Catholic School CSA Investigation Begins
Technical problems prevented us from linking to a Daily Mail story about another investigation into child abuse at a Catholic school. You can find it on their website below:
– CBG
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Reviews Elsewhere – “A Brother’s Journey” by Richard B. Pelzer
Well, in truth it’s not so much a review, but some thoughts about reading the book from Nathan Box Richard B. Pelzer is the brother of Dave Pelzer. Dave is the author of three books, “A Child Called It,” “The Lost Boy,” and “A Man Named Dave.” The three books document one of the most…
Sharing – The ACEs Questionnaire Is Missing These Types of Trauma
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.
40% of Americans are Covered by Medicare or Medicaid and Struggle to Access Mental Healthcare
We talk a lot in the advocate community about not being alone with mental health issues. I try to encourage anyone to see others who are dealing with the same issues around mental health and childhood abuse and recognize that they are not in this alone. There are many of us out here dealing with the same thing. Many in the US and other countries are alone in accessing care. That should shame us all.
Link – Can there ever be a mentally healthy prison?
This article is about the UK, but we’ve seen plenty of similar stories in the US. I’m sure many of you from other countries might even see it in your areas as well. The Chief Inspector of Prisons has just described the past year as a “dramatic period in which we documented some of the most…
Sharing – What Not to Do: Seven Things to Keep in Mind When Helping Someone with a Mental Health Challenge
I think the entire list of seven things provided by Mental Health First Aid below, is good, but this one, in particular, is something I think we all need to keep in mind:
“Do not be hostile or sarcastic when the person attempts to be responsive, but instead accept their responses as the best the person has to offer at that time.”
I think it’s fair to say that right now, most of us are dealing with some challenges. If ever there was a time to accept that replying to your text, or responding to a question you have might not be the foremost thing on someone’s mind, it’s now.
Between dealing with kids going back to school, and whatever that looks like, protests and violence, constant pandemic concerns around illness or loss of loved ones, and massive employment insecurity, there’s a lot going on that we are all trying to deal with as best as we can. I’d argue that we are all dealing with some pretty huge mental health challenges right now, so if you have people trying to stay in contact with you, to check in, or support you, give them a little grace. The fact that they are even trying right now should say a lot, and I hope we can all appreciate the imperfect efforts anyone puts in.
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