Blog Against Child Abuse - November 2011 Surviving Holidays Edition

Welcome to the November 2011 Blog Carnival Against Child Abuse!

This the the Surviving Holidays Edition of the carnival. Yesterday was Thanksgiving here in the US. My family spent a quiet day, watching movies, being thankful, and having family time. We spoke with out of town family (some calls were better than others), but mostly it was just the three of us together, and it was very nice. For those of you who celebrated yesterday, how was your holiday?

This month we have some great posts (with really smart ideas for coping during holidays). I hope they will help you think about good self-care during this season. We also had several submissions in response to the Penn State/Jerry Sandusky story, as well as other great submissions.

Surviving Holidays:
-Kerro from Kerro's Korner submitted, Holiday Coping
She wrote, "This post linked to what I thought was one of the best posts on "holiday coping" that I've ever read. The link is to Dr Kathleen Young, who posted from someone else."
I love this list, especially "Walk out the door the second things get gnarly. Just go." (and not just because she used the word gnarly which is kind of awesome) 

-Kate from Kate1975's Blog submitted, Holiday Coping
She wrote, "I assembled this resource page two years ago. It has helped me a lot over time, and I go to some of the pages throughout the year. I hope that it is a good resource for others."

-Kerro from Kerro's Korner submitted, I Made It
She wrote, "This is an older post about how I survived the Christmas madness last year."

-Kate from Kate1975's Blog submitted, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year Part 1 and The Most Wonderful Time of the Year Part 2 
Part 1 shares some of Kate's holiday story, and Part 2 has a great list of ideas for planning and coping with holidays. 


Healing and Therapy:
-cornnut32 from Picture of Experience submitted, A Chapter Closing
Writing, "This is it - the story of my confrontation! I've never felt so empowered in my life. Healing IS possible, it has taken me so many years to get to this point. If I can do it, others can too!"

-Tammy Taylor from Here We Go submitted, Little Miss Sunbeam
Tammy shares how therapy has helped her to reach out to the child within her, and enabled them to go on this healing journey together. 


Survivor Stories:
-Strife Survivor from My Life as a Strife Survivor submitted, The Beginning - Part 1
She wrote, "This story is my account of the first time I experienced sexual abuse."


Aftermath:
-Tracie submitted, Sometimes I Feel So Much Guilt
The Penn State story triggered me in ways I did not expect, causing me to look at the guilt I feel (even though it is not mine to carry) about other children who were abused by my uncle.  



 Advocacy and Awareness:
-Rick Belden from The Good Men Project submitted, A View Through A Cracked Lens
An Interview with Jon Ritchie brings up memories for Rick. 

-Jenn from ...so this is love... submitted, I Carry Them With Me
Jenn is a social worker who helps children who have been abused. They touch her heart, and she tries to be a safe place for them to share their stories and pain. 

-Brittany P from Butterfly Closures submitted, Penn State Scandal as it Triggers Many Survivors
Brittany found herself triggered by the Penn State news coverage and the stories of abuse even though it was different from the abuse she survived. She said, "Survivors just ache for other victims, because we know the harsh path that we walk, and because we often know the tragedy of an adult that doesn't follow through to protect a child."


-April from mindsetforlife submitted, Feeling Empowered
April recently wrote a book to inspire and empower abuse survivors, and she is sharing a piece of that work with us. 



In the News:
-An Indiana Senator wants to prevent child sex abuse
It is always encouraging to me when I see lawmakers making steps toward protecting children. Especially after this month, and all the news coming out about Penn State. 


Poetry:
-Tammy Taylor from Here We Go submitted, The Best of You
She wrote, "The best of you!"

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The Blog Carnival Against Child Abuse is a monthly event. The purpose is to raise awareness about the serious issue of child abuse and to share important posts with others who may not be frequent readers of an author's blog, and expose one's work to a wider audience. There are so many wonderful bloggers who are contributing to the cause of ending and recovering from child abuse. If you, as a reader or author, know of other blogs that you find helpful, please encourage them to submit to an upcoming issue of the Carnival Against Child Abuse; and please bookmark that page so we can continue to receive high quality submissions from a wide swath of bloggers.

Many thanks to all of you who shared your hearts and stories with us, and to all of you who read the submissions and show your support. You keep this carnival, the awareness, support, and healing going each month.


To provide another way for you to stay in contact with the blog carnival, and make sure you don't miss any updates; you can like the Blog Carnival Against Child Abuse Facebook Page. 

Thank you for raising your voice and speaking out against child abuse! 

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