What should I know and why?

The work of the task force is centered on preventing and responding to trauma in our community. The goal is to improve overall outcomes for everyone across all sectors by building an ecosystem that is compassionate and resilient. To realize this goal, we educate our community on the most pressing public health crisis of our time: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs).

ACEs do not happen in a vacuum and are best understood as four interconnected realms:  Adverse Childhood Experiences, Adverse Community Experiences, Adverse Climate Experiences, and Atrocious Cultural Experiences.   These are referred to as the Four Realms of ACEs. The impact of ACEs is far reaching, affecting all systems, all communities, and most individuals. (Center for Disease Control, 2021).  

We offer presentations, thought leadership, and evidence-based trainings, on ACEs, as well as Positive Childhood Experiences, neuroscience, trauma-informed organizations and systems, resiliency skills, and self-care.  This comprehensive support equips leaders, professionals, organizations and the community to create meaningful change because Adversity is Not Destiny!

To start your growth toward becoming more trauma-informed, please consider the options listed below.  Contact jvanete@ciscapefear.org for more information.

Trainings

Foundations of Resilience

Your journey to becoming trauma-informed and resiliency-focused begins with this two-part virtual training offered by the Resiliency Task Force. Participants will be introduced to the concepts of ACEs, toxic stress, trauma, and how they impact individuals and communities. Participants will also learn about skills for restoring and increasing their own resilience.

Part 1:  A screening of the film Resilience: the Biology of Stress and the Science of Hope (90 minutes)

Part 2:  Introduction to the Community Resilience model (90 minutes)

This is a monthly session offered on the 2nd Monday. Registration is required. Click here to REGISTER.

If you have already completed one of the parts at another time, you may register for and attend just the portion you need.

This can also be offered privately for your organization either virtually or in person.

Community Resiliency Model (CRM)

CRM® Skills Trainings introduces the six wellness skills of TRM® designed to help adults and children learn to track their own nervous systems in order to bring the body, mind and spirit back into greater balance, and to encourage people to pass the skills along to family, friends and their wider community.  Through hands-on experiences, participants will learn six basic skills to bring them back into their “resilience zone” where they can function as their best selves.  

Reconnect for Resilience (R4R)™

RFR training is a strengths-based, somatic program. Through demonstrations and group practice, participants are given the “owner’s manual” to the body’s safety and threat management system and learn to use their own natural ability to find balance. When we understand that the negative effects of high stress and trauma are normal responses of our nervous system’s design for survival, the shame and judgment we hold towards ourselves and others can be healed.

connections matter (through Prevent Child abuse NC)

Geared towards faith communities, Connections Matter is a community-based initiative that invites you to explore how the connections we make in life profoundly impact our brain's ability to grow and our own individual abilities to cope and thrive. We will explore topics such as Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs), trauma, brain development, and resilience. You will learn how these topics intersect with one another, and most importantly, how you can apply these concepts in your own life.

Connections Matter ultimately strives to promote the building of more resilient,compassionate, and trauma-informed communities thus allowing children and individuals to succeed. For a one page document you can print to share information about this model, click here.

Mental health first aid

Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is a public education program that helps participants identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders. Just as CPR training helps a layperson without medical training assist an individual following a heart attack, Mental Health First Aid training helps a layperson assist someone experiencing a mental health crisis.  This training is offered by our partners Trillium Health Resources and Coastal Horizons Center.

Learn More Through Films

Resilience: The Biology of Stress & the Science of Hope

This 60 minute film explores the science behind Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). Directed by James Redford, it not only explains how exposure to trauma affects a child’s brain, but also demonstrates how toxic stress increases the risk of a lifetime of negative health outcomes, even early death. This film serves as an entry point to understanding the work of the New Hanover County Resiliency Task Force.

See our calendar of events for upcoming screenings or e-mail us to schedule a screening at your church, organization, school or club. To watch the five-minute ACEs Primer based on this film, click here. For a two-minute trailer, click here.

Broken Places

This 75 minute film follows several families through significant adversity for 20 years, and explores why some children are severely damaged by early adversity while others are able to thrive. Childhood trauma victims profiled decades ago were followed to learn how their experiences shaped their lives as adults. Broken Places interweaves these longitudinal narratives with commentary from a few nationally renowned experts to help viewers better understand the devastating impact of childhood adversity as well as the inspiring characteristics of resilience.

To see a trailer for this film, click here:

paper tigers

'Paper Tigers' (1 hr 42 min.) chronicles a year in the life of Lincoln High School in the community of Walla Walla, Washington. The kids who come to Lincoln have a history of truancy, behavioral problems and substance abuse. After Lincoln's principal is exposed to research about the effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), he decides to radically change the school's approach to discipline. With the aid of diary camera footage, the film follows six students. From getting into fights, grappling with traumatic events in their lives, and on the cusp of dropping out, they find healing, support and academic promise at Lincoln High.

To see a trailer for this film, click here:

Resources to Expand Understanding

How can I dig deeper?

We have compiled a short list of resources for you to consider in your growth toward resilience. Please click here to access the RTF Recommended Resources infographic.