ABOUT US
Resources for Resilience™ is a North Carolina 501(c)3 nonprofit whose mission is to share practical, science-based tools designed to build up and support everyone’s resilience. Founded in 2017, our resiliency-focused community education and professional development programs teach individuals, educators, healthcare workers, caregivers, first responders, and other helping professionals how to keep themselves and the people they serve safe, healthy, and resilient in times of stress.
Our Call to Action
The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study, published in 1994, was a collaborative effort of the Center for Disease Control and Kaiser Permanente. This groundbreaking research looked at how 10 types of childhood trauma affected individuals’ long-term health. These categories included: physical, emotional, and sexual abuse; physical and emotional neglect; living with a family member who was addicted to alcohol or other substances, who was depressed, or who experienced other forms of mental illness; experiencing parental divorce or separation; having a family member incarcerated; and witnessing your mother being abused.
The ACE Study found that the higher someone’s ACE score was (or the more types of childhood adversity a person had experienced), the higher their risk was for developing chronic disease, experiencing symptoms of mental illness, becoming a victim of violence, or experiencing many other physical, emotional, and social consequences in adulthood. The study indicated that most people (64 percent) have at least one ACE and that 12 percent of the population has an ACE score of four. Having an ACE score of 4 nearly doubles the risk of heart disease and cancer, increases the likelihood of abusing alcohol by 700 percent, and elevates the risk of attempted suicide by 1,200 percent.
These sobering statistics led Robert Block, former president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, to name ACEs as “the single greatest unaddressed public health threat facing our nation today.” This points to the tremendous need for responses to this issue that are not just treatment-oriented, but that offer preventative solutions. The mission of Resources for Resilience™ is to offer such strategies to address the public health crisis of ACEs and instill the hope that adversity is not destiny.
We know that developmental trauma often creates problems with emotion regulation and can interfere with our ability to establish trusting connections. However, neuroscience research has also taught us that we are able to form new pathways in the brain that can lead to deeper connection and wellbeing. Using the work of pioneers such as Brené Brown, Judith Herman, Peter Levine, Elaine Miller-Karas, Pat Ogden, Stephen Porges, and Babette Rothschild as our foundation, we offer simple tools that are designed help people self-regulate and connect with others more effectively. Participants are then encouraged to teach these strategies to others in their schools, agencies, organizations and communities, sharing with them the hope of neuroplasticity and empowering them to help prevent future adversity while supporting each person’s capacity for wellbeing.
How You Can Help
Our team of dedicated Resiliency Educators has made a positive difference in the lives of so many, helping people apply our resiliency-building tools at home and at work. They continue to learn, practice, and thrive in their commitment to addressing adversity in all forms, and we are proud of all that they do to help community members deepen their resilience and experience better days. Our team has now reached individuals, families, organizations, and communities all throughout North Carolina and as far away as London, England, and Bhopal, India.
Through the generous support of individuals like you, we can continue to share our tools and resources with people of all ages, helping them learn new ways to manage stress, build their resilience, and keep themselves healthy. If you would like to join us in our mission to build safer, healthier, and more resilient communities, please give today.