Jan. 29, 2021

Fresh Take: Dr. Christine Koh On Building a Family After Adverse Childhood Experiences

Dr. Christine Koh creates content to help people live better and happier. She also grew up with adverse childhood experiences. We discuss the CDC ACEs framework for understanding early adversity, and how to go on and build happy families of our own.

Dr. Christine Koh, in her own words, is a "music and brain scientist turned multimedia creative." Christine creates content to help people live better, happier, and with elevated purpose and intention, including the Edit Your Life podcast. She's also someone who grew up with adverse childhood experiences, and has experience in building a family when our family of origin was not the kind of family we want.

In this episode we discuss the measurable physiological detriments of toxic stress; the importance of safe, stable, nurturing environments; and most importantly, that it is possible for significant challenges of early adversity to be met once they are no longer cloaked in shame. As Vincent Felitti, co-founder of the ACE Study, explains: “When we make it okay to talk about what happened, it removes the power that secrecy so often has.”

Here are links to some of the writing on the topic that we discuss in this episode:

Christine Koh: The Adults Who Saved Me And What You Need To Know About ACEs

Donna Jackson Nakazawa for Psychology Today: 8 Ways People Recover From Post Childhood Adversity Syndrome

Dr. Nerissa Bauer for healthychildren.org: ACEs- Adverse Childhood Experiences

NPR.org: Take the ACE Quiz- And Learn What It Does And Doesn't Mean

CDC.gov: Adverse Childhood Experiences


and follow Christine and her work at christinekoh.com


* Leave us a rating or review in your favorite podcast app! *

Join us on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok @whatfreshhellcast

on Twitter @WFHpodcast

questions and feedback: info@whatfreshhellpodcast.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices