HELEN W. MALLON 1 DAY AGO “Have you tried meditation?” “You really should do yoga.” “Journaling always helps me.” All of these are tried, true, and well-researched healing modalities. But self-care doesn’t look the same for everyone. What serves you at one point in life might be counterproductive later on. Sometimes, practices that some people swear by can be potentially damaging to someone else. This can’t be emphasized enough: If something makes you hurt worse, the problem isn’t you.

By Kristin Neff, Greater Good Magazine, June 14, 2021 How can we effectively bring about a more just world? Although it may not be obvious at first glance, self-compassion plays a key role in the quest to end sexism, racism, heterosexism, and other forms of oppression. By aiming compassion inward as well as outward, we can better confront the pain of injustice without being overwhelmed, and find the strength and energy to fight for what’s right. Self-compassion helps us cope by accepting our...

RISE From Trauma Act Would Expand Support For Children Who Have Experienced Trauma And Address The Cycle Of Violence And Addiction WASHINGTON – U.S., 06.16.21 Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Shelly Moore Capito (R-WV), along with U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), today introduced bipartisan legislation to increase support for children who have been exposed to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and trauma, including witnessing community...

By the HOPE Team, 6/18/21, positiveexperience.org/blog Tomorrow, June 19 th , marks the anniversary of the day in 1865 when word finally reached Texas that President Lincoln had outlawed slavery in the United States nearly two and a half years prior. Today, 156 years later, we celebrate Juneteenth for the first time as a nation. See the end of this post for more information about the new federal holiday and its long history. While we have celebrated July 4 as our day of independence since...

By Mike DeBonis, The Washington Post, June 16, 2021 Congress on Wednesday voted overwhelmingly to establish Juneteenth as a federal holiday, elevating the day marking the end of slavery in Texas to a national commemoration of emancipation amid a larger reckoning about America’s turbulent history with racism. It is the first new federal holiday created by Congress since 1983, when lawmakers voted to establish Martin Luther King Jr. Day after a 15-year fight to commemorate the assassinated...

The West Virginia Defending Childhood Initiative, commonly referred to as Handle With Care, is tailored to reflect the needs and issues affecting children in West Virginia. The Initiative, a result of a collaborative effort of key stakeholders and partners, builds upon the success of proven programs throughout the country. The goal of the Initiative is to prevent children's exposure to trauma and violence, mitigate negative affects experienced by children's exposure to trauma, and to...

On November 7, Virginia voters elected Danica Roem to the Virginia House of Delegates. Roem is the first openly transgender state legislator in America. Her campaign focused on local issues, especially improving traffic problems, which resonated with voters. But she has also broken a cultural barrier that brings attention to the LBGTQ community. Her public life opens new opportunities for us to talk about transgender issues. Some of us may feel we’re in unfamiliar territory, and would like...

By Malavika Kannan, San Francisco Chronicle, June 14, 2021 Even before COVID-19 canceled San Francisco’s iconic Pride Parade for the second straight year, gay teen Steven Sutton was finding celebration and solidarity online. On his TikTok account, between videos celebrating gay love and trolling Millennials, the 15-year-old San Mateo high schooler posts raw, vulnerable updates about his daily life and challenges. While Sutton is out to his family, he said he feels most comfortable among...

I participated in an important discussion about the use of pronouns. The person who initiated the discussion wanted to understand the issue on a granular level. They were having a hard time wrapping their mind around the need to move beyond the binary categories of him and her. I listened intently as two colleagues worked diligently to understand each other's perspectives. It was an encouraging discussion because neither party was pushing an agenda. They were both listening to understand.

June 3, 2021 Decades of research have shown that Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and early trauma can lead to toxic stress, which can damage learning, behavior and health across an individual’s life and even be passed down from one generation to the next. After witnessing first-hand the effects of ACEs on their patients and communities, health care providers around the country have moved to the front lines of the movement to combat ACEs, and many are learning how to help their patients...

There may have been attendees with more questions than answers following a recent webinar on federal funding coming as the result of the American Rescue Plan Act. But much was made clear in the webinar sponsored by PACEs Connection and the Campaign for Trauma Informed Policy and Practice (CTIPP). For star ters, said Marlo Nash, “ The pandemic is continuing to impact physical, mental, social, and economic health, and pretty much every public system and the people who are in those systems. It...

May 13, 2021, 1:00 PM, Posted by Kimm Campbell What does it take to overcome systemic racism and become a community where race is not a predictor of success? An assistant county administrator shares the steps her community is taking to transform vision into reality. A drop-in teen wellness center in Broward County, Florida (2019). Photo credit: William Widmer I’m a Black woman adopted from the child welfare system by White parents, and I’ve been aware of the fight for racial equality all my...