Introducing myself and my journal: Crisis Recovery International

About Me:
I earn my living responding to disasters. I got my undergraduate and graduate degree in psychology. I had a private practice for many years as a mental health therapist, but they job was sedentary. I discovered that I could help people at disasters and the work was immediate and much more challenging. I work as a contractor for a large organization and also travel internationally with our small non profit. I am especially concerned about womens' issues after a disaster. In many cases, the aid is given to the "head of the household" and the money is spent without regard for the needs of the entire family. Or aid to the woman is ignored entirely and she is left to try to support a family with very few options. Also, the risks to women after disasters seem to increase but these issues are overwhelmed by the larger societal need to recover from the disaster and individual pain is over-looked. These issues are my life and my passion.

My Passions:
Disaster recovery, especially for women and children

My Challenges:
Being in more places at once! Increasing donations to the nonprofit to increase our ability to respond to more disasters.

My Vision for the Future:
A world where women and girls are not second class citizens, but have all options available to them.

My Areas of Expertise:
Disaster planning/recovery, psychology, psychological first aid, psychological needs after a disaster