Brains are fascinating! We know a lot about brains and the way they develop, but new information is being learned every day!
Facts about brain development
Brains have neuroplasticity
This means that the brain has the ability to adapt to its environment and change with experience. It is a lifelong process that oversees the structural and functional reaction of the brain to life’s experiences, aging and injury.
Brains can have a weak foundation
Brains have a foundation that provides support to all future learning, behavior and health. This foundation is formed in early childhood, and just as a weak foundation compromises a house, adverse experiences can impair the brain architecture, which can have negative impacts into adulthood.
Brains are built from the bottom up
According to the Center for the Developing Child at Harvard University, our brains are built over time, from the bottom up. The basic architecture of the brain is constructed through an ongoing process that begins before birth and continues into adulthood. Simple neural connections and skills form first, followed by more complex circuits and skills. In the first few years of life, more than 1 million new neural connections form every second. After this period of rapid growth, connections are reduced through a process called pruning, which allows brain circuits to become more efficient. Most people refer to this as “use it or lose it”.
All experiences build brain architecture
Experiences, regardless of whether they are good or bad, have an impact on the developing brain. Experiencing stress is an important part of healthy development. Activation of the stress response produces a wide range of physiological reactions that prepare the body to deal with threat. However, when these responses remain activated at high levels for significant periods of time, without supportive relationships to help calm them, toxic stress results. This can impair the development of neural connections, especially in the areas of the brain dedicated to higher-order skills.
Refresh Your Memory
Take a moment to answer each of these true and false questions about ACEs to yourself. Then, click the arrow under each to reveal if the statement is True or False.
1 in 6 adults experience 4 or more types of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)?
True
Preventing ACEs would reduce the number of adults with depression by as much as 44%?
True
Females and several racial and ethnic minority groups are at great risk for experiencing 4 or more ACEs?
True
At least 5 of the leading causes of death are associated with ACEs?
True
In the original ACE study, 61% of adults had at least one ACE and 16% had 4 or more types of ACEs?
True
Exposure to ACEs is associated with increased risk for health problems across the lifespan?
Center on the Developing Child. (n.d.). Brain Architecture. Harvard University. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/key-concepts/brain-architecture/
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). (n.d.) 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) Releases. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.samhsa.gov/data/release/2018-national-survey-drug-use-and-health-nsduh-releases
This document is intended to help guide an ARC in determining whether the Alternate Kentucky Summative Assessment (AKSA) alternate assessment aligned with alternate “academic” achievement standards, is the most appropriate assessment for an individual student with the most significant cognitive disability.
You can download a copy of the participation guidelines through the link below.
Lydia was startled out of bed at 3 a.m. by the sound of the smoke detector battery dying. As she stumbled into the hall, she found a pile of trash mess her dog had made – the bathroom door must not have been closed! Swapping out the battery, she realized her bathroom door was open and occupied. Her 5-year-old was getting sick.
Six hours later, Lydia arrives late for her first meeting. She switches on her computer only to find it’s on update one of 34! Her first client knocks on her door, and Lydia snaps, “What?!”
Eugene stands there astounded. His was an emergency consultation, and her attitude immediately put him on guard.
All people have expectations of the care they receive. For people with disabilities, this includes:
Respect / Privacy
Safety
Assessment
Don’t trap
Emergency Consultations
Safe Words
Don’t force anything
Make the world a little smaller
Emergency Consultations refer to the premise that we manage who we call for support- a single person makes the calls/decisions whenever possible. This person must have instant credibility with their supervisor(s), law enforcement, medical/psychiatric personnel, etc. so that when they call, they get instant access and response from the person/agency called. Also, law enforcement, emergency department, etc., know that when there is a crisis, they also know who to call.
During the Crisis
Euguene, an autistic man, was meeting with Lydia because his mother had passed away, and he needed help to find new housing. Since his mother’s passing, he’s had the police called on him by neighbors and business owners, who expressed concern that living in his mother’s former home did not provide Eugene’s needed supervision.
Some of the steps Lydia can take:
Soothe the senses
Model calm
Model calming – ask them to participate
Plan
Natural supports are introduced carefully
Informal Techniques
Do something unexpected that may distract the person in crisis
Quiet in a cycle is good.
Don’t feel the need to fill the silence void
Model, model, model
Now is not a time to:
Teach
Unrealistically reassure
Try and change their behavior long-term
Add demands
Control
Calm versus Control
The brain does not operate rationally during a crisis. Teaching can only occur when ALL are calm.
Lydia’s stressful morning spilled into her meeting with Eugene – who was already in crisis. Neither Lydia nor Eugene can be rational.
NOT a teaching moment!
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has been a leading approach to help clients cope with their problems. If the crisis is viewed as a teaching moment, the crisis could escalate. The desired outcome becomes control.
The original ACE was based on a population in which 75% of the individuals were white, college-educated and had medical insurance. This is not typically what many view as “high risk” for ACEs, but even so, the number of reported ACEs in that study was notable. ACE data has shown consistent patterns that help predict high risk communities. Studies have demonstrated that communities of color have higher ACE exposure rates than those of less diverse areas. Children in poorer areas are even more likely to experience adverse events.
This led to the realizationthat identifying the adversities in childhood – the leaves on the tree – was only one part of the puzzle.
Another important factor is to understand the root causes of those adversities – the roots of the tree. Those root causes not only set the stage for rates of adversity a child may experience, but also impact the level and type of support available to assist the child’s recovery.
More recently, research has found that there are environmental threats to children and that local community factors are impacting children’s exposure to and recovery from trauma. Looking at communities with negative root issues like a lack of resources, violence, or poverty, children are also more likely to be negatively impacted by natural disasters and less able to bounce back.
According to the Head Start Early Childhood Learning & Knowledge Center (ECLKC), contextual traumas such as oppression, racism, exposure to community violence, experiencing natural disasters, and so on may have a greater contribution to long term negative effects than the original household ACEs.
Community-level response matters – one study published in American Psychologist found that communities needed strong contextual resilience supports in order to support resilient youth and adults. They found that individual resilience factors were only effective for adults – so, the strategies needed to build resilience in youth may not always be the same supports needed to building resilience overall.
References:
Head Start ECLKC. (November 22, 2021). Trauma and Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). Head Start ECLKC. https://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/publication/trauma-adverse-childhood-experiences-aces
Traumatic events affect all areas of life. Trauma can change how we see ourselves, others and the world. These impacts are not always apparent as “symptoms”, but they are huge in terms of development, functioning and healing.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network defines Complex trauma as “experiences of multiple traumatic events that occur within the caregiving system-the social environment that is supposed to be the source of safety and stability in a child’s life” (NCTSN, 2003). This ongoing exposure to trauma impacts many areas of functioning and can lead to a host of medical, academic, social, behavioral health and substance use challenges. Without intervention, it can also have a serious impact on child development. Associating a person’s behavior with their trauma history can help us make sense of that behavior. Complex trauma may result in a range of more extreme responses and behaviors. At times, those extreme responses can be counter-productive or self-defeating. The extreme responses and behaviors actually create more problems, yet the person continues to engage in them. While this might look irrational to an outside observer, a different perspective can allow us to see how these behaviors are rooted in trying to manage the brain/body response to threat and danger.
Complex trauma behaviors in young children
Children aged 0-2 may:
Demonstrate poor verbal skills.
Exhibit memory problems.
Scream or cry excessively.
Have poor appetite, low weight, or digestive problems.
Children aged 3-6 may:
Have difficulties focusing or learning in school.
Develop learning disabilities.
Show poor skill development.
Act out in social situations.
Imitate the abusive or traumatic event.
Be verbally abusive.
Be unable to trust others or make friends.
Believe they are to blame for the traumatic event.
Lack self-confidence.
Experience stomach aches or headaches.
If you have any concerns about a child, a referral to a licensed mental health agency or professional is recommended.
Everyone will experience a form of trauma. For some people exposure to trauma can lead to one of the 5 types of unhealed trauma.
Big “T”
These traumas are the events most commonly associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) including serious injury, sexual violence, or life-threatening experiences.
Little “t”
These traumas are highly distressing events that affect individuals on a personal level but don’t fall into the big “T” category.
Acute
This trauma mainly results from a single distressing event, such as an accident, rape, assault, or natural disaster. The event is extreme enough to threaten the person’s emotional or physical security. The event creates a lasting impression on the person’s mind. If not addressed through medical help, it can affect the way the person thinks and behaves.
Chronic
This trauma happens when a person is exposed to multiple, long-term, and/or prolonged distressing, traumatic events over an extended period. Chronic trauma may result from a long-term serious illness, sexual abuse, domestic violence, bullying, and exposure to extreme situations, such as a war.
Complex
This trauma is a result of exposure to multiple traumatic events or experiences. The events are generally within the context of an interpersonal (between people) relationship. It may give the person a feeling of being trapped. Complex trauma often has a severe impact on the person’s mind. It may be seen in individuals who have been victims of childhood abuse, neglect, domestic violence, family disputes, and other repetitive situations, such as civil unrest.
Watch this short video for a more in-depth explanation of the 5 types of trauma. Video must be watched entirely to progress through the course. You do not need to watch any recommended videos that pop up at the end.
Trauma survivors can present with a wide range of problems and symptoms ranging from physical, psychological and maladaptive coping strategies. Trauma survivors may also report re-experiencing or re-living unwanted memories as flashbacks or nightmares.
It is important for us to change our perspective so we can change our attitudes towards the way we look at families.
When we look at children and families through a negative, deficit-focused lens, we tend to…
See problems
Make negative judgments
See fault
Expect negative outcomes
But when we change our lens, replacing the deficit-focused lens with a strength-based lens, we see…
Solutions
Inherent strengths
What’s already working
Opportunities
As we change our perspective, our focus shifts.
Our focus shifts from a focus on a family’s deficits and risk factors to a more positive focus on the strengths and skills that each family has.
Our focus shifts from focusing on and providing services for “at risk families” to thinking about how we can build strong relationships with ALL families because ALL families face stress and adversity at times.
Our focus shifts from thinking “we need to ‘fix’ families” to acknowledging that families know their children best. This means we respect families and work WITH them instead of “doing to” them.
Providers who embrace a trauma-informed approach are more equipped to help individuals “bounce back to move forward” when faced with adversity.
Let us explore more in depth how adversity and trauma impacts individuals.
Dr. Mike Mayer, a psychologist who founded the Association for Positive Behavior Supports, promoted the importance of understanding how these six factors affect behavior.
Positive behavior support (PBS) is an evidence-based approach to helping people living with a disability to reduce behaviors of concern and increase their quality of life. PBS’s benefits include improving quality of life, working and collaborating with caregivers, measuring progress in meaningful ways, and comprehensive function-targeted interventions. PBS can positively impact people who experience challenging behavior and enable them to participate in society. It is also useful as a preventive measure, limiting the need and reducing the likelihood of problem behaviors.
References
Importance of Positive Behaviour Support – CLO. https://www.clo.org.au/importance-of-positive-behaviour-support/
Benefits of a Positive Behavior Support Plan for Autism. https://www.autismparentingmagazine.com/benefits-behavior-support-autism/
5 Benefits of Positive Behavior Support – Franciscoscentrovasco.com. https://www.franciscoscentrovasco.com/2022/03/the-benefits-of-positive-behaviour-support/
The Benefits of Positive Behavior Support – Psych Central. https://psychcentral.com/blog/the-benefits-of-positive-behavior-support
The Benefits of Positive Behavior Support- NJ Psychologist Blog. http://www.njpsychologist.com/blog/the-benefits-of-positive-behavior-support/
Positive Behavior Strategies: An Approach for Engaging and … – NCLD. https://ncld.org/reports-studies/forward-together-2021/positive-behavior-strategies/
The key is not to keep data on how many times the person got out of bed in the morning, but to ask “Why would this person get up at all?”
Adapted from Tom Nerney
Tom Nerney was a brilliant visionary and pioneer who died in 2018. He was an educator, an advocate, a fighter who wasn’t afraid to challenge authority. He fought for civil rights, inclusion, and self-determination. Tom saw the inhumanity of people not having choice or control over their lives. He was out on the front lines pushing for the closure of state-run institutions. His contributions to the field of disability are too numerous to count, but his efforts made a lasting impression on the thousands of lives he touched.
He moved forward the principles of Self-determination, Freedom, Authority, Support, Responsibility and Confirmation. His life was dedicated to seeing people with disabilities have control over their resources, have a home to call their own, intimate relationships, meaningful employment, the same things we all want out of life. He advocated, educated, and helped set public policy that would someday put an end to the impoverishment of people with disabilities.
“We must never forget that our goal is to be able to walk & wheel together as equals, to dine together as equals, to work together as equals, and most importantly to love each other as equals.”
Paul has friends in many states that he stays in touch with, some on a weekly basis.
Recently, Paul’s cell phone was out of commission, and as a result, Kent’s phone was ringing off the hook with people wondering if Paul was okay.
Paul also has a neighbor, Tony, that he helps out a lot with her animals. Tony bought Paul his sheep, and Paul takes care of it and sells the babies.
Paul joined a bowling league that Kent was a member of several years ago, but with the beekeeping business getting
so busy, Kent had to drop out. Paul is actively involved in the beekeeping business but still continues to bowl every Monday night.
Paul is a member of Calvary Methodist Church and is involved with Chrysalis, Walk to Emmaus, and Kairos (prison ministry).
When asked if Paul still had anger issues, Kent explained that Paul is like the rest of us, we all have “outbursts” at some times, and we just have to learn how to process it. He said Paul does get frustrated at times, but has learned that he can come to Kent or Valerie before it gets the best of him. Kent thinks he may have had to complete 2 incident reports over the last 17 years.
