Revue newsletter for Child Abuse Survivor - Issue #11
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New from the Blogs
Sharing - Parents protesting 'critical race theory' identify a new target: Mental health programs — www.childabusesurvivor.net Maybe, most importantly, these parents seem to think they know better, that the mental health of their kids is something they can handle on their own. We know that isn't true. We know the number of teens who have considered suicide is much higher than the number of parents who think their teen has. That doesn't suggest that what we've been doing is working, it suggests that having mental health resources available at school is a net positive for everyone. But that fact appears to be no match compared to stigma and conspiracy theories.
Sharing - Generosity and Happiness — www.childabusesurvivor.net As the post below goes on to explain, it's not just being generous financially that has this effect on us, it can also be giving time by volunteering, or helping out someone who can use it, cooking a meal for them, helping them clean, etc. All of these ways of giving to another human being helps that person, and it helps us. It's good for us. The other thing I'd like for many survivors to consider is finding a way to be generous during the holidays especially when you are struggling with the holidays to start with. Yes, I've seen many, many folks already starting to dread the holidays. They are estranged from their families, expect to spend the holidays alone, etc. It sucks, I won't lie about that. But, consider finding a way to be generous, as a way to make the holidays a bit less lonely. Volunteer at a soup kitchen, or another place that may be serving holiday meals. Hop online and offer to chat with other folks in a similar situation over the holidays, make plans to get outside of your own situation, and find a way to give to someone else, even if it's nothing more than time. That might be the better option for the holidays compared to just waiting for them to be over if you can find a way to do it.
Sharing - The ACEs Questionnaire Is Missing These Types of Trauma — www.childabusesurvivor.net When I think about Monika's point, and my own look at the numbers, I repeat what I said back then, when looking at one individual, the ACE survey is never the whole story. There are lots of childhood experiences that go unaccounted for, there are individual levels of resilience that are not accounted for, and there are early interventions that are not considered. One traumatic experience equals one traumatic experience in the final number, regardless of whether that experience was immediately followed up with support and maybe even therapy, or if it was ignored and maybe even repeated. There are numerous factors beyond simply answering more than 4 questions yes and assuming you're an addict, or not answering enough questions yes and assuming you aren't. It is much more complicated than that. The ACE information is important though because it points us back to that childhood trauma and says "what happened to you?" when treating an individual for depression, or addiction, so that we can include that in our healing. What we want to be careful with is turning it into a blunt instrument when there is still so much not being accounted for within it.
Shared from Elsewhere
Have You Ever Stopped to Consider How Far You've Come? – TWLOHA — twloha.com A personal reflection on progress, strength, and self-compassion.
Colleges turn to science to help stop 'suicide contagion' on campus : Shots - Health News : NPR The new strategy is called "postvention." It means having a plan built on truth, compassion and counseling that quickly addresses the mental health needs of friends and classmates after a suicide.
Linked - Why Are We So Uninformed? We Don't Read What We Share. — www.mikemcbrideonline.com This is, undoubtedly true, and something I've talked about many times. "Many people share articles that they actually don't read, which contributes to a
A culture of care costs nothing, but it can make all the difference for mental health · MHFA England — mhfaengland.org A culture of care costs nothing, but it can make all the difference for mental health
From the Archives
Sometimes We Just Need Someone to Just Listen — www.childabusesurvivor.net An interesting little snippet from CBS about Al Nixon, and the good he does just by sitting on a park bench in the morning and listening. I thought it worth sharing because it demonstrates the power of listening in terms of making people feel seen, and connected. It's not therapy, and it won't fix everything but as he says "When you listen to someone, you let them know I value you".
The Statistics Are Real People — www.childabusesurvivor.net I've said before that given the statistics about child sexual abuse, there's almost no way you don't know someone who has been abused. Over the last few
Sharing - It's Okay to Cut Ties with Toxic Family Members — www.childabusesurvivor.net Sharon says a lot of really helpful things in the article below, but one that really struck a chord with me and my experience was in this paragraph: There is no right way to deal with a toxic family member. Only you can decide how much contact is right for you. And you will...
2022 State of Mental Health Report Shows Shocking Lack of Access to Care — www.childabusesurvivor.net The report is available to download in full, or you can skim some of the statistics. As you do though, pay special attention to the section on Access to Care, where you'll learn things like the fact that over 27 million people in the US with some sort of mental health issue did not get any treatment. None. Not a bit. Even in the best state for matching treatment with patients, Vermont, almost 43% of people did not get care.
A Survivor, and What Else? — www.childabusesurvivor.net I found myself identifying quite a bit with a recent post by Faith Allen, Risk of Identifying Too Strongly with Being a Child Abuse Survivor. Not