Blog

“YES!” was the response of Gaile Osborne, executive director of Foster Family Alliance of North Carolina (FFANC), when asked for input on a new program to help foster and kinship care families learn how to support the brain development of young children. “I love these Brain Insights materials. How soon can we start?” said Osborne upon receiving the "The First 60 Days ” booklet on myths about newborns and their caregivers and the eight “ Neuro-Nurturing ” ringed books. The materials delivered...

The Trauma Informed Health Education and Research (TIHCER) Collaborative presents, SunnysideFlex: A Web-Based Intervention for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder during Pregnancy Presentation: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects 4-8% of women in the general population during pregnancy, but up to 33% of women from disadvantaged or minoritized communities. Unfortunately, PTSD is rarely detected or treated in obstetric settings. Further, there is a massive shortage of providers trained in...

Presented by Clifford Beers Community Care Center, the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and KPJR Films, Healing the Generations is a two-day conference which brings together trauma-informed authors, leaders, and changemakers whose work focuses on resilience, trauma, and anti-racism. REGISTER HERE Collectively, we recognize the health implications that grief, loss, political unrest, and racial trauma have on the human body. We are convinced that in our families, communities, and ancestors,...

Emotion has an enormous impact on imprinting memory in our brains. I had an experience when I was 6 years old that included emotion and I have the memory of it all of these many years later. It was a 6 year old birthday sleepover party. There were 7 girls invited that lived near each other and played together most days. A girl new to the neighborhood was invited only due to the requirement of the birthday girl’s mother. I was also invited. I lived a block away but did play with these girls...

Christina Bethell, Ph.D, MBA, MPH, founder of the Child and Adolescent Health Measurement Initiative (CAHMI), principal author of the groundbreaking study on positive childhood experiences, and creator of the free Well Visit Planner, among other innovations. Two internationally-respected leaders and innovators in complementary aspects of early relational health and childhood and maternal health equity recently launched a partnership they believe will benefit everyone from newborn babies and...

I had the opportunity to present on Adverse Childhood Experiences and Pregnancy with MCHTRT ASU College of Health Solutions This is the Zoom recording link and password so you can watch if you were not able to join us live. https://asu.zoom.us/rec/share/evD1cZo8BQNW18KZSMk9HA3YcTo04cpx88zW1PwUU6iAojLUEUlhrK0wFSIIvMA5.a5H9ZouGV_j-rLCQ Passcode: Uf5b.4J*

It’s time to take action and make our voices heard to build healthy, resilient communities! The Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice (CTIPP) is organizing trauma-informed advocates, activists, and stakeholders to urge their U.S. Senators and Representatives to support two bipartisan, bicameral bills that would significantly help prevent, address, and mitigate the negative impacts of trauma through community-based/led initiatives.

Original Investigation July 24, 2023 Community Health Worker Home Visiting, Birth Outcomes, Maternal Care, and Disparities Among Birthing Individuals With Medicaid Insurance Cristian I. Meghea, PhD 1 ; Jennifer E. Raffo, MA 1 ; Xiao Yu, PhD 1 ; et al Ran Meng, MS 1 ; Zhehui Luo, PhD 2 ; Peggy Vander Meulen, MSN 3 ; Celeste Sanchez Lloyd, MA 3 ; Lee Anne Roman, PhD 1 Author Affiliations JAMA Pediatr. 2023;177(9):939-946. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2023.2310 Question Is participation in a...

The brain doesn’t fully develop until about the age of 25. This fact is sometimes quite surprising and eye opening to most adults. It can also be somewhat overwhelming for new parents and professionals who are interacting with babies and young children every day, to contemplate. It is essential to realize however, that the greatest time of development occurs in the years prior to kindergarten. And even more critical to understand is that by age three 85 percent of the core structures of the...

Successful health equity strategies must be inclusive, and focus on all marginalized and minoritized persons and their communities. Any lesser view will continue to yield a faulty health equity equation.

(This is a review of what I believe is an important new resource for the PACEs [for positive and adverse childhood experiences] science movement. Opinions expressed are my own, and are shared as a parent, advocate, author, and longtime student of trauma, healing, and prevention. Thoughts are also shared through my lens as someone who believes, deeply, in the incredible importance of and value in building healthier, more compassionate communities to support and nurture pregnant and new...