Shrinking It Down: When Nightmares Become Reality in the U.S. (Special Episode)

By Steven Schlozman, MD, Gene Beresin, Executive Director and Ellen Braaten, PhD

Posted in: Hot Topics, Multimedia, Podcast

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In research that’s been done about kids’ fears, the most frightening thing is losing or being left without a parent.

Through the events at the U.S. southern border in the last weeks, we have watched migrant children live out their worst nightmares in the most traumatic way. There are millions of other children who are also watching these events and experiencing their worst fears played out, day after day through news media and adult conversations. The rest of us have been left feeling emotionally and conscionably horrified, and helpless about what to do next.

It is so important to be aware of and to discuss how these events have affected, and will continue to affect, the children and families who have been separated from each other. We must also address how it is affecting us as a nation. In this episode of Shrinking It Down, Drs. Gene Beresin, Steve Schlozman, and Ellen Braaten process all of this, including what we — individuals, communities, a nation — can do to get back some of the moral high ground we’ve lost.

Thank you for joining us in this journey and conversation. If you have a question or comment that we didn’t address, we’d love to hear from you.

* Write to us with your questions or thoughts on this episode.

* Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.

Additional reading:

A Psychiatrist’s National Prescription for Fixing What We’ve Done at the Border (WBUR’s CommonHealth)

Photo by: Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Episode edited by Sara Rattigan

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Steven Schlozman, MD

Steven Schlozman, MD, is an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School (HMS), course director of the psychopathology class for the MIT-HMS Program in Health, Sciences and Technology, and former co-director of the Clay Center for Youn...

To read full bio click here.

Gene Beresin, Executive Director

Gene Beresin, MD, MA is executive director of The MGH Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds, and a staff child and adolescent psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is also...

To learn more about Gene, or to contact him directly, please see Our Team.

Ellen Braaten, PhD

Ellen Braaten, PhD, is executive director of the Learning and Emotional Assessment Program (LEAP) at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), an associate professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School, and former co-director for the MGH Clay Cente...

To read full bio click here.