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Adult Survivors of
Child Abuse (ASCA)
Global Newsletter
Fall 2017
In This Issue
-UPLIFT newsletter name search
-Tree Branches: Creative artwork
-Scott: Volunteer Director
-Facing The Storm: Creative artwork
-Debbie: If Roses Were Blue
-ASCA Meetings: Let's talk about cross talk
-Volunteer, comment, find us on Faceboo
In this issue,
we share an update on our
name search for the
UPLIFT newsletter , and
introduce you to our new
Volunteer Director. We
also share some creative forms of self expression from
some Adult Survivors of Child Abuse. Finally, we learn
more about the benefits of our ASCA meeting
guidelines.
As our Quarterly newsletter will sometimes feature
survivor's personal stories, please be advised some
content could be triggering for some people.
The Morris Center and the ASCA Program continue to
grow worldwide with over 50 support group meetings.
We need your help to reach more survivors. Please
consider volunteering, following us on Facebook, or
by making a donation in any requested amount that
feels right for you. The Morris Center wants to remind
all of you that you are awesome and appreciated.
The Morris Center for Healing from Child Abuse
Unable to see p arts of this newsletter?
Click here f or a web based version
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We want to give a big thank you to all who
submitted name suggestions for our
monthly newsletter UPLIFT. The good
news is that the group who owns the
website "upliftconnect" has graciously
agreed to allow us to continue using the
name UPLIFT for our monthly newsletters.
So... for now, we will stick with our original
name. Again, a big thank you to those who
submitted suggestions!
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There are many tree branches
That do not become known
Until you reach out for them
Artwork by Amaroq
Words by Echosaisis
MEET SCOTT: OUR NEW VOLUNTEER DIRECTOR
For a long time, years and years, my primary mechanism for
recovery from childhood trauma was individual therapy. When
the therapists were competent, it helped, but I always felt
something was missing. I once told a therapist that I wanted to
try group therapy so I could be with others like me. But he
discouraged the idea.
Decades passed, and then came the Internet. A web search
introduced me to the ASCA program. The ASCA program
looked very promising, but there were no groups in my city. I
started one. The act of starting a support group was healing.
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Sure enough, sitting with others who have been through what I
had been through, was very healing.
No longer was I passive. I became the leader of my own
healing. I was even helping others to heal. As much as
anything, since childhood trauma can cause a feeling of
helplessness and powerlessness, this community engagement
was good for me.
Now, I'm helping others volunteer to help childhood trauma
survivors. The ASCA program at the Morris Center is looking
for volunteers, for an assortment of activities including the
following:
Start a support group
Fund-raise by hosting a bake sale, wine and cheese
tasting, car wash.
Grant writing
Pass out flyers introducing ASCA or a local support group
For therapists and organizations - start a provider led
group
Translate the survivor to thriver manual from English into
another language
Spread awareness by creating art and displaying in a
library, school, or community center
Help manage the ASCA discussion board
Maybe you have some other ideas, ways of helping ourselves
as a community of survivors.
Please write to Scott at tmsascavolunteer@gmail.com
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Facing The Storm
by I Marcheselli
This drawing is part of a series of over twenty
survivor sketches done in color pencil around
1997
I Marcheselli
Debbie: If Roses Were Blue
I found ASCA long after beginning my recovery work.
What I liked about ASCA was its appeal to adult
survivors of child abuse. At the time, there were many
organizations helping children but few with a priority of
helping adult survivors. When I found ASCA , I was
thrilled to find the Survivor to Thriver Manual available
for download. I was immediately impressed with
ASCA's acknowledgment and explanation regarding
other step programs that are not particularly suited to a
survivor's healing j ourney. As a survivor, I also found
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this to be true. ASCA's step model and so many of its
components were all helpful elements in my own
healing, so I knew its value. Plus, ASCA provides links to
other resources, such as articles and organizations,
recognizing that there isn't a one-size-fits-all approach.
Survivors need a variety of resources to help them find
what's best for them and their j ourney.
The same is true for including ASCA in the small
resource section of If Roses Were Blue.
I know that a children's book of this nature can appeal
to the child within of adult survivors. I know that
memories, fears, and behaviors-unresolved-can remain
trapped in the body/mind at the time they were created.
Adult survivors need to know not only that they are
lovable and worthwhile now, but that they were also
lovable and worthy then.
ASCA Meetings: Let's talk about cross talk
First, sharing is a two-way street. We share and disclose for the
purpose of liberating ourselves from our secrets, our shame, our
humiliation, our painful story of childhood abuse, the negative
effects on our lives. We also share to relate our successes, our
strategies, our growth and unfolding as human beings who have
been impacted by childhood abuse.
Yet we share in the context of a community of ASCA members,
people who have been through similar experiences. Thus our
shares are meant not only as a catharsis and an opportunity to
gain insight and support for ourselves, but also to connect with
others through our sharing. We all know how various shares
impact us - how we nod in empathy, how we squirm with
discomfort, how our agitation oozes out, how our sadness
releases tears, as we listen to others share.
The topic of cross-talk often comes up, especially for new comers
to ASCA meetings.
During the shares no cross-talk is permitted. According to the
instructions read by the co-facilitator during every meeting prior
to the tag shares, cross-talk is defined as "referring to another
person in anyway or commenting on another person's share."
What does this mean from a practical perspective and what is the
reasoning underpinning this guideline?
First, the no cross-talk guideline exists to increase the level of
safety for participants. Participants need to be able to share
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without the concern or fear that someone will, in
any way whatsoever - criticize, demean, challenge, contradict,
minimize, censure, question, etc., what they are feeling, thinking
and sharing. When someone is sharing, the role of others in the
ASCA support group is to listen and take-in, to internally
resonate and empathize. The group becomes a respectful,
receptive vessel receiving whatever a member is sharing. There is
no judgement, no evaluation, no opinion, no
advice.
Second, responding to the speaker happens only during the
formal feedback period for the meeting. Participants can also
"respond directly to a speaker" in a respectful manner
following the closure of the meeting. Referring to the group (for
example, by using the word "you all" or "you guys") or an
individual in the group during our feedback and
shares is also considered crosstalk. By following the guidelines
on feedback and comments during the shares of the meeting, we
help foster a more trusting environment.
Third, the purpose of sharing is to focus on ourselves and what
we are feeling and working on. When we begin a share by
referring to or referencing someone else in the group, we are
refocusing on that person rather than focusing on one's self. If
permitted to persist, this could have a negative influence on the
ASCA meeting dynamic. Fourth, perhaps the biggest slip for new
comers concerning the no cross-talk guideline is the spontaneous
acknowledging of a previous speaker and how the speaker has
stirred them. From one perspective, this seemingly innocent
gesture of acknowledgement seems harmless. What is important
for ASCA meetings is consistency . The ASCA guidelines around
no cross-talk are not meant to be impolite or unnatural. Rather
the guidelines are for consistency and safety.
Finally, these are not perfect guidelines, and people may have
varying ideas about the "no cross-talk" guideline. But for
consistency, continuity, safety, and the common good,
by participating in an ASCA meeting we all agree to honor and
abide by the stated guidelines and procedures of ASCA, and any
interventions made by the co-facilitators.
Support The ASCA community
If you would like to volunteer, have comments, or would like to
provide supportive feedback for anyone featured in this newsletter,
send an email to ascanewseditor@gmail.com .When providing
supportive feedback, please remember to include that person's name in
the subject line of your email. The Morris Center provides training,
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coaching and mentoring for Adult Survivors of Child Abuse who are
interested in volunteering. New volunteers are always welcome.
Be featured in the ASCA Newsletter
Please submit: your own stories, photography, artwork, poetry and
other self-expression, book reviews, and upcoming events
to ascanewseditor@gmail.com.
A special thank you, to all those who have made a donation
to the Norma J Morris Center. We would not be here without
you.
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