Blog

One of the best articles I've read in a while. A couple of great take-aways... "Resilient children saw themselves as the orchestrators of their own fates." "Do you succomb or do you surmount?" https://www.newyorker.com/science/maria-konnikova/the-secret-formula-for-resilience

On the 27th and 28th of November, 60 individuals representing a variety of systems and services across New Hanover County were trained in a one-day training of the Community Resiliency Model (CRM). Lauren Clark and Jesse Hardin of Community Care of the Lower Cape Fear conducted the training that was funded by SEAHEC and Smart Start of New Hanover County. Carousel Center provided refreshments and lunch for the groups. The goal is for 30 of those receiving this one day training to move on to...

Here is a great article about the secondary stress that providers in the schools experience, and some ideas on things to do to help. https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/52281/secondary-traumatic-stress-for-educators-understanding-and-mitigating-the-effects

Where does trauma show up? Everywhere. But these days, it is showing up in larger and larger numbers of children at our hospital Emergency Rooms.

Sometimes talking about ACEs can be overwhelming! It can make one feel hopeless and helpless. We believe teaching healthy coping skills and changing our community to be more trauma-informed will make a difference for children. Here are some great encouraging things to say to children, (borrowed from the Richmond, VA Resilience Network), to build their feelings of capability.

As our five sub-committees explore the topic of provider wellness, I wanted to highlight some work of local experts working on this topic. Lisa Brooks, MSW, LCSW and Ashley Swinson, LCSW will be keynote presenters at the NC NASW Conference in Asheville in November. They will be presenting a Provider Sustainability Track at the 2-day conference as well, addressing the issue of social worker burnout. It's not too late to sign up for this conference! https://www.naswnc.org/page/61

Avis and her brother, Bruce, have seen some hard knocks in their lives. At 60, she's his sole caretaker. She's taught school, worked as a receptionist, always worked, or wanted to work. Since she started caring for her brother, full-time work has seemed hard to find. He was born with autism 51 years ago. They share her little house in Pamlico County, North Carolina, where she now hopes to be called in to substitute teach, and he looks forward to her home cooked meals. Their lives revolve...

Many people in our community are finding ways to help the children cope after Hurricane Florence. New Hanover County Schools hope to reopen this Thursday, though that is not certain yet. Some childcare centers have sustained damage, and the community definitely is not back to "normal." Children's routines have definitely been disrupted. We know that routine is one of many things that bring comfort to children when they have experienced trauma, and the lack of being in school with their...

In a webinar offered this morning by Elaine Miller Karas , executive director of the Trauma Resource Institute in Claremont, CA, leaders from several North Carolina ACEs Connection communities affected by flooding and other damage by Hurricane Florence learned more about trauma response and how to better help their communities find resilience. Karas, who was delivering her Community Resiliency Model (CRM) training at Duke University in Durham, NC, offered the free training and provided...

It takes all of us. Thanks to Wave Transit who provided critical transportation services before and after the storm. The information below comes from the WAVE Transit Facebook page. "Before and after the storm Wave Transit was responsible for providing emergency transportation to residents of New Hanover County. We transported our neighbors to emergency shelters in Wilmington, Raleigh, Winston Salem, and Chapel Hill. We drove local evacuees from shelters to dialysis appointments, pharmacies...

We are closing in on two weeks since Hurricane Florence arrived. Crisis response teams are busy responding to restore power, get tarps over roofs, deliver water and supplies to hard-hit areas. This article points out that many individuals do not show signs of trauma until three months after a crisis such as this one. How will our community prepare for these symptoms that will show up in mid-December? https://www.yahoo.com/news/disaster-relief-more-healing-physical-100000991.html

The Wilmington Chamber of Commerce and The United Way of the Cape Fear Area convened a meeting this morning with community leadership to organize a coordinated strategy of relief and recovery in the Cape Fear Area. A standing room only meeting of more than 50 agency heads and others was held at BB&T on 3rd Street as partners reported out on their current situation, needs, and recovery efforts. John Gizdic, CEO of NHRMC quoted John Gooden who said "Things turn out best for the people who...