Project Self-Sufficiency to offer free virtual workshops on childhood trauma, resilience

Project Self-Sufficiency will host a series of three free virtual workshops this summer designed to educate parents, caregivers and community members about adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), childhood trauma and strategies for building resilience.

The “Connections Matter” workshop will be offered in English on Tuesday, July 21, at 2 p.m. and in Spanish on Wednesday, July 22, at 2 p.m. The sessions will examine the effects of childhood trauma while providing information about prevention, protection and community resilience.

A third workshop, “Understanding ACEs: Building Self-Healing Communities,” will be held Wednesday, Aug. 19, at 2 p.m. The presentation will focus on the neurological and biological effects of childhood adversity and its long-term impact on health and development.

All three workshops will be conducted virtually via Zoom and are free and open to the public. Participants can obtain login information by calling Project Self-Sufficiency at 973-940-3500.

The workshops are funded by the New Jersey Department of Children and Families and presented by Prevent Child Abuse New Jersey.

The Connections Matter curriculum is intended for parents, caregivers, educators and community members who work with school-age children. Discussions will focus on understanding adverse childhood experiences and how supportive relationships can help lessen the effects of trauma.

The Understanding ACEs workshop will examine how childhood trauma affects physical and neurological development and will offer strategies for improving health and well-being throughout life.

According to Project Self-Sufficiency, adverse childhood experiences generally fall into three categories: abuse, neglect and household dysfunction. The organization said research estimates that about 67% of people have experienced at least one adverse childhood experience.

Executive Director Deborah Berry-Toon said the workshops are intended to increase awareness of childhood trauma while helping communities create safe, stable and nurturing environments for children.

”Our goal is to help make our community a place in which every child can thrive by providing education and training on adverse childhood experiences and assuring safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments,” Berry-Toon said. “Protection, prevention and resilience promotion can profoundly improve health according to recent discoveries in neuroscience, epigenetics and epidemiology.”