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“ Hope is being able to see the light despite all the darkness.” - Desmond Tutu “ Healing may not be so much about getting better, as about letting go of everything that isn’t you - all of the expectations, all of the beliefs - and becoming who you are.” - Rachel Naomi Remen The latest Surviving Spirit Newsletter - Hope, Healing & Help for Trauma, Abuse & Mental Health is out - It can be read online via this & you can also subscribe -...

Hi Everyone! The good news is after seven years, with a five year break (AKA stall-out), I have finally finished my new book and have titled it: It's Not About Food, Drugs, or Alcohol: It's About Healing Complex PTSD Although my book won't be available to the general public until its launch date on Feb 21 st , 2023, I am offering FREE advance reader copies to a limited amount of people this week. Below is a summary of what my book's about and how to qualify to get a free copy this week.

What do you call it? The PACEs movement (PACEs = positive and adverse childhood experiences)? The NEAR movement (NEAR = neurobiology, epigenetics, ACEs and resilience)? The resilience movement? The trauma-informed movement? No matter what you call it, this movement emerged from two mind-bending, culture-changing developments that grew and evolved over the last 25 to 30 years. One is a groundbreaking epidemiological study, the CDC-Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Experiences Study , first...

Last week I posted “ The trouble with trauma (-informed), the aggravation of ACEs (screening): We're trying to fit both into traditional frameworks and it isn't working .” This post goes one step farther to describe the first easy steps that all organizations can use, no matter what the sector, to wrap their minds around integrating healing practices and policies based on PACEs science. In the comments section, Rebecca Bryan asked, “What is a reliable tool to assess organizational ACEs? Does...

Greek philosopher and physician Hippocrates of Kos is considered the father of modern medicine. An influential physician and scholar, Hippocrates was adamant about effective healthcare practices. During his career, Hippocrates implemented an essential policy for future physicians to follow. To establish consent to heal, doctors should ask patients if they are willing to give up the things that cause them to be sick (Hippocrates & Asulanus, 1526). Hippocrates believed physicians needed...

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) was created by Congress in 2000 as part of the Children’s Health Act to “raise the standard of care and increase access to services for children and families who experience or witness traumatic events.” This unique network of frontline providers, family members, researchers, and national partners is committed to changing the course of children’s lives by improving their care and moving scientific gains quickly into practice across the U.S.

“ Neuroscience research shows that the only way we can change the way we feel is by becoming aware of our inner experience and learning to befriend what is going on inside ourselves.” - Bessel Van Der Kolk Trauma-informed care is impossible without self-awareness. Anyone who practices TIC needs self-awareness, and most of us would benefit from greater self-awareness. In this complete guide to self-awareness, we’ll explore why self-awareness is core to the trauma-informed model and how to...

Strengthening the wounded soul can improve psychological and physical wellbeing and help to complete the recovery process. Although ACEs, understandably, can numb feelings, including spiritual feelings, once healing has progressed, spiritual feelings can often be successfully cultivated.

Organizational restructuring is often on the table when companies decide they need transformational change. And when organizations take on the major change of trauma-informed implementation, many of them also decide to change their organizational layout. When we talk about organizational structures through a trauma-informed lens, we often focus on moving away from a hierarchal structure and toward a flat structure—but those are not our only two options. There are 5 other organizational...

New!! 48-HOUR HISTORICAL TRAUMA SPECIALIST CERTIFICATION in collaboration with THE INTERNATIONAL HISTORICAL TRAUMA ASSOCIATION We are the only entity offering a comprehensive, 48-hour Historical Trauma Specialist Certification Program. The Program is broken into 6 levels and is built on a foundation of BIPOC cultures and neurobiology. It is taught from a multicultural perspective, injecting traditions and ideology from various cultures from around the world. In this inclusive study we rely...

The latest Surviving Spirit Newsletter - Hope, Healing & Help for Trauma, Abuse & Mental Health is out - It can be read online via this & you can also subscribe - http://ml.survivingspirit.com/dada/mail.cgi/archive/newsletter/20221113191424/ or this - http://newsletters.survivingspirit.com/pdfs/2022-11-The_%20Surviving%20_Spirit%20_Newsletter%20_November_2022.pdf Newsletter Content : 1] Trauma During Childhood Triples the Risk of Suffering a Serious Mental Disorder in Adulthood –...

“The first and last task of a leader is to keep hope alive.” You might be familiar with that saying from John W. Gardner which was first published in No Easy Victories (1968) and repeated in his popular book, On Leadership (1993). As someone who promotes Hope-Centered Leadership, I gotta say, I really like that quote! But would Gardner agree with how I view Hope-Centered Leadership? I think so; allow me to explain. Dr. Rick Snyder, the father of Hope Theory, defined hope as a positive...