{"id":22104,"date":"2019-04-17T21:49:45","date_gmt":"2019-04-17T21:49:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/ftf\/?p=22104"},"modified":"2019-04-17T22:39:40","modified_gmt":"2019-04-17T22:39:40","slug":"preventing-child-abuse-starts-with-strengthening-families","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ftf-stg.magnetry.com\/es\/2019\/04\/preventing-child-abuse-starts-with-strengthening-families\/","title":{"rendered":"Preventing child abuse starts with strengthening families"},"content":{"rendered":"

April is National Child Abuse Awareness Month, but prevention activities can happen every day.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnyone can be a child abuse prevention advocate,\u201d said Vanessa Bustillos, the statewide prevention coordinator for the Arizona Department of Child Safety Office of Prevention<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One of the ways families can help prevent child abuse is to mitigate or eliminate stress more effectively, Bustillos said. Experts recommend families develop five protective factors.<\/p>\n

They include parenting skills, concrete supports, resilience, social connections and social and emotional competence in children.<\/p>\n

Parenting Skills \u2013 \u201c<\/strong>Parenting can be challenging, luckily there is a lot of help available to parents,\u201d Bustillos said. She encourages families to look for parenting classes, support groups, and helplines that can help add to your parenting skills. The Birth to Five Helpline<\/a> provides free advice and answers to the toughest parenting questions from nurses and other child development experts. Expert help is a phone call away at 1-877-705-KIDS (5437).<\/p>\n

Concrete supports \u2013 \u201c<\/strong>Think about people or places you can call when you need help and make a list,\u201d Bustillos said. One community support is Arizona 2-1-1, which connects Arizona residents with available health and human services in their community by calling 877-211-8661.<\/p>\n

Resilience \u2013<\/strong> Bustillos encourages families to take time to practice self-care by doing things that help you relax. \u201cUsing positive coping skills can help you bounce back from challenging situations,\u201d she said. \u201cTaking a walk, visiting a friend, meditating or reading can help build up resilience. This will also help to model the use of positive coping skills for your children.\u201d<\/p>\n

Social connections –<\/strong> Building a social network and having support can reduce parent stress.<\/p>\n

\u201cReach out to a friend, family member, neighbor or parent support group when you need support,\u201d Bustillos said. \u201cFaith groups can also be supportive to families.\u201d<\/p>\n

Social and emotional competence in children \u2013<\/strong> Parents and caregivers can help build and support their child\u2019s social and emotional competence, Bustillos said.<\/p>\n

\u201cEncourage your child to express their feelings and help them identify coping skills,\u201d she said. \u201cModeling your own coping skills will help your children learn. Reach out to professionals if you believe your child is in need of counseling or other types of services. Behavioral health can offer helpful services to your family.\u201d<\/p>\n

Free coloring book for families<\/p>\n

The DCS Office of Prevention is reaching families directly through a coloring book aimed at building stronger families. The pages are filled with wildlife in the Arizona desert that are used as examples to highlight five protective factors that help strengthen families.<\/p>\n

click here to download<\/p>\n

Anyone can help prevent child abuse by promoting the use of the protective factors, Bustillos said. In addition, she encourages everyone to:<\/p>\n