When Drinking Causes Secondhand Drinking – It’s a Problem

“When drinking causes secondhand drinking — it’s a problem” is a concept not widely understood. Yet it’s a problem for nearly 80 million Americans (and hundreds of millions more worldwide). Who are these people? They are the moms, dads, husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, children, grandchildren…whose loved one’s behaviors change when they drink alcohol. They are the…

Read More

Using the ACE Score As a Guide – Not a Diagnosis

Using the ACE score as a guide and not a diagnosis is critical. ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) refers to traumatic incidents in childhood and were identified in the epidemiological CDC-Kaiser Adverse Childhood Experiences Study (ACE Study). This study of 17,000 participants looked at how 10 types of childhood trauma (ACEs) affect long-term health. These include: physical,…

Read More

Smoke Rings Rising | Memoir – What Can Happen When ACEs Happen

Jennifer Hunt's memoir, Smoke Rings Rising

Unless you’ve personally experienced ACEs – Adverse Childhood Experiences (which are extremely stressful or traumatic events before age 18) – it is hard to imagine what they are, let alone what experiencing them does to a child, let alone what those outcomes do to that child’s brain and lifetime health. [This article, Secondhand Drinking –…

Read More

The Link Between Sexual Trauma and Addiction

The link between sexual trauma and addiction can be significant. As I wrote in my article, “Treating ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) Helps With Addiction Recovery,” Treating ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences, which are extremely stressful or traumatic events occurring before the age of 18, can go a long, long way to helping a person with addiction…

Read More

Landmark Congressional Hearing on Childhood Trauma

What a landmark Congressional Hearing on Childhood Trauma last Thursday! I imagine Doctors Vincent Felitti and Robert Anda, co-principals of what is now known as the CDC-Kaiser ACE Study, were heartened and deeply moved by that July 11, 2019 House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on childhood trauma. Twenty-one years after their study findings were…

Read More

Children’s Books to Help Talk About Trauma | ACEs

Children's Books to Help Talk About Trauma | ACEs

“Do you know of any children’s books to help talk about trauma | ACEs?” asked one of the attendees at a recent presentation I gave. It was titled, Building Resilience Through Understanding Substance Use Disorder and It’s Impacts on Others. It was one in a series of three talks I’m giving on this topic. In this case it was for the San Joaquin County Office of Education and the San Joaquin County Children’s Services Coordinating Commission.

Read More