Kentucky recently became the sixth state (joining Arkansas, Maine, New Hampshire, North Carolina and Tennessee) to allow pastoral counselors to become licensed mental health counselors. As of now, Kentucky only has 20 licensed pastoral counselors. But...
Chronic, toxic stress such as poverty, neglect and physical abuse can have a lasting impact, according to a study just completed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. One of the co-authors of the study, Sarah Romens, says early childhood stress can...
Sandra G. Hassink, MD, FAAP 2014 President Elect, is giving an address now that is all about ACES, poverty, and toxic stress and the pediatricians role!!! It is all over twitter. I am so excited.
In contrast to evidence that the amygdala stimulates stress responses in adults, researchers at Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University have found that the amygdala has an inhibitory effect on stress hormones during the early...
Teenagers who don't get enough sleep may wake up to worse consequences than nodding off during chemistry class. According to new research, risk of being obese by age 21 was 20 percent higher among 16-year-olds who got less than six hours of sleep a...
The report adds to a growing body of evidence of disturbing practices at Rikers Island, the country's second-largest jail complex with 12,000 inmates. The report, which is to be released on Wednesday, comes as the City Council is expected to approve...
...Gun violence is not only the second leading cause of death for American children, behind car accidents, but the leading cause of death for black American children. Black children and teens are twice as likely to be killed by guns as by cars, the...
Rachel Swinehart has commandeered her family's living room in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It's filled with large plastic tubs containing stuff like pink bedding and a coffee maker. Rachel, 18, is about to head off to Shenandoah College, a small arts school in...
School was supposed to start last Thursday for the kids of Ferguson, Missouri. But when rioting escalated Wednesday night, Ferguson-Florrisant School District officials made the decision to cancel classes for two days due to safety concerns. On Sunday...
Rates of developmental and mental disabilities -- ranging from speech problems to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder -- have jumped 21 percent among U.S. children, according to a new report. Overall, parent-reported disabilities rose 16 percent...
With more than 2 million people behind bars, the U.S. has the highest incarceration rate in the world. This mass incarceration has serious implications for not only the inmates, but their children, finds a new University of California-Irvine study....
On August 18, the California Senate unanimously approved Concurrent Resolution (ACR) No. 155 to encourage statewide policies to reduce children’s exposure to adverse childhood experiences. As reported on ACEs Too High , the resolution is...
Neglect by family can lead to several physical and mental problems. A new study by Penn State sociologists suggests that neglected boys grow up to be violent adolescents. William McGuigan, associate professor of human development and family studies at...
"They are plunged into darkness alone and with no one to talk to until the next morning. You don't need to be a psychologist to realise that this is very dangerous. "The very experience of prison is damaging to your mental health but imagine if you...
A number of people who have been diagnosed with mental illnesses and found not guilty by reason of insanity are suing the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals over their continued incarceration. According to the lawsuit, the plaintiffs...