Child Abuse, Coronavirus, and Mental Health
Mental Health Awareness Month Every May, advocacy organizations such as Mental Health America come together to raise awareness around needs related to mental health. These needs have increased during the coronavirus pandemic. Now that we have entered the month of June, we should reflect on the lessons learned during Mental Health Awareness Month so we […]
Being a CASA: Another Way to Help Kids
My kids are grown, and while my spouse and I have agreed to be done parenting, we still want to help kids, so I became a CASA. CASA stands for Court Appointed Special Advocate. In some places, they call this person GAL, Guardian Ad Litem. I, along with my husband, have been doing it for […]
Respect Thy Parent Voice
–by Donald Craig Peterson [originally published on the author’s blog, Adopting Faith: A Father’s Unconditional Love, March 19, 2018] Plain and simple. Parents know their children best from years of observation and interaction. They might not used fancy terms. They might not know the latest clinical terms. But they are the experts. If someone asks. […]
When Children with Mental Health Issues Are Violent
–by Sara Borgstede [originally published on the author’s own blog, The Holy Mess, on March 1, 2018.] Manager’s note: while many children who suffer from mental health issues never become violent, the tragic reality is, some do. A huge hug of gratitude for Sara for her courage in sharing one such story. Like most people […]
ATN Angels: Cindy McMurry, MaryBeth Storrow, Jenny Dew, Susan Woodruff
In celebration of ATN’s 2016 Angels in Adoption award, we’re profiling ATN members who have helped ATN win the award — and who have themselves been Angels to families and children. by: Toni Hoy While I parented two children of trauma, it never crossed my mind that my passion for helping them heal would lead […]
ATN Angel: Toni Hoy
In celebration of ATN’s 2016 Angels in Adoption award, we’re profiling ATN members who have helped ATN win the award — and who have themselves been Angels to families and children. by: Maureen O’Neill Davis ATN’s advocacy director, Toni Hoy, made a lasting and inspiring impression on me. I found ATN when my efforts to […]
ATN Angel: Michele Nigliazzo
In celebration of ATN’s 2016 Angels in Adoption award, we’re profiling ATN members who have helped ATN win the award — and who have themselves been Angels to families and children. By: Julie Beem Four years ago – August of 2012 – I attended the Nigliazzo Advocacy Center’s POWER Advocacy Training – and have been […]
Orange is the New Black
by: Melissa Sadin
Orange is the New BlackEvery few years, the fashion industry announces a new color that for a time becomes as popular as black. The first time I heard this phrase it was red. Red was the new black. I bought some red and am now more comfortable wearing red than I used to be. The most recent new black was orange. I’m still getting used to it, but I am becoming more comfortable wearing orange.
Trauma is the new black in childhood developmental disorders. Those of us who have been “wearing” trauma are already comfortable with it. We understand the strengths and limitations. We are, however, waiting for it to catch on. There are still many who don’t quite know what to do with it.