By Kody Russell, April 17, 2020, Kitsap Sun

COVID-19 has upended our lives. The immediate economic and social impacts are profound. However, the potential impact of this pandemic far exceeds the current conversation and focus on the next six months... it could impact the health of our community for the next 60 years! Most parents and their children have experienced the compounding losses of income, social connections, and the educational support of caring teachers. COVID-19 is also exposing the existing racial and economic inequities in our society that have been impacting our community health for generations.

Kitsap Strong is fundamentally focused on trying to ensure that stress does not become "toxic stress", the kind of stress that research indicates can lead to lifelong health and social challenges. Toxic stress has many origins from personal trauma (child abuse, neglect, witnessing violence, caregivers with substance abuse and mental health issues, etc.) to systemic (racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, boarding school movement, slavery, colonization, etc.) to natural disasters (Hurricane Katrina). Research is clear, childhood trauma (toxic stress) is the root cause of most of the serious problems that impact our community. Everything from chronic health problems to high divorce rates, drug abuse, depression, and homelessness have been linked to traumas in childhood — and the more traumas a person has experienced, the higher his or her risk for major challenges in adulthood.  

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