only of the realities of trafficking that occur in our own communities but also the solutions that we can all be a...
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Singing My Song
My dream is to create a space which feels safe, yet empowering; offering a hand to hold along the road of recovery.
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Supernormal: The Untold Story of Adversity and Resilience by Meg Jay
From description on Amazon page for book: Clinical psychologist and author of The Defining Decade, Meg Jay takes us into the world of the supernormal: those who soar to unexpected heights after childhood adversity. Whether it is the loss of a parent to death or divorce; bullying; alcoholism or drug abuse in the home; mental illness in a parent or a sibling; neglect; emotional, physical or sexual abuse; having a parent in jail; or growing up alongside domestic violence, nearly 75% of us...