Juvenile Justice: We Can and Must Do Better
Compass Mark focuses on youth in the criminal justice system this month because—like adults—many enter this system due to the multiple hardships they have faced, including childhood toxic stress. Young people with mental health or addiction issues—or both—have a higher…
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Toxic Stress: Difficult Childhoods Impact Body & Brain
It was the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) study in 1997 that made the link between early trauma and illness later in life official. The results overwhelmingly showed that the more significant hardships a person goes through in childhood, the greater…
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Building Healthy Brains: There is Life After Trauma
As we learned in our June Mental Health Moment segment, adverse childhood experiences (ACES) can result in toxic levels of stress, which can harm our physical and mental health later in life. This month, we focus on helping children to…
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Be a Prevention Hero: Help Kids Learn to Thrive
In every community, there are people working to prevent addiction disorders and mental health issues from happening in the first place. In Pennsylvania, advocacy for that work comes from the Commonwealth Prevention Alliance. Their message? That anyone can make a…
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Educating Students about Alcohol & Other Drugs: More Important Than Ever
The misuse of alcohol and other drugs is a major contributor to the global burden of disease. Substance use prevention programs grounded in evidence aim to stop people from misusing alcohol and drugs before they start. As Benjamin Franklin famously…
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Now is the Time: Support Student Mental Health
The mental health of young people has been negatively impacted by the stresses of modern life. Today’s youth juggle classes, extracurriculars, family & friends. They may have part-time jobs or help look after younger siblings. In addition, they are faced…
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Supporting Loved Ones with Addiction Disorders
Family and friends may acknowledge that addiction is an illness and yet try to communicate their concerns in ways that don’t end up helping the person who is drinking, using drugs, or gambling. Addiction changes the way the brain works—in…
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Addiction Recovery- A Process of Change
We don’t change in an instant. Think back to a change you made in your life—big or small. Did you make that change the moment you realized there was a problem? Possibly. But more likely, you went through a process…
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Stressed Out? Pause, Notice, and Find Support
Photo credit: Lynn Johnson For me, stress plays out like this – poor sleep, an eye twitch, a hot ear, and blotchy skin. What do I do for a living? I teach stress management and mindful practices and have for…
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An Active Role in a Bright Future: The Science of Hope
Protective factors strengthen a person or community and improve the chances of avoiding an illness such as a substance use disorder. These positive factors range from the personal—not having addiction in your family and therefore your genes—to much broader—such as…
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