“In the 1980s, Dr. Vincent Felitti, now director of the California Institute of Preventive Medicine in San Diego, discovered something revolutionary about the ripple effects of child sexual abuse. He discovered it while trying to solve a very different health problem: helping severely obese people lose weight.” Please listen to this NPR story, and don’t forget to talk to someone you trust if it reminds you of some of the things you faced as a child.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2015/03/02/377569413/can-family-secrets-make-you-sick
We know that Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) have life-long consequences. ACEs (such as child sexual abuse, neglect, and domestic violence) cause suffering and emotional pain, and many physical ailments throughout a person’s life span.
Finally, the profound study done by Dr. Vincent Felitti, is now making the news and getting attention. One of the reasons it got ignored by many for so long is that his results pointed to the consequences of sexual abuse in children—not a subject many people want to talk about. This is something he said to me when I interviewed him on Childhood Matters, over 10 years ago. http://www.nurserona.com/the-relationship-between-adverse-childhood-experiences-and-adult-health/ Also on this radio show is Rhonda James when she was at Community Violence Solutions.
Imagine a time when all doctors asked their patients about their ACEs score, and tailored their health care to their real needs.
Now, thanks to many organizations, people are talking about ACEs and implementing policies that are trauma informed. Below are some links that report on work that is being done.
Each of us can spend time reflecting on our own ACE score, and notice how we have healed, and where we still need support in order to live a full and healthy life.
And as parents, we can help to repair some of the trauma that our children suffered. It’s never to late to reach out to others with compassion and love, and to practice self-compassion as well.
I’m deeply grateful to the people in my life who have helped me heal.
Nurse Rona
Watch this passionate TED talk done by Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, a Pediatrician in the Bayview in S.F. and a national spokesperson for ACEs.
http://www.ted.com/talks/nadine_burke_harris_how_childhood_trauma_affects_health_across_a_lifetime
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/acestudy/about.html
http://vetoviolence.cdc.gov/apps/phl/resource_center_infographic.html
Join ACEs Connection for daily stories from around the country. You will be inspired by what people are doing. http://www.acesconnection.com/home