This blog post is to share our toolkit, "A Resilience Framework for Domestic Violence and Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)." The toolkit is a PowerPoint that can be downloaded here and is free to share. This project started nearly 24 months ago with support from the Arctic Fulbright Initiative to examine the intersections between domestic violence and ACEs and create an open access resource.
A statewide survey in Alaska and focus groups in Finland provided recommendations on information to include in the toolkit. The toolkit was piloted in a statewide training with domestic violence shelters and community partners in Alaska. Our colleagues in Finland previewed the toolkit and provided feedback. A series of pilot trainings with several tribes in western Washington State and with domestic violence workers and community partners at several other locations, supported by the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, provided invaluable insights.
We offer a one-day training to introduce users to the toolkit. The first half of the training focuses on the toolkit content and the second half is an interactive session on brain-body strategies to promote resilience, self-regulation and healing. Capacitar, a popular education approach to offer children and adults simple tools for transforming trauma and empowering wellness, is a core component of the second session. The cross-cultural practices of Capacitar International are now used in more than 40 countries.
What will I do next? As an epidemiologist who has specialized in the brain and trauma for more than two decades, my recent work with Capacitar and certification in other brain-body practices has transformed my thinking about the resilience work I do. We have never known more about how to help children, families and adults to overcome adversity and heal from trauma.
My mission in the next decade of my career is to help communities, systems and people everywhere to understand the potential for neurological repair and wellbeing by filling their toolkits with best practices that include brain-based strategies.
Because it's never too late, I also intent to reach out to the elderly population and service providers where I see a significant gap and tremendous potential for trauma-informed work. Your ideas and suggestions are most appreciated. I hope that the toolkit is useful to you and your work.
With gratitude,
Linda Chamberlain
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