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Two new groups — one onsite, one offsite — to talk about our own ACEs

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One of the remarkable phenomena about this trauma-informed/resilience-building/ACEs movement takes place in the 739 comments (to date) on Got Your ACE Score? on ACEsTooHigh.com, the companion news site to ACEsConnection.com. People do their ACE and resilience scores, note them, then tell their stories, sometimes at length, sometimes in a sentence or two. No matter how long or short, their stories are compelling, often heartbreaking, and occasionally inspiring.

 

Many of ACEsConnection’s 5,000+ members have asked for a place to talk about our ACE scores and how we’re managing — or not, as the case may be on some days. People are drawn to ACEs because of their own childhood adversity, or that of families or friends. So, having a safe place to talk about the personal aspects of ACEs is important. And y’all have come up with two solutions: a public group on ACEsConnection, and a private group on Facebook.

 

The public group is Childhood Disrupted, moderated by Donna Jackson Nakazawa, who's author of the book by the same name. The private group is "Aced the ACE Test"; freelance writer Cissy White set it up on Facebook. 

 

We're doing both, because some people are ready to talk openly about their ACEs and how they build resilience into their lives, and some people aren't. Many people have described the place we're in with talking about our own ACEs as similar to the way cancer was discussed in the 1950s -- in other words, it wasn't discussed much. People referred to it as the big "C". Having cancer was regarded as a personal failing.   

 

Many people, especially in the caring professions, are also reluctant to talk about their ACEs. But it's pretty clear -- as it was with cancer -- that if we're going to prevent ACEs, and change our systems so that they no longer traumatize already traumatized people, then we have to get to a place where everyone can talk openly about their ACEs. So, we need to figure out the best way to do so.  

 

Both groups will be places to share information about ways to heal, to build resilience, to examine strategies for  grappling with ACEs in the family and in the workplace. 

 

As Donna says on the public group: "Two-thirds of American adults are carrying wounds from childhood quietly into adulthood, with little or no idea of how their wounds affect their daily health and well-being. I hope you’ll find that the science and strategies shared in my book, which we’ll discuss here (as well as new findings in the field), will provide the missing link in understanding why you or your loved one is suffering. And that  this missing link will also lead to the information you will need in order to heal." 

 

Cissy describes the private group as one for high-ACE scoring adults who want to keep their discussion private from nonmembers. Once a core group of people have signed up, they'll have a monthly conference call to collectively define the group's mission, organization and purpose. The group will be a place for people to share thoughts, feelings and opinions about the "reality of 'rocking' the ACE" survey, and "share practical, personal and professional insights, experiences, thoughts and feelings about ACE research, articles, initiatives and the way adverse childhood experiences impact our adult lives".

 

If you want to join the public group, go to Childhood Disrupted and click on Join this group (in the upper right on the group home page).

 

If you want to join the private group on Facebook, send Cissy a message with your email address (here's how), and she'll send you an invitation. (She won't keep or compile your emails.) People who aren't part of the group can't see who is part of the group, and they can't see what's shared or posted. Facebook calls these "secret" groups. 

 

If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments section, or contact Donna, Cissy or me.

 

 

 

 

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What a wonderful idea to have both public and private groups to share.  From the sharing in as safe zones as possible, comes more clarity about what it means to have ACEs, that one is not alone in the everyday thoughts and feelings etc that arise.  Possibly from there to be able to help others because it teases out the big issues that come to the forefront as well as learning how others in similar situations deal with it - successfully and otherwise!  And from there the potential to write a "White Paper" becomes more real.

Thank you all for organising this!

I love the way this website is expanding, seeing new members come on board, but warning: be away for a few days and you're way behind on your reading, so much is blogged and posted on this website that is inspiring and thought provoking

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