By now you know the drill: it’s Friday, and this is an audio podcast of our weekly video broadcast of “The Dr J Show.” This week’s guest is Dr. Deborah Rodriguez, a pediatrician whose specialty is working with children and families
who’ve experienced trauma, including survivors of abuse and human trafficking. She works with the Hopeful Hearts Ministry and the Maria Goretti Network, and she’s a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Child
Abuse and Neglect.
Resources:
- Hopeful Hearts Ministry, hopefulheartsministry.org (any survivor of any abuse)
- Maria Goretti Network, mgoretti.org (peer support group with chapters in the US)
- Adorned in Grace, adornedingracetacoma.com (ministry to prevention and restoration of human trafficking
survivors and any survivor of trauma/abuse) - Mending the Soul website, which includes books, support groups, lots of educational material from a Christian
perspective - John Paul II Healing Center, jpiihealingcenter.org (resources, retreats, Catholic)
Reading Recommendations
- Abuse of Trust by Allen Hebert
- The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk MD
- Be Healed by Bob Schuchts
- Mending the Soul book and ministry by Steven Tracy
Action Item: Buy the book Abuse of Trust. Read it! Give it to your pastor, school principal or anyone else involved in ministry. Give it a
positive review on Amazon!
Follow the guidelines of trauma-informed ministry:
- Realize that trauma/abuse exist and is very common
- Recognize the signs of trauma
- Respond in a trauma-informed way (using the VEEL approach)
- Avoid re-traumatization
- Consider setting up a trauma-informed church/school/family to create a safe place for survivors to begin to heal
