By Lorna Collier
Twenty years ago, Hami Torres fled Mexico at age 13, her 11-year-old brother in tow. Terrified, they trekked for hours with a group of older strangers through desert scrub that slashed Hami’s bare legs bloody. Then the two children were folded into the spare-tire compartment of a car for the drive across the border.
The Torres children had left their home country to reunite with their mother and stepfather, who had entered the United States three months before. Yet once the children made it to this country, the ordeal wasn’t over. They lived in a crime-ravaged neighborhood where Hami was expected to join a gang for protection. She constantly feared being found by immigration authorities, always looking over her shoulder for officials who might find out she was undocumented.
Share This Post!
Trauma screening may help connect children to specific mental health services
By Penn State Each year between 200,000 and 270,000 children and youth enter foster care placements with child welfare services, and many more children receive child welfare services while remaining in [...]
The Mental Health of Minority and Marginalized Young People: An Opportunity for Action
By Vivek H. Murthy, Surgeon General Mental health is an essential part of overall health. It not only affects the ability of young people to succeed in school, at work, and [...]
How to Break the Cycle of Childhoold Trauma? Help a Baby’s Parents
By Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR Teresa Cox-Bates was only 11 years old when her father died, an event that dramatically altered her family's circumstances and shaped her childhood experiences. Studies also show that [...]
Supporting Children and Teens During the Holiday Season
Provided by The National Child Traumatic Stress Network This fact sheet provides tips that parents can use to talk to their children and teens about how they are feeling and changes to [...]
How a History of Trauma is Affecting the Children of Gaza
By Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR Researchers say the cumulative trauma of chronic ethnic-political violence has a profound and lasting impact on children's mental health and development, affecting their functioning and outlook on the [...]
Helping Children Cope After a Traumatic Event
Provided by the Child Mind Institute In the wake of a traumatic event, your comfort, support and reassurance can make children feel safe, help them manage their fears, guide them through their [...]