Accept Your Vulnerabilities

An important dimension of Your Owner’s Manual is taking into account risks deriving from challenging experiences early in life. Hopefully, you received a strong foundation for lifetime resilience through a stable and supportive environment that did not deeply stress your ability to cope. For some of us, me included, this was not the case. A stressful or highly stressful early environment increases your lifetime risk of risky coping mechanisms, mental health challenges, and chronic disease. What this means is that I and others in this situation must take extra care throughout life (to the extent one is able) to guard your health and well-being using all the resources available. I cover this topic and the study below in depth in my book and series of posts on this site and on my YouTube channel Life Roadmaps from a Retired Psychologist under the playlist title Transforming Family Trauma.

My name is Lane Lasater, a retired clinical psychologist. In gratitude for the life I have been given, I am sharing everything I learned during my career and personal life here on my website http://www.LaneLasater.com and on my YouTube Channel Life Roadmaps from a Retired Psychologist. Each post contains my written material, an AI generated graphic, a 15-17 minute audio summary, and a 5-7 minute video summarizing the material.

Important research entitled “Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs)” gives you the opportunity to take stock of the ACEs you faced utilizing a scale developed by Drs. Vincent J. Felitti and Robert F. Anda and colleagues. These scientists conducted breakthrough research in 1998 titled “The Adverse Childhood Experiences Study” that demonstrated a significant correlation between adverse childhood events and many of the leading causes of death in adults.  They studied a sample of 9,508 men and women (all who had health insurance coverage through Kaiser Permanente HMO in San Diego). You can complete this survey for yourself below.

The ACEs Study

Participants first received a standardized medical evaluation which assessed adult risk behavior, overall health status and disease, and then completed a mail survey which asked them about seven categories of adverse childhood experiences: psychological, physical, or sexual abuse; violence against mother; or living with household members who were substance abusers, mentally ill or suicidal; or ever imprisoned. I post the questionnaire here or you can complete it online at https://www.acesaware.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/ACE-Questionnaire-for-Adults-Identified-English-rev.7.26.22.pdf

Please complete the ACEs assessment below for yourself if you would like by answering Yes or No to each question.

Understanding Your ACEs Score

Your total possible score is 10. Two-thirds of their respondents reported a score of at least one, and one in eight reported a score of four or more. In their findings, a score of four or more adverse childhood experiences was associated with increased risk of disease, social and health problems. Below are the percentage breakdowns for scores of zero to three, and four or more ACEs.

Here’s the researchers’ summary and description of the relationship they found between ACEs scores and health risk behavior and diseases.

“More than half of respondents reported at least one, and one-fourth reported ≥ 2 categories of childhood exposures. We found a graded relationship between the number of categories of childhood exposure and each of the adult health risk behaviors and diseases that were studied (P <.001). Persons who had experienced four or more categories of childhood exposure, compared to those who had experienced none, had 4- to 12-fold increased health risks for alcoholism, drug abuse, depression, and suicide attempt; a 2- to 4-fold increase in smoking, poor self-rated health, ≥ 50 sexual intercourse partners, and sexually transmitted disease; and a 1.4- to 1.6- fold increase in physical inactivity and severe obesity. The number of categories of adverse childhood exposures showed a graded relationship to future adult diseases including ischemic heart disease, cancer, chronic lung disease, skeletal fractures, and liver disease. The seven categories of adverse childhood experiences were strongly interrelated, and persons with multiple categories of childhood exposure were likely to have multiple health risk factors later in life.”

Your ACEs Score

My Adverse Childhood Experiences score was six. This confirmed what I already knew—I started life as a very high-risk person. My recovery from ACEs, family trauma and addiction is a life and death matter for me. Whatever your risk score is, please know that every action you take toward recovery counts. Your recovery efforts are deadly serious but there is a way back which is what my life, career and this website are all about. Keep the faith!