Why Isn’t My Child Succeeding?

By Beau Black It’s common to worry about your child’s future, and it can be frustrating to see them struggle in school or life. For some children, issues can arise as a result of trauma. Others may not have learned the skills that enable them to succeed. If you’re… Read More

Abandonment Issues at the Holidays

By Anna McKenzie The holidays often bring families together. While the emphasis on close relationships results in joy for many, it can mean sadness and fear for others. If you have experienced abandonment, estrangement, or the traumatic loss of a parent or guardian, the holidays may dredge up painful memories. Even… Read More

School Shootings: The Trauma Left Behind

By Beau Black “Unresolved trauma … leaves traces on our minds and emotions, on our capacity for joy and intimacy, and even on our biology and immune systems.” – Meadows Senior Fellow Bessel van der Kolk in his bestseller The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in… Read More

Scars: What Lies Beneath Physical Abuse

A child that’s being abused doesn’t stop loving its parents, it stops loving itself. As young people come into the Claudia Black Young Adult Center with addictions, mental health and trauma issues we often find that beneath those are the scars of physical abuse. Read More

Scars: What Lies Beneath; Emotional Abandonment

When we think of trauma we most often think of incidents that are blatant and acute, visible and sudden, such as a natural disaster or a car wreck, mass shootings, or acts of terrorism. But some people experience trauma as more subtle and chronic that present in the form… Read More

Scars: What Lies Beneath Sexual Trauma

Leah, 21, presents herself as shy and pleasant, yet has a history of multiple relationships with abusive men, a history of cutting and most recently made a suicide attempt. Alexis, 24, seeks treatment after a heroin overdose. Jon, 22, comes to treatment for depression. He has dropped out… Read More

Scars: What Lies Beneath

Losing a loved one is one of the most distressing experiences one can face. At the Claudia Black Young Adult Center we often treat young adults who have experienced a loss that is not a natural part of growing up. Most people experiencing normal grief and bereavement have a period of sorrow, numbness, and even guilt and anger but gradually these feelings ease, and it's possible to accept the loss and move forward. Read More

Bullying and the Internet: A Synergistic Impact

By Dr. Claudia Black Today’s young adults, 18 to 26 years of age, are facing an escalating mental health crisis. One in five is suffering from a diagnosable mental, emotional, and behavioral disorder. Depression, substance abuse, social anxiety, self-harm, and suicidal ideation are experienced at alarming rates for those of this young age. Read More

The Delicate Dynamics of Intimacy; How Early Relational Trauma Plays Out in Our Adult Relationships

Our capacity for empathy and closeness is formed and strengthened through the quality of our childhood relationships. From conception onwards, we resonate in or out of tune with those who bring us into this world. Our nervous systems are fashioned by nature to resonate with the nervous systems of others to… Read More

The Trauma/Addiction Cycle

Addiction encourages trauma, and trauma can encourage addiction. This process becomes a vicious circle or negative feedback loop, with trauma contributing to addiction, which in turn fuels more trauma, encourages still more addiction, and so on. The Claudia Black Young Adult Center treats substance and process addictions, recognizing them as… Read More