Attached is a Case Statement on Trauma Informed Approaches--it is a review of the Greater Harrisburg Area's and beyond's ACE scores, the outcomes of these ACEs and some ideas of how to resolve the negative consequences of this crisis of epidemic proportions. Please use it to advance the cause of moving from the bad news of ACEs towards the good news of becoming trauma informed and resilient. I would also welcome your comments, questions and recommendations! Thank you.

Attached is a Case Statement on Trauma Informed Approaches--it is a review of the Greater Harrisburg Area's and beyond's ACE scores, the outcomes of these ACEs and some ideas of how to resolve the negative consequences of this crisis of epidemic proportions. Please use it to advance the cause of moving from the bad news of ACEs towards the good news of becoming trauma informed and resilient. I would also welcome your comments, questions and recommendations! Thank you.

Please join us for a thought-provoking evening at Lancaster Theological Seminary on Friday evening, Oct 4, 7pm-9pm, where we'll explore the trauma of violence and the hope of healing and resilience through a series of short films and a talkback session moderated by the national advocacy organization, Common Justice. Here's a bit about Common Justice: "Common Justice develops and advances solutions to violence that transform the lives of those harmed and foster racial equity without relying...

Marie-Monique Marthol handed out the cards to older adults at meetings of her local civic association. With the pastor’s permission, she left some at a neighborhood church. She stacked them in restaurants, community centers and even at the laundromat. On the front, the cards read, “Time never runs out for change. Let go of fear and guilt. Focus on healing and growth from ACEs.” The flip side said, “Healing from your past; giving to your future.” They were slogans fine-tuned through months of...

Here's the second installment of our monthly series of "curated resources" for our Trauma Informed Lancaster County partners to help keep the momentum going in our individual, organizational and community-wide efforts toward becoming more trauma-informed. Resilience is “the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or even significant sources of threat.” (American Psychological Association) But resilience is NOT about just “toughing it out” or “getting over...

Like the thousands of miles of mountain roads I drove on my 3-week trip in 2017 to visit trauma-informed communities in the Pacific Northwest and Canada (I drove a total of 3,011 miles, to be exact!), the road to develop a trauma-informed community has loops, twists and turns. And as with any journey, there are bound to be wrong turns, dead ends, roadblocks, detours, and days when you just plain get lost. Thankfully, there are increasing numbers of tour guides and roadmaps to help...

New and returning lawmakers take the oath of office on day one of Washington state's 2017 legislative session. — Jeanie Lindsay/Northwest News Network As advocates prepare to see how ACEs (adverse childhood experiences) science, trauma, and resilience play out in the 2020 state legislative sessions — many beginning in January — they are undoubtedly asking: “What does a legislator want?" It may be a stretch to play on Freud’s question: “What does a women want?", but the query captures how...

Here's a second post from my visit to Walla Walla to learn all I could from them about how they've developed a trauma-informed community. ( ICYMI: here's my first post mapping out Walla Walla's step-by-step approach to building a trauma-informed community ) Integrating the knowledge about ACEs, brain science, and resilience into practice has been a cornerstone of Walla Walla's trauma-informed community initiative. At every monthly meeting of their Community Resilience Initiative (CRI) team,...

Like the sweet onions for which Walla Walla is famous, the story of this community's 10+ years of investment in becoming a Trauma-Informed Community has many layers. Teri Barila is the person widely recognized as the initial champion and catalyst for Walla Walla's trauma informed approach, after she attended a conference in 2007 where Rob Anda, one of the original authors of the ACEs study, challenged attendees to take the information he had presented about ACEs and "get something started in...

"People in their 50s, 60s and 70s grew up at a time when there were scant services for children whose parents were violent, had mental illness, abused substances or were incarcerated, MacFarland notes. At the same time, talking about such issues was taboo." Such a powerful statement that speaks volumes for those of us who are survivors...I am remembering those who didn't survive for all the reasons in this blog and more!

July 27, 2020 As a companion to Governor Tom Wolf’s multi-agency effort and anti-stigma initiative, Reach Out PA: Your Mental Health Matters, the Office of Advocacy and Reform (OAR) is releasing the “Trauma-Informed PA” plan to guide the commonwealth and service providers statewide on what it means to be trauma-informed and healing-centered in PA. This plan is the result of four months of work from OAR and the Trauma-Informed PA Think Tank, formed in February. The think tank was made up of...

From the good folks at CTIPP: We are inviting you to sign on in support of a set of executive actions that CTIPP is encouraging the Biden-Harris Administration to take to address trauma and build resilience throughout the country. If you would like to sign on to the attached support letter as an individual or organization, please respond directly to this email by Tuesday, December 8th, and include how you would like your name, organization, or both to appear. The goal of the sign-on letter...

Many people are reporting symptoms of burnout and compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue, secondary trauma and vicarious trauma are words used to describe the reaction helping professionals may experience. Compassion fatigue is often defined as the cost of caring for others. Warning Signs Include: Reduced feeling of empathy Decrease engagement in work and life Poor work-life balance Reduced sense of career fulfillment Feelings of irritability and anger Problems in personal relationships...