Tagged With "getting started"
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University students seeking counseling learn about their ACEs
Dr. Diane Suffridge, a clinical psychologist and director of the University Counseling Services at Dominican University in San Rafael, Calif., has been interested in trauma for many years. But last summer that interest took a sudden and interesting turn. A student counselor she advised had written a research paper on the link between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) health and mental health outcomes in foster youth, and it gave the student a new view of the patients she counseled at the...
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Virtual Screening of Broken Places on March 21st & Registration for ACEs Connection Members!
Please join us on Thursday, March 21st for a special virtual screening of Broken Places , the latest U.S. documentary on early childhood trauma and resilience. The film will be offered via a private Vimeo link with passcode to all registered members of ACEs Connection, for free, accessible in the United States and internationally. REGISTER TODAY: To register, please visit : https://goo.gl/forms/apdoINwgtQmydEXK2 The viewing portal for the film will open on Vimeo at 6am EST and close at 11pm...
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We Need a Healing Movement
What if you had developed a cure for the most painful and costly public health problem in America, you had proven that it worked, and you were offering it for free, but could not reach those who need it most because no one wants to talk about the problem? Tragically, this is my reality and the truth about human nature. It is easier to suffer in silence than acknowledge the painful things that happen to us. Over 20 years ago, researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Kaiser...
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What Does an ACE Score Really Mean? Basic ACES Training for Providers, Part Two
Note: I was asked to repost this blog on the Sonoma County site, so if you have already read this, there is no new content. My ancestry is 100% Japanese, but I probably could pass as Native American. I’m straight, but having worked some 20 years in HIV services, there were many times people assumed I was gay. My ACE score is zero, but I could pretend it was five or six. How would you know what is true? How will all our newly recruited “trauma informed’...
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"What Happened To You? A Journey From Childhood Adversity to Resiliency" Explained by a Compelling Pamphlet
I found a manila envelope on my desk this morning. Inside was a heartfelt letter wrapped around a small stack of pamphlets. I can't remember the last time I held a paper resource guide in my hand, and there is something quite satisfying in this small, tangible resource. As I thumb through the pages, I feel myself drawn into a simple, relate-able story. I'm eager to keep turning pages and to discover how those of us with similar stories can find resources and support. "The pamphlet is...
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What Wildfires Do to Our Minds
A Northern California community offers mental health first-aid to survivors of devastating fires. Yes Magazine-- posted Aug 07, 2018 https://www.yesmagazine.org/ issues/mental-health/what- wildfires-do-to-our-minds- 20180807/ It’s late spring, and I’m hiking Sugarloaf Ridge State Park in Sonoma County with therapist, ecopsychologist, and California naturalist Mary Good. A mist is drifting down, and we have the park mostly to ourselves. In October 2017, 80 percent of Sugarloaf’s 3,900 acres...
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Where Do We Start Down the Path of Becoming Trauma Informed?
In April 2018, the Center for Health Care Strategies in New York City hosted an Advancing Trauma-Informed Care meeting. Sonoma County submitted a challenge for the group to discuss: Challenge: "I think one issue we are having is finding where to start. If this is not a step by step process, but a culture shift, where do you begin? Some groups are starting with an agency assessment. Some are starting with ACEs trainings. Some are looking at the SAMSHA guides. Others are desperately trying to...
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Sonoma County ACEs Connection Meeting February 28, 2018
The Sonoma County ACEs Connection has had some exciting meetings the past few months, exploring the many directions our group can and will take in the coming months. Attached you will find a typed up version of our brainstorm sessions from the February, 28, 2018 General Meeting of the Sonoma County ACEs Connection. The topics addressed included: (1) What will the be the group's norms and dedication to safe space look like? (2) What type of resiliency events should our group engage in? (3)...
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Sonoma County ACEs Connection Meeting March 21, 2018
The Sonoma County ACEs Connection continues to have discussions and brainstorming sessions at both the Steering Committee and General Meetings. On March 21, 2018, the larger group broke out into three work groups: (1) What should we name the Sonoma County ACEs Connection? (2) Should our meetings have designated roles such as a host or safety monitor? What roles do you suggest? What might that look like? (3) What should our meeting structure look like? Presentations or experiences? Should we...
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Sonoma County ACES Connection Meeting Notes from 11-27-17
Attached you will find the Monthly Meeting Notes from Sonoma County ACEs Connection meeting that took place on 11-27-17.
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Sonoma County ACES Connection Meeting Notes from 7-26-17
07-26-17 Dear Sonoma County ACEs Connection Friends, Thank you to all that participated in today’s ACES meeting. Grace Harris reported out on the Ripple Effect Training that she attended. She shared how Chandra Gosh Ipen discussed core trauma concepts to help us work across disciplines and how we need to look at trauma through an integrated lens that values many perspectives: History, Systems, Strategies, Culture, Development, Pathology. We are hoping to have Chandra Gosh Ipen share her...
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Sonoma County ACEs Connection Strategic Planning Session Update
Thanks to all of the members who contributed to our Strategic Planning Session on 6/29/16. The engaging agenda is attached to this post, as is the presentation on the scope of the problem of ACE's in Sonoma County. Our fabulous facilitator, Selena Polston (Innovation Team Program Manager for Public Health) captures some of our meeting highlights in these notes: ACES Connection Retreat: Developing a Vision Statement Wednesday, June 29, 2016 Elsie Allen High School What Makes A Great Vision...
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Sonoma County Announces New Office of Recovery & Resiliency
Today's Press Democrat featured this promising article: "Sonoma County supervisors Tuesday created a new government office to help the region bounce back from this year’s devastating wildfires and assist with charting a formal vision for the long-term recovery of the local housing supply, the economy and other key areas. The new Office of Recovery and Resiliency will have its own budget and seven staff members, three of whom will come from the ranks of current county employees. Housed within...
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Sonoma County Office of Education January Bulletin: Trauma-Informed Teaching and Fostering Resilience
This month the Sonoma County Office of Education dedicated their January Bulletin to raising awareness on Trauma-Informed Teaching Knowing Our Students’ Stories and Fostering Resilience. "Recent social and scientific research calls upon educators to provide student with not only academic learning, but also the social and emotional tools needed to be successful in life. We once though subjects like math and history to be disconnected from basic social skills and emotional resilience. Now,...
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Sonoma County Recovers December E-News Letter
Subscribe to this email December 27, 2017 Official wildfire recovery information from the County of Sonoma and City of Santa Rosa LATEST NEWS Sonoma County Fire Debris Removal Progress Map Now Available A new map indicating the status of fire debris removal for residential properties destroyed in the wildfires is now available online. The map allows property owners to enter their address to view the debris removal status. Read More The two Sonoma County Disaster Recovery Centers (DRC) will...
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SPOTLIGHT ON: How to be Trauma Informed (repost from Echo Parenting)
Okay, we’ve got it: Not “what’s wrong with you?” but “What happened to you?” That explosive outburst? The child who cannot concentrate at school? The domestic violence survivor who is in a constant state of hyper-vigilance? Yes, most of us in family services are now able to recognize trauma-symptoms and respond with empathy… most of the time. But what does it mean to be truly trauma-informed? For a start, it means that we have patience with others and ourselves as we seek to acquire the...
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State profiles of ACEs initiatives debut! Use them as a new community building tool to accelerate your progress
Profiles of statewide and major local ACEs initiatives in the 50 states and the District of Columbia are now available from ACEs Connection. You’ll learn about other states and maybe even a few things about your own. This series is just the start of curating highlights of the most significant initiatives across the country. The next iteration will provide even more details. How to use this series: The invaluable information many of you provided to our ACEs Connection team on what is...
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Stop Dreaming & Start Doing
With graduation season upon us, I have been thinking a lot about one of my favorite graduation speeches. It’s the speech that Shonda Rhimes, creator of Grey’s Anatomy, gave in 2014 at Dartmouth College. She references the typical expected advice from a graduation speech: “Follow your dreams. Listen to your spirit. Change the world. Make your mark. Find your inner voice and make it sing. Embrace failure. Dream. Dream and dream big..." And then she says, “I think that’s crap.”
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Strategic Plan Survey- Santa Rosa’s Violence Prevention Partnership
The City of Santa Rosa’s Violence Prevention Partnership, funded by Measure O , has launched a Strategic Plan Survey in order to better serve the needs of our community . Please find links to the survey below in both English and Spanish. We ask that you share the survey with our youth and families in-person, through email, and various social media outlets, so together , we can continue to create change for our community. If you’d like to print out the survey and have youth & families...
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Study of Holocaust survivors finds trauma passed on to children's genes
In 2015 researchers from New York’s Mount Sinai Hospital looked to epigenetic inheritance as an explanation for why Children of Holocaust survivors have an increased likelihood of stress disorders when compared to Jewish families who were living outside of Europe during the war. “Epigenetic inheritance is the idea that environmental influences such as smoking, diet and stress can affect the genes of your children and possible even grandchildren” (Thomson, 2015). This idea of epigenetic...
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Syrian Children in a state of Toxic Stress
An article posted by BBC News captures what the children of Syria are experiencing and how many of these children don't know anything but war. This is a huge public health concern that could lead to irreversible damage to an entire generation of children. Save the Children shares, "Millions of Syrian Children could be living in a state of "Toxic Stress" due to prolonged exposure to the horrors of war." I have attached the Report, Invisible Wounds produced by Save the Children if you're...
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Who Cares for the Caregivers?
(A written version of a presentation given at the February Sonoma County ACEs Connection meeting.) Sonoma County ACEs Connection is trying out a new meeting topic focusing on personal stories. There are three reasons why personal stories are useful and powerful. The first is that people like and learn from stories. People learn in different ways, and Powerpoint presentations aren’t for everyone. The second reason is that we’re hoping to involve more members by encouraging them to share their...
Calendar Event
ACEs & Resiliency Fellowship Coordination Committee Meeting
Calendar Event
ACEs Enthusiasts Community Meeting
Calendar Event
FREE Disaster Resilience Training with Dr. Robert Macy
Calendar Event
Trauma Informed Resilience Building Workshop
Comment
Re: Sonoma County ACES Connection December Meeting
Our start time is 12:30 - to accommodate those attending the CPI training happening this morning!
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Re: Notes and materials from 10/29 meeting
One of our topics focused on how we can look at organizations in various sectors of the community being trauma-informed in three ways: how people and organizations serve their clients/patients with trauma-informed care, how the organization itself is trauma-informed (e.g., through Sanctuary or one of the National Council on Behavioral Health learning communities) , and how the people who work in the organization are trauma-informed (aware of how their own trauma affects their life and work,...
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Re: Sonoma County ACEs Connection Meeting Agenda 3/21/18
Rent- Could I have about 30 seconds to announce a mini AVP workshop? Thanks. I’ve also been talking with Kate about a short activity to start if we have time. Thank you! Sue
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Re: What happened to You (Brochure)
What a great resource! Another way to start the conversation.
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Re: Policy Committee Meeting Notes
Thanks for your comments Karen! Having served on an advisory board myself, I really like your suggestion of folks joining county advisory boards as a way to start addressing trauma in the community. It's a great way to see what needs to happen behind the scenes in order for agencies to actually implement trauma-informed approaches. Thanks also for modelling the kind of response this new approach was hoping to elicit. Folks usually just read minutes, but we were hoping that members who...
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Re: Feedback Wanted on Draft Working Guidelines for Sonoma County ACEs Connection
Hi there, Have these been officially adopted?