Blog

By Medical Express, August 27, 2019 Traumatic childhood experiences among the poor and uninsured are associated with higher cardiovascular risk, according to new research. Experts have long known difficult childhoods are linked with a wide range of health risks later in life, including obesity, substance abuse and cardiovascular disease. They're also alarmingly common: More than half of the U.S. population say they experienced at least one adverse experience as a child or adolescent. [...

By Science Daily, August 26, 2019 Two new studies from MIT suggest that mindfulness -- the practice of focusing one's awareness on the present moment -- can enhance academic performance and mental health in middle schoolers. The researchers found that more mindfulness correlates with better academic performance, fewer suspensions from school, and less stress. "By definition, mindfulness is the ability to focus attention on the present moment, as opposed to being distracted by external things...

By Angela Hart, Politico, August 26, 2019 California will lead a multistate lawsuit against the Trump administration challenging a proposed federal regulation that would lift court-granted protections for young migrant detainees, allowing immigration authorities to detain children indefinitely — in quarters they see fit. The lawsuit, to be filed Monday in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, challenges the Trump administration rule seeking to invalidate the 1997 Flores...

By Kathleen Carroll, EdSurge, August 26, 2019 At Harvest Collegiate High School in Manhattan, students know what to do when they face a mysterious math problem. Take a breath, recognize a “maze moment,” and retrace their steps to find an alternative to their temporary dead end. It’s a simple idea: learning as navigation, choosing among concepts and strategies that either pave a path forward or trap you in the puzzle at hand. But these “maze moments” at Harvest, along with a half-dozen other...

Spending time in nature is sorely lacking in our hyperconnected world, especially for our children. Nature heals and soothes the spirit as well as the body. This week's guest blog is about two amazing nurses who are using the healing qualities of nature to nurture those who join them. Meet Susan and Clif otherwise known as the Nature Nurse and the Nurse Farmer! They have joined forces to develop Healthy Green Thumbs, an innovative campaign designed to educate and inspire young people to...

Over the last six months, I started going to therapy again. I have over two years sober, yet I have yet to fully deal with the emotional trauma I experienced as a child. I remember being in treatment and being warned that If I didn't start to identify and cope with my emotions, it would come back to haunt me later in sobriety. Once again, the professionals were right. Three months before celebrating my second year sober, I started experiencing these intense depressive episodes . Although...

By P. Berman, A. Hosack & K. Hecht How can I describe it? The way the pain felt blended into my body? The pain felt separate from the bruises and abrasions on my skin. Can I pull my torn pieces together? Claire was remembering the first time Larry had hurt her, really hurt her. She wasn’t writing anything. Somehow just thinking about writing it, made her feel the pain again. Her belief in Larry as her perfect protector had literally been beaten out of her head. It started at lunch. He...

By Martha Garcia, Dispatch-Argus, August 26, 2019 "Good morning" is a small act of kindness with a potentially big impact. The simple greeting can change someone's day or life in the blink of an eye. I often start my mornings rushed - pushing kids out the door and yelling a honey-do list to my husband. When I get to the office, I usually don’t initiate conversation, and most don’t, but our co-worker Mark Holloway walks down the long corridor with a big smile wishing everyone a good morning.

By Erica Hellerstein, Cal Matters, August 24, 2019 All eyes follow the white van as it rolls into the alley. More than 100 people — almost all migrant farmworkers from the nearby agricultural fields of Santa Cruz County — line up along a shaded edge of the street, tucked off a long road dotted with modest houses and neat lawns. Some lean on grocery carts, waiting for the delivery of boxes loaded with colorful sacks of carrots, potatoes, cabbage and onions, bundles of rice and beans, boxes of...

By Sasha Khokha, KQED, August 23, 2019 In 2004, the National Institute of Mental Health estimated that about a third of adolescents (ages 13-18) have been or will be seriously affected by anxiety in their lifetimes. More recently, a study published in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics concluded that more than one in twenty U.S. children (ages 6-17) had anxiety or depression in 2011-2012. And a UCLA survey of college freshman conducted each year, found in 2017 that close...

By Jason Sanchez, EdSource, August 24, 2019 Before you make any law that affects public education, please talk to teachers — teachers from rural and urban areas as well as poorer and wealthier areas. Students, parents and teachers represent the largest proportion of the population that is directly affected by laws impacting public education. Please spend most of your time talking with them to understand how they will be affected. Then talk to school and district administrators, lobbyists and...

California is about to launch an ambitious campaign to train tens of thousands of Medi-Cal providers to screen children and adults up to age 65 for trauma, starting on January 1, 2020. It is well-established that the early identification of trauma and providing the appropriate treatment are critical tools for reducing long-term health care costs for both children and adults. Research has shown that individuals who experienced a high number of traumatic childhood events are likely to die...