Overview
Stressful and hard events that happen to us as children can affect us throughout our lives. These are known as Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs. These events usually involve a caregiver or someone we know, making it hard to form a strong bond and feel safe. This greatly impacts our development and forming our sense of self. ACEs are very common, and most Americans have at least one. If you have gone through one, it’s likely you’ve experienced others as well. ACEs can be things like:
- Physical, emotional, or sexual abuse
- Physical or emotional neglect
- Household Challenges
- Mental health issues
- Violence in the home
- Divorce, separation, or death of a parent
- Household member in prison
- Substance misuse
Events and experiences in our community can also impact our health. They can be things like:
- Safety and trust issues in the community
- Bullying
- Racism or discrimination
- Hunger or food insecurity
- Witnessing violence in communities and in families
The Effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences
These experiences can put us through prolonged stress, leading to long-lasting wear and tear on our body and brain. They can even affect things later in our lives, putting us at higher risk of chronic diseases, mental illness, and violent behaviors. The more experiences you have, the greater the risk of long-term health issues.
It is important to know that going through Adverse Childhood Experiences does not mean you will have long-term health issues, only that the chances are more likely. You can lessen the impact of these experiences and live a healthy life by taking care of yourself, and supporting your resilience.
Healing and Prevention
If you’re struggling with the stressful effects of ACEs, you also can learn ways to calm yourself. If you need more help, talking to a mental health professional can be a healthy next step.
There are also ways to prevent these experiences. By supporting the people and communities around us, we can reduce the stress in people’s lives. There are many ways of doing this, like: