Fall/Winter 2015
The Luna Model Soars! TM
In January, Easter Seals Michigan launched the LUNA (Look, Uncover, Nurture, Act) Model, a groundbreaking program that addresses trauma prevention and intervention in children and teens age 18 years and younger. Since it launched, the program has assessed nearly 500 children.
hormones, she has grown to about 4 feet 11 inches tall and 80 pounds. Her “hyper vigilance” and rigidity is a sign of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Laurel and Steve Smith adopted two Russian children – Gabby, 13, and Duncan, 11 -- when the children were very young. While the youths have progressed in their decade here, some of the effects of the trauma they endured haven’t been erased.
Both of the children have problems with food and “will eat anything” because they were not well-fed in Russia. In fact, Duncan prefers his food cold because that is what he is used to. Both have also been affected by a lack of love and affection during infancy, including being held or coddled.
Gabby was adopted when she was 25 months old and Duncan when he was about 8 months old.
That’s why the Smiths took advantage of a new LUNA Model program that steers services to children who have experienced any type of trauma -- whether it’s witnessing or being involved in a violent assault or more subtle, ongoing events such as lack of basic care.
Both children spent time in orphanages, hospitals, as well as private residences where they were both neglected. Exactly what the children experienced is unknown. When she arrived here, she was 15 pounds, 27 inches, the size of a typical 4-month-old in the United States. Thanks to
Duncan had attention deficit disorder that developed into Asperger’s syndrome.
Uriel Stephens, director of family services of Easter Seals Michigan, said childhood trauma spawns emotional and intellectual issues. “For children who have experienced early trauma, it can affect their brain development and learning capacity,” Stephens said. “A lot of children who experience trauma and live in a stressful environment develop that fight or flight behavior,” she said. Children who have experienced trauma are three times more likely to experience employment problems and suffer from depression, four times more likely to become an alcoholic and 15 times more likely to commit suicide. If you are interested in taking the screening or learning more about the LUNA Model, go to LunaModel.org. Portions of this write up appeared in the article, “Program Helps Children Who Experienced Trauma” written by Jameson Cook for The Macomb Daily, 10/1/15