At one of my recent trainings, I was enjoying lunch with the school principal and some teachers. We were, of course, talking about childhood trauma, and the principal asked me if I had read “The Deepest Well” by Dr. Nadine Burke Harris. I am embarrassed to admit now that I had never even heard of her so I, of course, had to remedy that ASAP. In case you’re wondering, I blame my children and 6+ months of quarantine for my lack of time to read anything of interest to me, either personally or professionally!
Once I returned home, I started researching Dr. Burke Harris and appropriately, began to wonder if I had been living under a rock for the past few years. How had I not dove headfirst into ALL the work of this intelligent woman? It was so applicable to everything I train teachers on, as well as just plain interesting to me, as an inner-city educator for 15+ years.
As luck would have it, Dr. Burke Harris had been featured on my all-time favorite podcast, Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard. I appreciate this podcast so much because not only do you get a front row seat to hearing the stories of some incredible celebrities, entrepreneurs, scientists, etc. but also there is an underlying theme of talking about past trauma and how that has shaped the lives of the guests. Of course, I find this type of thing fascinating!
So I listened to the podcast and was so intrigued by the work Dr. Burke Harris is doing. Of course, I hopped online and requested her book from the local library too. While I am still reading it (again…kids!), I would already highly recommend it to anyone who works with children in any capacity or who may want to learn more about childhood trauma, the ACEs research study or the possible long-term physical and mental effects of trauma on a person.
Do yourself a favor and give the podcast a listen here or check out her book here.
*Warning: This podcast regularly includes foul language. While I think it was minimal in this episode, I also think it’s worth mentioning for those who may find it offensive.
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