Rewriting the Story
Fostering or adopting a child can be one of the most rewarding experiences as you help a child rewrite the story of their future. We sat down with Melissa Moore, a foster and adoptive parent for Nexus-Kindred Family Healing, to ask her what rewriting the story means to her and her family.Read More
Fostering Hope
t can be easy to write off foster kids as “bad kids” but I hope anyone reading this will understand the loss and trauma these kids suffer daily and how truly resilient they are to even be functioning in a society that sometimes disregards them. Being a foster parent is so much more than giving them a safe place to sleep, food to eat, and clean clothes to wear. In fact, most of these kids couldn’t care less about those things. It’s about helping them grow each day, dealing with every hard moment they go through that other kids don’t have to, validating their feelings while teaching them how to move on from them, and making it a priority to show them how worth it they are.Read More
Supporting a Child Exposed to Trauma
We know more about childhood trauma and its effect on the developing child than we ever have before. The resiliency of the developing brain provides an opportunity for us to intervene and provide healthy, safe, and nurturing experiences that grow the brain and help heal.Read More
What is Childhood Trauma?
One out of four children will experience a traumatic event before age sixteen. There are key differences between run-of-the-mill stressful times and a traumatic experience. First, it poses a real or perceived threat to the life or well-being of the child or someone close to them (such as a parent or best friend). Second, it causes an overwhelming sense of terror, horror, and helplessness. And finally, the body generally reacts to this threat automatically with increased heart rate, shaking, dizziness, and rapid breathing due to the release of stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol.Read More
Three Ways to Support Suicide Prevention
Every year, thousands of individuals die by suicide and these numbers continue to increase. We can all help to reverse this trend. Here are three simple ways to be a positive force.Read More
Your Child and Virtual Learning
As summer ends the reality (whether parents, students, or school systems like it or not), is that most students are headed toward a mostly or entirely virtual fall.Read More
A New School Year: Expect the Unexpected
Figuring out how to safely reopen schools this fall is one of the most challenging decisions of the COVID-19 pandemic.Read More
What Are You Doing with One of Your Most Powerful Superpowers?
Attention is power. It can bring us wellbeing and effectiveness. Left to its own devices, our attention can often flit about, at the mercy of our brain’s draw to stimuli. We can all be more conscious of the power of our attention.Read More
Employees Feeling the Stress?
Many are facing financial constraints with reduced work schedules or layoffs, making it more difficult to make ends meet or put food on their tables. As an employer, it is critical we extend empathy and grace to our employees during this time. Employee stress and mental health challenges are at an all-time high. Leaders should be prepared to recognize the signs of stress from their direct reports and provide tools to offer ideas and support.Read More
Raising a More Resilient Child
As a parent, one of the most important things you can do is to help your child learn to deal with the inevitable challenges that life brings. Children who can successfully manage the stressors that come into their life have lower rates of mental health issues, greater levels of happiness, and often have more success later in life.Read More
