Trauma-Sensitive Learning Goes Online

by Dr. Ryan T. Woods for Respectful Ways When learning went online When the threat of COVID-19 arrived, schools responded quickly. Administrators hustled, principals made announcements, and teachers developed lesson plans. In a matter of days, students were learning from home. As any instructor knows, academic content represents just one facet of education. Developing social […]

Wisdom from a Virtual Schooling Mom

Blog Manager’s Note: I don’t know about you, but I know that I have lost count of how many days we’ve been under orders to “shelter in place.” Although absolutely necessary, this isn’t easy, especially as more and more states make the decision to close school doors for the rest of this academic year. Thankfully, […]

Complex “Yes/And” Solutions to End Mass Shootings

What Will it Take to End Mass Shootings

Just days after one of the bloodiest non-war weekends in US history, thousands have taken to their social media pulpits to preach about mass shootings. Some advocate gun control, mental health services, or an end to racism. Thousands more preach just the opposite, saying guns, mental illness, or racism could not possibly be the cause. […]

ATN: The Power of Community

globe shape filled with photos of people

[N]ext week, I will speak for the second time at the Creating Trauma Sensitive Schools Conference, where my topic will be “Behavior through the Lens of Attachment, Trauma, and Dissociation.”

Parenting, Anxiety, and ACEs

Sad woman sitting on leaves disintegrating

Parenting with ACEs doesn’t always require intense therapy. Sometimes all we need is a friend, a conversation, someone to remind us that we will be okay, if not immediately, then eventually.

ACEs and Toxic Stress: How We Can Heal Children’s Brains

Brain lit up in purple

As a trauma and emotion-centered psychotherapist, I am relieved that children are now being screened for toxic stress. Thinking about mental health as a byproduct of a child’s environment is an important addition to current thinking on how to improve children’s wellbeing. Rushing to diagnose a child with a potentially stigmatizing label, incorrectly blaming “defective” […]

Paying Attention: The Most Exhausting Part of Parenting with ACEs!

Mother and Child

[Original version published at ACEs Too High, May 26, 2016] Self-care? What’s that? I used to sneak away for a hot bath as often as possible when my daughter was in the need-me-every-minute years. I’d soak long past when the water went cold and I felt guilty at times but sometimes I needed to be alone. […]

A Trauma-Informed Revolution

hand with empowering words

by Sandi Lerman [original version published by the author, who is also a parent coach and educator, on Adoption Roots and Wings on March 12, 2018] “It is my hope that our story on trauma-informed care will not only be impactful but will also be revolutionary. It certainly has caused a revolution in my own […]

Trauma-Informed Parenting: What Adoptive & Foster Parents Can Teach About ACEs

Parent tossing child in the air and catching her - Trauma-Informed Parentin

[original version published on Parenting with ACEs on June 5, 2016] There are many adults with low ACE scores who parent children with high ACE scores. These parents are often feisty and fierce advocates who tirelessly seek out support, strategies and solutions to make the lives of their children easier and better. They are some of the […]