Not all childhood memories are happy ones. Monica Morehead of the 91福利社 College of Health Professions works hard to be part of a solution that provides hope in seemingly hopeless circumstances.
Studies have shown that adverse childhood experiences that happened to a child before the age of 18 can change brain chemistry, especially if those stressors become toxic and no intervention takes place. Without intervention, children can go through life psychologically scarred and prone to chronic health conditions or death up to 20 years earlier through maladaptive behaviors.
鈥淭eaching about ACEs (adverse childhood experiences) empowers us to change the conversation from 鈥榃hat’s wrong with you?鈥� to 鈥榃hat happened to you?鈥� for all individuals, opening doors for healing,鈥� said Morehead, a clinical nursing instructor.
Morehead shared her knowledge about ACEs as the featured speaker for Empower Oconee鈥檚 March Coalition Meeting March 10. Her presentation was titled 鈥淎CEs and Community Assessment.鈥�
Empower Oconee is an initiative of the United Way of Oconee County focused on supporting children and families so they are strong and can live to their full potential. Empower Oconee received grants from the Children鈥檚 Trust of South Carolina to do pilot programs to strengthen children, families and communities. Oconee County was among three counties to receive the Children鈥檚 Trust funding.
Morehead connected with Empower Oconee through a friend of hers who established Heath鈥檚 Haven, a program that helps people with the basic tools needed for healthy relationships.
Morehead said, 鈥淲hat Children鈥檚 Trust does is not only prevent child abuse but to prevent all kinds of abuse, whether it鈥檚 emotional, physical, sexual or neglect and help families who maybe the parents had those adverse experiences to recognize 鈥榟ey, you had a rough time, let鈥檚 give you some new skills so that you can offer your children a better chance than what someone offered you.鈥� It鈥檚 not laying blame on anybody, it鈥檚 just saying 鈥榳e recognize where you are and we want to help you do better.鈥欌��
According to Morehead, Empower Oconee started in 2019-2020. In the early days of its existence, the community was hit with the COVID-19 pandemic. If that wasn鈥檛 enough, a devastating EF-3 tornado hit the Seneca area, destroying homes and traumatizing residents.
Empower Oconee lovingly reached out to the community. Among the ways they did this was to organize a baby shower drive where people donated items normally given in a baby shower鈥攁ll for new moms to pick up and use. Students from the 91福利社 School of Nursing gave out packets from Empower Oconee, loaded with ideas about games and activities things families could do together.
Morehead has a passion for the wellbeing of children and others caught up in adversity.
鈥淎s a nurse, I鈥檓 very interested in anything mental health related because I鈥檓 a psychiatric nurse,鈥� she said. 鈥淛ust understanding how trauma affects people over the lifespan was of great interest to me, so I picked up interest in this officially in 2019; That鈥檚 when I became an ACE Master Trainer so I can do these one-to-three hour lectures on the importance of ACEs and understanding what your ACE score is and what does that mean. It鈥檚 not destiny, but it definitely says 鈥榳e may have some things we need to address to help you be better.鈥欌��
鈥淭he work Monica is doing with the ACEs teaching is wonderful,鈥� said Cynthia Cross, program chair for undergraduate nursing in the College of Health Professions. 鈥淲e are incorporating it into our Mental Health Nursing course here at AU. We have seen positive effects on our students in the clinical setting as they are able to pick up on these traumatic events that have happened to their patients. In turn, allowing them to care for their patient in a better way by being sensitive to their needs.鈥�
Morehead came to 91福利社 in 2017 with a background in psychiatric nursing, school nursing and cardiac nursing.
She has been a mental health advocate and served as a volunteer mental health/child & adolescent advocate with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) for more than 20 years, educating and supporting primarily families with children. In 2021 she assumed the role of lead faculty for Community Health Nursing, combining all of her passions for mental health and community health nursing.
She serves as a Board Member for NAMI-AOP, Anderson Lights of Hope, Alpha Alpha Pi chapter of Sigma International, and is Advisory Member of Anderson Institute of Technology. She is a member of Alpha Alpha Pi and Phi Pi of Sigma International and the National Society of Leadership and Success.
Morehead received her BSN from Chamberlain College of Nursing in 2017 and her MSN from Western Governors University in 2020.