On a 35-fold Increase in Children with Severe Mental Illness: Why?

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Robert Whitaker raises a disturbing question, but not so uncomfortable that we won't be taking it up at upcoming consultations -gw
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The number of children who receive a federal payment because of a severe mental illness rose from 16,200 in 1987 to 561,569 in 2007, a 35-fold increase.

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I wrote Anatomy of an Epidemic to investigate this epidemic, and this pursuit necessarily raises a very uncomfortable question. Although we, as a society, believe that psychiatric medications have "revolutionized" the treatment of mental illness, the disability numbers suggest a very different possibility. Could our drug-based paradigm of care, for some unforeseen reason, be fueling this epidemic?

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-whitaker/anatomy-of-an-epidemic-co_b_555572.html

On a Parent Speaks: I was told by doctors that I didn't know what I was talking about

Being told by doctors I didn't know what I was talking about


She was there constantly advocating for him and supporting me

A new professional in the field who is also the parent of two children with autism shared her experiences at our October meeting. -gw

I always credit Blues Clues for my son's speech


They've learned more from technology than flashcards

On Paternal Depression: Babies with depressed dads are at risk of developing behavioural and social problems by the time they start school

 

http://www.smh.com.au/national/health/newdad-depression-hurts-child-20111206-1oh9e.html

 

You do home visits. One house is always dark, curtains pulled, hardly any light except that coming from a movie on an enormous screen TV that dominates the living room. Both parents are there, but only physically. They are both in the throes of depression. -gw

 

 

On Learning to Relax: Guided imagery online

How do you get the parent of a young, challenging child to relax? How do you get anybody "who needs it" to relax?
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When he ws 12, my middle son, high strung by nature, learned to relax by listening to nature tapes on his shoebox cassette player. It was his discovery. It became how he went to sleep.
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At Kitsap Mental Health yoga is offered for employees during the noon hour twice a week. Our yoga instructor, Kathleen, starts each session with calming, soothing guided imagery. Yoga's original purpose, after all, was to prepare a person for meditation.
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Lucy Berliner of the Harborview Center for Sexual Assault and Traumatic Stress recommended this YouTube video  with "great audio (with clouds) for relaxation with kids." Guided imagery on demand as close as your computer. -gw
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On How Low Can You Go: 4 years for ADHD meds or 2 years for time out

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The minimum age for treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in children has been lowered to 4 years of age by the American Academy of Pediatrics, according to this item in the current issue of the Brown University Child & Adolescent Psychopharmacological Letter. Thanks Kellye, ARNP, for bringing this to our attention.
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At what age to use particular interventions with children comes up frequently in consultations with parents. Consider the question of when to use time out. Therapists drawing on any of several discipline programs will often use two years of age as the earliest time out can be used. Yet some care providers consider that as highly inappropriate for children that young (or for children any age). Of course, there can be an enormous difference developmentally between a child at just two to a few months later when closer to three. Two children the same age can vary tremendously in terms of their development and readiness for certain experiences. There is always a judgement call to make and still controversy to be found.
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To have pediatricians operating with a lower minimum age in mind for treating children with medication and hearing about it from parents will take some getting used to for some therapists. That controversy, too, is hardly resolved. -gw

On the Use of the iPad As an Assistive Technology For Children With Autism: Show and tell

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At our last meeting Catharine demonstrated the use of an iPad as an assitive technology for children with special needs in her classroom. The particular app was the Art of Glow. We were all mesmerized. -gw
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Turn-taking was amazing


A child with down syndrome was skilled at matching


I show them the video of themselves being a good student

On Autism, ADHD & Disruptive Behavior: Triumvirate for services

http://sunfieldcenter.com/
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Are autism, ADHD, and disruptive behavior the Big Three concerns for child mental health these days? I was looking at the website for an Ann Arbor MI-based agency that markets itself by invoking these concerns. Certainly these have been topics we have been addressing consistently in our monthly consultations, too. By the way, I really like the description used on the Sunfield site for Parent Child Interaction Therapy. -gw
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Parenting is not always easy, particularly when a child’s temperament negatively affects his or her ability to adapt to the demands of daily life. Parents of children with behavioral difficulties, often experience increased frustration and higher levels of depression, particularly mothers. Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is an empirically-supported treatment approach designed to help parents manage problem behaviors while building a stronger relationship with their child.

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http://sunfieldcenter.com/for-families/blog/parent-child-interaction-therapy/

On ADD 200 Years From Now: You would never be called someone with a disorder.

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They do respond to context, and they do respond to medication, but the sad thing is they get labeled with a disorder instead of with a temperamental variation that doesn't match the absolutely sick environment we're having people grow [up] in. "You gotta go there, so you'll take this pill." That's what I tell people. Whenever I prescribe medication for ADD, I say, "Look, if you were 200 years from now, you would never be called someone with a disorder. You'd be mentored by somebody, and you'd be learning, you know, by example. And that would be all fine. You wouldn't be sitting in a classroom until you are 18 years of age, for God's sake, sitting on your butt. You just wouldn't. And no one would think you had a disorder."

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I was only able to attend two hours of a webinar offered on campus at Kitsap Mental Health Services. Anita said I would enjoy every minute of it. She was right. Dan Siegel's presentation offered many insights as cutting to the quick as this one on Attention Deficit Disorder. It was in a section of the day-long training that addressed temperament, the biological differences -- the hard-wiring -- that we enter the world wtth. -gw

On Meeting Anita: The luxury of a month-long assesment of a child

We do something a little unusual at our meetings. We do video as it relates generally to our work and post it on our blog. We're all on first name basis here. Meet Anita. -gw

I started to notice children's reactions when their parents came to pick them up


We had a whole month with the child


The rocking helped the body to calm down

On a Child Psychiatrist's Answer to the Question: Could We Treat These Kids Without Medication?

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Those who attended last month's exhilerating consultation will remember this discussion thread, which we intend to carry forward at our October meeting. Interested in the subject? Want to offer your 2 cents? Come on down. -gw

On the Power of the Internet to Magnify Discourse: From around the table to around the world

This little blog based in not-exactly-backwater Bremerton WA had 73 pageview hits on Oct. 1st, it had 262 on Oct 2nd, 463 on Oct. 3rd, and 134 on Oct. 4th. Almost a 1000 pageviews in four days, a nice way to start the month. -gw

On Observations of a Behavioral Pediatrician: Facilitating children’s healthy emotional development

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What is infant mental health? A case of a hitting toddler http://t.co/Zv0Lx2wO via @BostonDotCom

about 12 hours ago

Keeping Your Child in Mind - A Book Review http://t.co/4ynY5ZIP

1 day ago

Experts debate proposed child mental health disorder diagnosis http://t.co/7VHQoedT

3 days ago

Pediatrician Claudia Gold urges parents to see world as kids do - Berkshire Eagle Online http://t.co/6yTVHfCJ via @BerkshireEagle

4 days ago

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Claudia Gold's Twitter feed, from which the four items above are drawn, is an indication of her focus. Here is a paragraph from her blog describing her new practice.
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There are two major problems with the term "infant mental health." First of all, it implies that there is such a thing as infant mental illness, which is, in my opinion, not the case. Second, when say that I am a pediatrician who treats behavior problems in children under age five, most people are puzzled. I tell them that I give parents space and time to reflect, and to be curious about the meaning of behavior, with the aim of getting development back on a healthy path. Still the blank look. I have found that the best way to explain it is through stories, as I do in my book Keeping Your Child in Mind.

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Two items of note, the first, her statement that "there is no such a thing as infant mental illness." True? Second, the very fact of her starting a specialty practice of behavioral pediatrics. Is she one-of-a-kind or are there other behavioral pediatricians whose focus is strictly on young children? And then there is this from her blog header description.
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I will show how contemporary research in child development can be applied to support parents in their efforts to facilitate their children’s healthy emotional development. I will address factors that converge to obstruct such support. These include limited access to quality mental health care, influences of a powerful health insurance industry and intensive marketing efforts by the pharmaceutical industry.

Her short list of" factors that ... obstruct" is interesting, citing, as she does, both the health insurance and pharmaceutical industries. The "medicated child" (see the previous post on this blog) is an agreed upon topic for discussion at our next meeting of the Peninsulas Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation group. -gw

On For Mom's With Postpartum Depression: Support and infant massage

By valentinapowers

 

Kellye Campbell, ARNP at KMHS, passed on this information about a service available in Seattle but which has roots in the Olympic Peninsula. -gw

 

I want announce a new referral source for moms with postpartum depression/anxiety and their babies called BabyLink. Groups will start in Seattle this fall. This is a postpartum depression support/ infant massage group developed by Marian Birch, DMH. She and her partner have been running this group in Port Angeles, WA for the past five years. Last year, I observed and evaluated this group as part of my post-doctoral fellowship at the UW Center for Infant Mental Health.

 

We are really excited to be replicating this group as there are no groups like this in Seattle right now. The program not only helps decrease depression in moms but also has many benefits for babies. Importantly, it can also help improve the relationship between moms and babies.

 

There will be two groups offered, a pro-bono group and a fee group for moms who can afford to pay. The attached flyer gives more details both groups. They will be on Capital Hill at Cooper House (http://cooperhouse.org/index.html) and led by health care providers trained in infant mental health and infant massage.

 

Recap:

What: BabyLink: A Postpartum Distress Support Group and Infant Massage.

Who: For moms with postpartum distress and their babies. Babies must not be crawling (they are hard to engage with infant massage once they start to crawl).

When: Groups will start this fall when we have enough referrals.

 

If you have any referrals please have them contact Lisa Mennet at 206-402-3099. You can also contact me if you have any questions. If you would like to have flyers sent to your office/clinic, please let me know.

 

Thank you,Michele Kulbel, DNP, ARNP

www.michelekulbel.com

On Why We Come Together: To gain a perspective that is ultimately interdisciplinary

The mission of MI-AIMH is to promote and support nurturing relationships for all infants.

MI-AIMH believes that each infant needs to be nurtured and protected by one or more consistent and stimulating caregivers who enjoy a permanent and special relationship with the baby.  This relationship is essential for optimal social, emotional and cognitive growth.

MI-AIMH also believes that the failure to provide and maintain nurturing relationships, at least one, during infancy may result in significant damage to the individual and to society.

Therefore, MI-AIMH supports the following positions:

• Early intervention is an essential social policy, important from both a fiscal and a moral point of view.
• Early intervention can be effective for the individual infant only if offered in a manner that promotes and supports the infant-caregiver relationship as both the primary source of strength and growth.
• Early intervention is effective only when a family's culture is respected and approached as a strength and support.

Support, training and advocacy for early intervention must become a cooperative venture that bridges traditional cultural, disciplinary, administrative and political boundaries.

 Action Goals

Educate birth to three and family professionals in relationship-based practice that reflects the mission of MI-AIMH.

Diversify the infant mental health community, engaging professionals who represent many different ethnic groups, cultures and communities and who work in a variety of settings with or on behalf of infants, toddlers and families.

Advocate for the social, emotional and cognitive well being of all infants and toddlers within the context of their caregiving families.

Endorse the infant and family work force, using standards that reflect competency and best practice promoting infant mental health.

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The mission statement of the Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health
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The action goals as stated in this mission statement consitute a nice description of what might be the goals of our modest and informal association of professionals that meets each month here in Washington State. To educate professionals -- including ourselves -- in relationship-based practice is fundamental to our efforts. "Diversify the infant mental health community," is the calling. What makes our consultation feel so rich, so unique, is precisely our diversity. Where else can you draw on such diverse backgrounds in reflecting on a case? School psychologist, social worker, disability specialist, Early Head Start supervisor, and mental health counselor, for example -- we come together to gain a perspective that we just can't find within our own specific workplace. We work for school districts, non-profit agencies, and in private practice.  We serve military and civilian, native and non-native communities. Our focus is on education, early intervention, and behavioral health. To a man and woman, we are advocates for the well-being of young children, socially, emotionally, and cognitively. We endorse the highest standards, the greatest competencies, and the best practices of this infant and family work force of which we are a part. And there is so much work to do. -gw

On Looking for a Few Good Providers: And who take TRICARE

The program Marilyn works for is looking for "providers who are GOOD at what they do, and take TRICARE." She believes that participants in our infant and early childhood mental health consultation group either fill the bill or know of someone who would. She invites you to provide the following and anything additional about these providers that you feel would be helpful.

 

1) Name

2) Degree and credentials

3) Specialties

4) Address

5) Phone Number

6) Email

7) Fax

 

Thanks George. See you at the next gathering.

 

Marilyn Larrabee

New Parent Support Home Visitor

Fleet and Family Support Program

Naval Base Kitsap

 

marilyn.larrabee.ctr@navy.mil

On the Medicated Child: Frontline concern

Hey George,

Great consultation last week… Chris thought that I should forward this video on to you. It’s an entire hour long so we probably wouldn’t get a chance to watch it in our group but maybe you could share the link with the others… it is pretty interesting.

Hope you have a great week!

Tana

Program: FRONTLINE

Episode: The Medicated Child

Millions of U.S. children are taking psychiatric drugs, most never tested on kids. Good medicine - or an uncontrolled experiment?

Watch the full episode. See more FRONTLINE.

An issue of concern for a lot of clinicians, certainly. -gw

On New Directions in Infant Mental Health Practice Training: Containment, reciprocity & the stress/trauma continuum

Subject: 14TH Biennial NCAST Institute - Don't miss this event in September! -gw
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http://depts.washington.edu/chdd/ncast_broadcast/14th_Biennial_NCAST_Institute.pdf

On Infant Mental Health Treatment: In bullet points

There is nothing like a powerpoint slideshow to provide a succinct overview of a topic. In this case, the topic is Infant Mental Health. The 74 slides here are from a 2007 presentation by Tomlin & Ryan. -gw

On Hands Are Not For Hitting: Activities designed around popular chldren's books

Hi George and LaiWan,

 

To find the book nook- scroll down this page, on the right you will see the sun, click on www.vanderbilt.edu/csefel/  When that page comes up click on the apple for teachers and caregivers. When that page comes up you will see the Book Nook, click on that for the books. Thanks for a great two hours yesterday. I admire everyone's skill, knowledge, insight and intuition.

 

Happy weekend! Linda

 

This was the note Linda sent after our last meeting. Linda really likes the Book Nook on the CSEFEL site. -gw

 

These easy-to-use guides were created especially for teachers/caregivers and parents to provide hands-on ways to embed social emotional skill building activities into everyday routines. Each book nook is comprised of ideas and activities designed around popular children’s books such as Big Al, Hands are Not for Hitting, On Monday When it Rained and My Many Colored Days. Examples of suggested activities include using rhymes to talk about being friends, making emotion masks to help children identify and talk about different feelings, playing games around what to do with hands instead of hitting and fun music and movement activities to express emotions.

 

http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/resources/strategies.html

 

On You Saw It Here First: There is a lot of math in EHS activities ... and football

Yesterday as I observed an Early Head Start home-visitor do her magic with a parent and toddler, I heard her say that the activity she had brought taught concepts of physics and algebra. She had three golf balls in a cardboard box caroming off the walls, in the process making neat designs on a piece of paper in the bottom of the box to which she had added some drops of tempura paint. Boy, was I impressed with her reference to math and science! Kudos to her! I thought, of course, of Bill the Math Man and his presentation at our February meeting about teaching math to preschoolers.

On Introducing Math Concepts At a Very Early Age: Measuring with ribbons

You saw the post here first. It ran on these "pages" but, with some minor changes, was subsequently reposted (I had something to do with it) on two other blogs -- viewed 202 times on one blog and 558 times on the other. A very popular post.! Ah, the power of blogging. Our blog -- this one -- is at 2000 site views, BTW.
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+On Introducing Math Concepts At a Very Early Age: There is a lot of math in football

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http://myriadsocialspaces.posterous.com/on-introducing-math-concepts-at-a-very-early

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It also ran here. -gw
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http://bahaiviews.posterous.com/on-introducing-math-concepts-at-a-very-early

On High Tech in Kansas: Reaching moms through texting

 

The way they do it in Kansas. Informing moms about what they need to know to care for their baby by texting. -gw

 

On Reflective Supervision: Space for providers to become aware of and attend to their own feelings

The ultimate goal of reflective practice is to improve the quality of early childhood services through increasing organizational capacity and enhancing provider competency. Often providers are faced with trauma of the families they work with and this trauma can trigger their own pain and suffering.  The experience the provider brings to the relationship can get in the way of working effectively with families unless there is a venue to explore, understand, and distill the negative or difficult emotions elicited from the work...The early years of development...are particularly critical...It is essential that providers have consistent space to become aware of and attend to their own feelings to avoid responses that can lead to unintended and negative consequences.

                                                                --    Rebecca Shamoon Shanok, 2009
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http://multiplyingconnections.org/reflective-supervision
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The above excerpt from a piece promoting an upcoming conference on the East Coast reminds us of why supervision is important, and what that supervision should look like. -gw
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Learn More About Reflective Supervision

* Reflecting on Reflective Practice: http://www.multiplyingconnections.org/

* Zero to Three: http://www.zerotothree.org/

* Michigan Association of Infant Mental Health: http://www.mi-aimh.org/

On Who We Are: And what we talk about

Here is a self-spoken profile of a Peninsula's Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation Group participant.
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What do we do at PECMHG meetings? We share insights and information about resources, as below a discussion about working with non-English-speaking families and the use of iPhone apps for language translation. -gw
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On Introducing Math Concepts At a Very Early Age: Measuring with ribbons

 

We hear a lot about the importance of reading, getting kids started early. We don't hear as much about getting kids started early with math. Here is Bill from our last Peninsula's Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation Group describing the significance of introducing math concepts in preschool, giving an example of a strategy, measuring with ribbons, following up on the conversation he started the month previously. In many parts of the world, in many cultures, young children play math games with their parents as they kick or throw a ball . -gw

On Teaching Parents to Play in One Hour: What a concept!

 

Children learn best by connecting and interacting through play- so let’s practice! Learn how important play is and how to effectively play with your children to promote developmental, language and social skills. Parents are introduced to Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) which places an emphasis on improving the quality of the parent-child relationship and changing parent-child interaction patterns.
Who is it for? Grown-ups and their infants/toddlers; grown-up participation required.
Is there a fee? Pretend City admission not required or included.
Anything else I should know? This activity is presented by Pretend City’s Child Development Initiative, Good To Go From Head To Toe! and facilitated by the Child Guidance Center.

 

http://pretendcity.org/event/connect-with-your-child-through-play-play-social-activities-3/

 

Pretend City, a children's museum, is not in our area. But what a service they are offering by teaching parents how to play incorporating the skill sets of Parent Child Interaction Therapy. Playing with children does not come automatically. Many parents almost never play with their child. Allowing a child to "have the lead" in play with their parent is the quickest way to bring warmth of a child-parent relationship. Knowing how to play and then doing it is key. -gw

On Early Childhood Mental Health on Facebook: Another way to keep up with resources

I guess I shouldn't be surprised that there is a Facebook page for TACSEI and the Center for Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation, too. If you're on Facebook a lot, getting the status updates as part of your news feed sounds like a quick and painless way to keep up with what's new, although even our little blog has more postings per month than they do. Perusing the site I learned of a number of best practice tutorials, one of which containted these messages that are important to me for my work. -gw

 

Take Home Messages

• Head Start program leaders play a key role in helping to develop, implement, and maintain a shared program vision for mental health services and mental health consultation. Leadership should strive to integrate a mental health perspective into all program components, inspiring staff to see mental health as part of everything they do.
• Programs can strengthen their mental health services and consultation by working as a team to develop a mental health-specific strategic plan. The mental health strategic plan should be developed by a representative team, and include key program goals, activities, and timelines for improving mental health services and consultation. The mental health strategic plan should be a living document that is revisited and updated frequently.
• Head Start program leaders can help ensure the success of early childhood mental health consultants by helping families and staff be "ready" to work with the consultant. Building staff readiness includes making sure staff understand their role in the consultative process, feeling comfortable accepting support from the consultant, and helping build positive relationships between staff and the consultant. Building family readiness includes making sure that families understand that the consultant's role is to help all families (non-stigmatizing), reframing the consultants work as supporting wellness, rather than "treatment" mental health problems, and building opportunities for the consultant to meet and get to know families.
• Program leaders need to ensure that mental health consultants have good supervision and support for their work. Many program consultants receive clinical supervision outside the Head Start program, but they should also have an in-house supervisor to work with to provide support specifically around working with staff and families at this Head Start program. Helping consultants get to know other early childhood mental health consultants can also be important to supporting the consultant professionally.

http://www.ecmhc.org/tutorials/needs/messages.html

On Postpartum Dads: Study receives wide coverage

Depressed Dads More Likely to Spank, Shortchange Kids: Study

Sad dads: depressed fathers spank more, read less

Depressed dads more likely to slap children

Health Buzz: Depressed Dads More Likely to Spank Kids

Dads' Dark Side: New Fathers with Depression Spank Their Babies More

The information provided in this study is probably not surprising to the members of our consultation group, but it's noteworthy that the news coverage of it has been so widespread. -gw 

On the Emergence of Infant Mental Health for American Psychologists: Journal coverage

 

The current issue (February-March 2011) of the American Psychologist is devoted to Infant Mental Health. I will bring a copy of the journal, thanks to KMH co-worker Martha Crownover, to our consultation meeting on Friday.

 

 

All the themes that are part and parcel of our discussions are reflected in these pages. Another social space, in this case professional psychologists, -- the same emerging discourse.

 

 

Psychologists, master's level mental health counselors, social workers, early childhood home visitors -- we all come together for purposes of advocacy.

 

 

 

A relationship-based clinical model is emerging front and center across multiple disciplines..

 

 

What is infant mental health?

 

 

Improving access to infant mental health services means "building a qualified infant mental heath workforce, and addressing payment policies." Don't we know it! -gw

 

On the Brain is Shaped By Experience: And the most powerful experiences are relationships

 

I had lunch with Tony last week. Tony is a child psychiatrist who shares a passion with me for early childhood mental health. This is a succinct summary of the relationship between the brain and ... relationships. -gw

 

On Everybody Looks Forward to Fridays: Because they feel appreciated, taken care of, and important

The elegant simplicity of the Early Head Start model continues to amaze me. As to "everyone looks forward to Fridays" -- that sounds like the impact our monthly 3rd Friday meeting of the Peninsulas Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation Group. We "feel appreciated, taken care of, and important" when each is over. -gw

 

When the Infant Mental Health (IMH) Specialist walks into the playroom, she sees Karina and her mother Karen. Six-month-old Karina sits in her infant seat on the table and Karen sits in a chair. They both face the door. Karen reads a magazine as Karina gazes at the side of her face. The IMH Specialist softly says, “Karina, is Karen the prettiest mommy you’ve ever seen?” Karen looks up and smiles at the IMH Specialist. The IMH Specialist then says, “Did you see how lovingly Karina was looking at you?” Karen laughs and tickles Karina’s belly, saying, “You’re such a silly baby!” Karina and her mother exchange sounds and giggles as the IMH Specialist looks on. The home visitors happily chat over the complimentary breakfast that the agency provides for their meeting every Friday morning. They are also getting ready for their meeting with the Mental Health Consultant (MHC). Every Friday the MHC meets with the home visitors as a group and then holds a reflective supervision session with the home visitor supervisor.The supervisor, in turn, conducts individual supervision sessions with the home visitors. Everyone looks forward to Fridays because they feel appreciated, taken care of, and important.

 

THESE SCENARIOS ARE TYPICAL of any infant/toddler program that provides mental health services. Mental health services forpregnant women, infants and toddlers, and their families can take many forms, depending on the program and the families (e.g., consulting with staff, consulting with children and fami-lies, providing direct mental health services, etc.). Regardless of how mental health services are delivered, the understanding of mental health is the same: prevention first, promotion always,and intervention when necessary.

 

On Preschool Psychopathology: Children's mental health has gone global

 

Kellye, the KMH ARNP who covers the Youth Inpatient Unit, passed this article on to me. Thankse, Kellye.

 

Preschool psychopathology is a parent's concern in 23 societies. Children's mental health has gone global. -gw

 

 

On National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day: May 3, 2011

National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day is May 3, 2011!

National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day is a key strategy of the Caring for Every Child's Mental Health Campaign (the Campaign), which is part of the Public Awareness and Support Strategic Initiative by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. The Campaign seeks to raise awareness about the importance of children's mental health and that positive mental health is essential to a child's healthy development from birth. This year, the national theme will focus on building resilience in young children dealing with trauma.

Communities around the country will participate by holding their own Awareness Day events, focusing either on the national theme, or adapting the theme to the populations they serve. On Awareness Day 2010, more than 1,000 sites held Awareness Day events and nearly 11,000 children and youth participated.

As always, the release of the SAMHSA Short Report (PDF - 1.9MB) will coincide with Awareness Day. The 2011 Short Report will feature how systems of care can positively affect children who have experienced trauma.

Calls To Action for Awareness Day 2011 National Event

• Integrate mental health and model resilience skills in every environment that has an impact on child development from birth.
• Enhance resilience and nurture social and emotional skills in young children from birth.
• Provide information to the public and teach them to recognize the signs of traumatic stress.
• Raise awareness that treatment for trauma is critical to achieving the milestones of a child's social and emotional development from birth.
• Promote trauma-informed services and supports in all child-serving settings.

The national event in Washington, DC, will open with an art exhibit sponsored by the American Art Therapy Association at the prestigious Shakespeare Theatre-Harman Center for the Arts in Washington, DC, (http://www.shakespearetheatre.org ) and continue with a tribute to youth who dealt with trauma in their childhood and who built on their resilience. A joint award from the Office of the Secretary, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services and the Chairman of the National Endowment of the Arts will be presented to a celebrity who experienced trauma, who demonstrated resilience, and who used his or her celebrity as a platform to educate about trauma and resilience.

Click here to learn about the Benefits of Collaborating on Awareness Day Year-Round.

Thanks to Chris at Holly Ridge, Bremerton, for bringing this to my attention. -gw

On Fostering: Families and infants are beneficiaries of U of W's CIMHD research

http://www.cimhd.org/index.html
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The Fostering Families Project (FFP)

The Fostering Families Project (FFP) is a federally-funded, longitudinal, randomized controlled trial, involving over 200 toddlers in child welfare dependency and their caregivers. The project is a comparative effectiveness study of the Promoting First Relationships intervention (PFR) and the Early Education and Support (EES) intervention. Participant children are between 11 and 24 months of age who have recently experienced a change of care provider through actions of the child welfare/foster care system. PFR and EES interventionists work with foster, kin, and birth care providers. PFR focuses on understanding child's cues, attachment needs, and developmental level, with the goal of minimizing the impact that the experience of separations and caregiver transitions will have on developing attachment strategies and emotional regulation. EES provides caregiver resource and referral, education and support, but does not have an attachment focus.

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This project is possible because of the strong support and collaboration of administrators and social workers at Washington State's Department of Social & Health Services Children's Administration. This project is unique in that we intervene as early as possible after a young child with a developed attachment relationship has experienced the loss of that caregiver, and try to follow the children and maintain the interventions even if children are moved from caregiver to caregiver several times over the course of the study. Our goal is to determine the impact that an attachment-focused intervention can have on this vulnerable population, during an extremely stressful time, and at a crucial period in development.

Stress Regulation in Foster Infants

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This research looks at the development of the HPA axis, or “stress response system” in children who are child welfare dependency.

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A sub-group of 50 children in the Fostering Families Project (FFP) described above will be enrolled in this study as well. We measure the children's production of cortisol, a by-product of the stress response, both pre-and post-intervention. Most infants develop a regulated stress response during their first year of life through predictable, soothing interactions with their caregivers. Normal stressors, like a diaper change or a doctor's visit, occur daily in the lives of infants and toddlers. When their stress response system is activated, interactions with their caregivers allow them to become calm and return to a normal baseline level of cortisol production. After the first year, their stress response system begins to achieve this response with less interaction, resulting in a regulated response to stressors. Extreme or repeated stress without the consistent support of a caregiver may leave a child with a stress response system that is either hyper-responsive or under-responsive. Our hypothesis is that an intervention that focuses on attachment will help the stress response of foster children to become better regulated, and that improved HPA functioning will be related to improved developmental, behavioral, and emotional outcomes.

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http://www.cimhd.org/projects.html
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Two projects described on the Center on Infant Mental Health and Development site. Promoting First Relationships is another project, one that I have been a beneficiary of. The materials form a basis for my present work with young children. CIMHD is associated with the University of Washington School of Nursing. So close at hand! -gw

On BLOCK Fest and Early Numeracy in Clallam County: Early childhood math education

http://www.blockfest.org/

 

Reading some of the research on the Block Fest website (at www.blockfest.org), I came across an astounding finding: that math readiness for kindergarten is a better predictor of later reading proficiency than is reading readiness for kindergarten. I was to find similar findings as I read some of the research cited in the NRC book.

 

The most disturbing thing I read in the book, though, was that lower SES kids arrive in kindergarten significantly behind others and then fall further behind in succeeding grades. But then there was good news: playing a simple board game can help solve the problem. And playing with blocks helps, too. Following up on this, I came across a great website run by Gwen Dewar, one I wish it had been available to me when my children were young. I hope everyone interested in math and kids will look at www.parentingscience.com/preschool-board-game-math.html and at other pages on this site.

 

http://blog.seattlepi.com/mathinking/2009/09/06/early-childhood-math-education/

 

Ellen Fetchiet, who works for the Lower Elwa tribe, participates in our consultation group, coming all the way from Port Angeles to join us. Her spouse Bill Marsh posted the piece above on math and preschoolers on the Seattle PI blog. Bill is a mover and a shaker to promote BLOCK Fest in his county. He writes:

 

Clallam County's participation in BLOCK Fest and our other efforts in early numeracy, both our successes and our failuers, can help Washington plan for how toimplement Strategy #11 of our Early Learning Plan. Any work done here in early mathematics will help the children, families, and schools in the county with the worst graduation rates in the state. Maybe the last can be helped by being first in early math.

 

Excerpts from Strategy #11 of Washington's ten year Early Learning Plan, released Sept. 2, 2010, per Bill.  -gw

 

A statewide awareness and value of early learning numeracy skills will be created. OSPI, DEL, and Thrive b Five Washington will take the lead in initiating programs that promote community-side awareness of the importance of early matahematics and numeracy skills to later school achievement. ...

 

A growing body of research ... supports the need to reach all parents and early learning providers so that they can understand and are able to support children's early mathematics and numeracy development. ... Early childhood teachers and providers are ofte uncomfortable teaching mathematics.

On ECMH: The movement here on the peninsulas

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We're not a collection of professionals, we're a movement. And we're at it again. Meeting this Friday, February 18th, from 4 to 6 p.m. at Kitsap Mental Heath Services, main campus, Bremerton. If you want to feel like you have your fingers on the pulse regarding ECMH services on the Kitsap/Olympic penninsulas, please join us at the table. Where else can you draw on the experiences of such a broad variety of ECMH-serving local professionals, get feedback on your cases, and network at the same time? Here are some video clips from our January consultation. -gw
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On Our Duty to Care: The needs of very young children whose families are experiencing complicated deployments and reunifications

From Linda, this heads up on a training in Spokane. -gw
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February 2, 2011 

FROM:     Karen Walker, ESIT Program Administrator

Washington Early Support for Infants and Toddlers

SUBJECT:   FYI:  Zero to Three - Duty to Care Training

The Department of Early Learning/Early Support for Infants and Toddlers program is happy to share the following training opportunity information with our stakeholders.

Zero to Three is holding a Duty to Care Training on 15-16 March 2011. The training will be in Spokane. There are only 45 seats available for this event.

Zero to Three's  Coming Together Around Military Families(r)(CTAMF) initiative works to strengthen the resilience of young children and families who are impacted by such deployment-related issues.

The Duty to Care (DTC) training series explores the helping professional's role and the needs of very young children whose families are experiencing complicated deployments and reunifications. This training is offered free of charge to helping professionals both within the military and civilian sectors.

Who should attend the Duty to Care training series?

You are invited to attend if:

* You received information from your local installation or State Point of Contact.

* You are a military child care, mental health, family support, or health professional working with active duty military families with very young children.

* You are a civilian child care, mental health, health, or family support professional working with active duty Service, National Guard, or Reserve families with very young children.

We hope that individuals from the following organizations will consider sending representation to this training as well:

* Washington Association for the Education of Young Children (WAEYC)

* Thrive by Five Washington

* Washington State Child Care Resource & Referral Network

* Parent Trust

* WithinReach

* Council for Children & Families Washington

* Council for Exceptional Children Division of Early Childhood

* Department of Early Learning

* Washington State Family Policy Council

* Washington State Department of Health

If you can think of any key players I have missed please feel free to add them. This is the first time this training will be offered in Washington off an installation, so we hope to have a great turnout.

Thank you for your assistance.

Robbin Seeberger

State Youth Coordinator, Contractor

WA National Guard Family Programs

Bldg #3 Camp Murray, Tacoma, WA  98430

Office:   (253)512-7985

BB:        (253) 548-4942

Fax:       (253)512-7623

Toll Free: 800-364-7492

E-mail: robbin.seeberger@us.army.mil

On Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy Works for Preschoolers: Treatment manual available

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http://www.infantinstitute.com/index.html
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Lucy Berliner at UW/Harborview has noted exciting research results and a valuable website.
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Structured brief trauma-focused CBT works just fine for preschoolers with very few adaptations needed. Kids who don't get specific treatment do not get better. Just do it! You can download from http://www.infantinstitute.com/.

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The manual from the Tulane Institute of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health is enormous and complete. -gw
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This link will download the Preschool PTSD Treatment manual (PPT) as a .pdf file. The manual is a 12-session, manualized trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT) protocol by Scheeringa, Cohen, and Amaya-Jackson (2002).

On Rebecca Perbix Mallos at Navos-Sponsored Training: Treatment considerations on attachment & trauma in children

The Navos Consortium Training Advisory Board Presents:

Attachment & Trauma in Children -

Treatment Considerations

 When:   February 9, 2011       8:30—9:00 am registration

9:00—4:30 pm training

Where:  The Brockey Center at South Seattle Community College

Cost:   $99.00, LUNCH ON YOUR OWN 12:00 – 1:00

CEU’s:   6 CEU’s are available for LMSW’s, LMHC’s, and LMFT’s through the Washington Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers.                                                        

Learning Objectives:

The successful participant will be able to:

ü Design a treatment plan specific to attachment disorders.

ü Integrate trauma treatment with attachment disorder treatment.

ü Work with children in a way which does not include play therapy.

ü Develop family therapy skills based on both adult and child attachment styles.

ü Learn differential diagnosis skills for Reactive Attachment Disorder, Mood Disorder, ADHD and PTSD.

About the Presenter:            Rebecca Perbix Mallos, MSW, LCSW

Rebecca Perbix Mallos, has been working therapeutically with children and their families built through adoption for over 30 years. She specializes in treating children traumatized by early abuse, neglect and disrupted attachment. She is a well known presenter in the U.S. and Canada on topics such as Trauma and Attachment, Reactive Attachment Disorder, Adoption Built Families, and the Impact of Trauma on the Developing Child. She has appeared on numerous national television shows, written many articles and made over 300 presentations to parents and professionals on topics related to foster care and adoption. Rebecca is the past director of the Adoption Resource Center at  Children’s Home Society of Washington, a former national board member of ATTACH, founding board member of the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute in New York, and the former director of the Attachment Disorder Institute in Seattle. She is a Practicum Instructor for the University of Washington graduate school of Social Work, and is an Approved Clinical Supervisor for the Washington State Department of Health. More importantly, Rebecca is a parent by birth, adoption and fostering.

Cancellation Policy:

Cancellations must be received no later than February 4, 2011.

For More Information contact: Debbie Farrar, Training Coordinator, highlineconsortium@hotmail.com

Registration Accepted Via:

·        Email: highlineconsortium@hotmail.com   

·        FAX: 206-933-7005

·        Mail: Navos, Attn: Consortium Training, PO Box 69080, Seattle, WA  98168