Permanency Tip of the Week: Emotional Safety – Part 2 of 4 Why is it so Important?
The importance of emotional safety centers on the understanding that it is a crucial component to the establishment of healthy human attachment. Without emotional safety, our body’s instinct is to go into survival mode. With survival mode, comes a host of physiological, psychological, and behavioral changes, many of which are automatic, which can make it challenging for an individual to be open to the attachment. Once emotional safety is lost, it is crucial for the parent/caregiver/provider to notice this change in their Youth and immediately shifts their focus towards ensuring a re-establishment of emotional safety.
Next week, we will discuss what sort of cues we should pay attention to when assessing the level of emotional safety, a child experiences with their primary caregiver.
Permanency Success Story of the Week: Sia Confirms She Adopted Two Teenage Sons That Were ‘Aging Out of the Foster Care System’
USA Today – Sia is opening up about her children. During an interview with SiriusXM, the typically private singer, 44, confirmed she adopted children last year. “I actually adopted two sons last year. They were 18, they’re both 19 years old now,” she said. “They were aging out of the foster care system and yeah, and I love them.” She also discussed how they’ve been dealing with coronavirus quarantine.
“They are both finding it pretty difficult, one more so than the other,” she said. “But they’re both doing things that are really good for them right now that are like really helpful. Like, they’re really doing a lot of educational stuff that’s good for them.” This isn’t the first time fans have heard Sia talk about becoming a mother. Earlier this year, Sia revealed to GQ that she adopted a child.
While discussing Diplo, she told the magazine in January 2020 that she texted the DJ this year to say, “I’ve decided to be single for the rest of my life, and I just adopted a son. I don’t have time for a relationship…”
Permanency Related Articles:
We Can’t Lose Sight of the Pandemic’s Hidden Crisis: Domestic Abuse, Says AMA President
NBC News – American Medical Association – COVID-19 has disrupted our lives on a scale we haven’t faced for generations. The need to contain the spread of the virus by limiting our contact with others – sometimes even with members of our immediate family – has in some cases created situations that increase the risk of intimate partner violence, child abuse and neglect, and elder abuse.
Unfortunately, COVID-19’s full impact on our nation’s health won’t be known for several more months, and possibly years. But concerning trends have already emerged.
As a psychiatrist who specializes in the mental health of children and adolescents, and in the impact of trauma on children and adults, I know that the likelihood of child abuse rises in tandem with stress. Losing a job, facing a health crisis, grieving the loss of a relative or friend – these and other stressors can increase the risk of domestic abuse.
First Nations – Lessons Learned Implementing Trauma-Informed Care
ACES Connection – Beginning in 2010, the Traumatic Stress Institute began supporting the Yukon Territory (Canada) child welfare system to make the transition to trauma-informed care (TIC).
Much like tribal communities in the US, First Nation and Aboriginal people in the Yukon suffer the devastating impact of historical and intergenerational trauma. For a century, ending finally in 1969, the Canadian government allied with churches to “civilize and Christianize” First Nation people by forcibly placing large numbers of children in residential schools where they endured systematic and repeated abuse for generations. Now significant portions of the youth in the child welfare system are children of residential school survivors…
Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare – Welcome to our LGTBQ Youth in Foster Care resource page! This page was developed in order to connect foster parents, caregivers, and other adults supporting Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer/Questioning (LGTBQ) youth in foster care to national and local resources. In the categories below you will find the ” “ symbol which identifies those that are Minnesota-specific. 1) Caregivers and Other Supportive Adults; 2) Gender Identity; 3) Youth Rural Communities; 4) Advocacy; 5) Youth of Color Specific
Preparing Young People to Leave Care During COVID-19
Child Family Community Australia – Young people leaving care face many challenges. We have explored these in past webinars, looking at young people’s experiences of leaving care and how they could be better supported by extending care. In the wake of COVID-19, there is growing concern that young people leaving care will face even greater challenges.
This webinar reflected on past CFCA presentations and current responses in considering what may help support young care leavers during this pandemic. Recognizing the increased risks of social isolation and psychological stress, presenters discussed strategies to strengthen young people’s social capital and improve their social and emotional wellbeing.
This webinar is of interest to policymakers and practitioners working with young people across a range of sectors, including out-of-home care, aftercare, mental health, education, employment, homelessness, and housing.
This webinar was held on Wednesday 27 May 2020. Please post your questions and comments below.
A full recording of the webinar and related resources, including slides, audio, and a transcript, will be published soon. Please subscribe to our newsletter(link is external) to receive a notification when these resources are available.
Supporting Higher Education Access and Success For Youth With Experience In Foster Care In Pennsylvania: A Guide For Child Welfare And Education Professionals And Advocates
Juvenile Law Center – The importance of higher education and training to success in adulthood has become even more clear in our changing economy. Higher education and training provide all young people opportunities for success and stability as they enter adulthood and launch themselves on their long-term career path. Higher education and training should be a realistic and achievable opportunity for youth in foster care to the same extent as their peers who did not grow up in the child welfare system. Yet, while large numbers of youth in foster care want to pursue higher education, only about 32% enroll in higher education1, and only 3-10% attain a bachelor’s degree.2 In comparison, youth generally enroll in college at a rate of about 69%3 with about 32%4 completing their degrees. Youth in foster care have the talent, drive, and desire to pursue and succeed at higher education and training. What they often lack is the support, guidance, funds, and resources that most youth receive from their families to make higher education goals a reality…
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