If You Believe
by: Julie Beem The holidays are a time to focus on what we believe. Do you believe in Santa Claus? Peace on Earth? Practicing Gratitude? Family as The Most Important Thing? Well, you can believe all of these things and more, yet, if you’re a traumatized child or the family who loves a traumatized child, […]
Stop the Madness – Schools Must Be Trauma Sensitive
by: Julie Beem I knew it — from the first time this photo and story showed up in my Facebook feed. The security officer forcefully removed a teenage girl from her math class after she had been using her cell phone — by knocking her chair to the ground. And then I saw an interview […]
Trauma Informed and The Power of Words
by: Melissa Sadin The idea that our words have the power to wound might be as old as time itself. In the Bible it is said, “For in many things we offend in word….” Many of us grew up with the sayings, “Loose lips sink ships” and “If you don’t have anything nice to say, […]
I Am Not Alone – Why ATN?
by: Jane Samuel I found the blue rubber wristlet where I had left it – at the bottom of my tote bag. As a mom and daughter who floats through her days carrying her work with her from home to carpool to cross country meets to piano lessons to visits at the senior citizen […]
Tuesday Toolbox: Calm Down Box
by: Allison Cooke Douglas We’ve used a “Calm Down Box” with our child for years. It’s full of tools they can use when they are beginning to escalate. This is a specific child’s box, so it’s tailored to his specific sensory needs; yours would not look exactly the same. We offer it to him as […]
Why I Always Renew My ATN Membership
by: Julie Beem Ok – this is a strange topic for the Executive Director to blog about. Yes, I’m biased. But here’s the deal…I pay my annual Attachment & Trauma Network (ATN) membership dues each year because I know what an impact my dues make. In the beginning, my membership was all about me. I […]
On Safari . . . at Home
by: Gari Lister Earlier this month I was lucky enough to be able to go on safari in South Africa. The most important component of our visit was two “game drives” each day – essentially several hours riding around the preserve looking for animals in a specially equipped land rover. And if you are a […]
Don’t Give Up on Kids like Charlie and Moms Like Me
We are thrilled to welcome Allison Cooke Douglas to the ATN blog team. Allison is not only an adoptive and former foster mom, she is also a foster parent trainer and leader. She currently serves as a DCS Foster Parent Education Specialist for Centerstone in Tennessee. As her opening post, we are sharing her remarks as […]
Catching More Flies with Honey – IEP Meeting Strategy
by: Julie Beem “You’ll catch more flies with honey than vinegar,” my grandmother was fond of saying. I have to admit that I didn’t start out using this principle for IEP meetings. I was way too intimidated. At first I believed what I was told in IEP meetings, that everyone there had the singular purpose […]
What Now? My Child is Struggling at School
by: Craig Peterson Looking back to my elementary school years, I was lucky. Learning came easy. Fast forward 30 years. My children were struggling at school. When a flyer came home about a school workshop, I jumped at the chance to gain additional knowledge. Several weeks later I encountered a roomful of overwhelmed mothers. Within […]