Blog

By Margaret Miller, American Academy of Family Physicians, May 14, 2020 I'm sitting on my back porch in sunny South Carolina, where I recently experienced virtual graduation from my medical school in Tennessee, and I'm having a hard time writing this blog post. There are moving boxes to be unpacked in the kitchen, our mattress is lying on the bedroom floor, and the only place we have to sit in the living room is a giant recliner from Big Lots that we're forced to share until our couch...

By Steven Loeb, Vator, May 14, 2020 "That’s the best case scenario, in the U.S., with insurance; think about the rest of the world, it’s even worse," she said. The question is then, how to cut that down, a topic which was broached by Vasan and the rest of the panel, which included Alon Matas (Founder and president of Betterhelp), Brian Garrett (Co-founder & Managing Director, Crosscut Ventures), and David Bond (Director of Behavioral Health, Blue Shield of California – Promise Health...

By Bryan E. Robinson, Psychology Today, April 15, 2020 Although we don’t know exactly when, at some point in the future self-isolation will end, and many of us will return to offices, restaurants, and houses of worship. But what will that look like? One thing for sure, we will never return to normal; we will return to “a new normal.” And each of us will have repair work to do as we re-enter the world of physical proximity to coworkers and reconnecting with friends, neighbors, and loved ones.

By Bryan Robinson, May 1, 2020 May is Mental Health Awareness Month. It has been observed in the United States since 1949, reaching millions of people. There is no better time than the month of May, 2020 to highlight the importance of helping people re-adjust from the aftermath of the earth-shattering pandemic that has thrown so many of us off the normal course of our personal and professional lives. That includes first responders and all the medical personnel also suffering from PTSD and...

"The schools that prioritize staff and student well-being will thrive!" SIGN UP HERE The COVID pandemic is a rapidly evolving collective trauma that is reshaping and challenging the structure and fabric of education. Prioritizing how we identify and support both student and staff social-emotional needs will be critical from day one. This 2-part webinar is geared towards leaders and educators who are already committed to whole-child work and already exploring how to plan and navigate towards...

Ascend has, as many of you have done, reflected on ways in which this crisis can initiate positive change as we go forward. In response, we launched a webinar series to examine and lift up the ways this crisis has laid bare the profound inequities that lead to health disparities, as well as the ways in which the pandemic is disproportionately impacting the economic, educational, and health of communities of color throughout the US in order to identify innovations to lead us forward. We are...

This week, we explore how exercise helps us heal. According to Dr. C. Marc Madsen, exercise helps improve most physical and mental processes across our entire system. This week, there are a lot of links in the attached pdf for information and fun guided exercise videos. And, as always, written to children at a grade school reading level. Have fun and get moving!

By Town-Crier Editor, The Town-Crier, May 12, 2020 The Palm Health Foundation and Palm Beach County Parks & Recreation are presenting a free one-hour online Mindfulness Meditation Workshop led by meditation practitioner and longtime Wellington resident Jill Merrell. The virtual event is in support of May’s Mental Health Awareness and Trauma Informed Care Month and provides to assist residents in finding calm and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. The event will be a live Zoom...

From Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, May 2020 If you're concerned about how to pay your mortgage or rent due to the coronavirus national emergency, read on for information on what to do now, and what your options are for mortgage and rent payment relief. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) , and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) are working together to help homeowners and renters during the coronavirus pandemic.

By State of Childhood Obesity, May 13, 2020 The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is one of the nation’s largest federal nutrition programs, serving approximately 6.3 million people, including about half of all infants born in the United States. WIC helps low-income pregnant, postpartum, and breastfeeding women, infants, and children up to age 5 achieve and maintain a healthy weight by providing healthy foods and nutrition education; promoting...

By PolicyLink, May 2020 A Common-Sense, Street-Smart Recovery From Hurricane Katrina to the 2008 financial collapse, we have seen how recovery efforts that do not deliberately solve for issues facing low-income communities and communities of color only serve to reinforce existing disparities. As we navigate our way through the COVID-19 crisis, we need a Common-Sense, Street-Smart Recovery to build an inclusive economy and equitable nation that works for all. To realize the promise of equity,...

As a pediatrician and mom of four, I have been following the growing area of research in pediatric mental health over the last few years, including the study of adverse childhood experiences. Given the current information overload, I wanted to share the single biggest way we can help kids through this time without causing long-term consequences. Think for a minute about a boxer’s glove. The function of the glove is to provide padding for the hand. It is a shock absorber. When a hand with a...