Resources for Family and Friends
Dear Friend,
I’ve told you before how I’m struggling with my child’s behavior but I’m not sure you understand how serious—how desperate—things are.
Here’s the unvarnished truth—my child relies on manipulation and melt-downs to control his surroundings. He refuses to follow the simplest of instructions and turns everything into a tug-of-war as if it’s a matter of life or death. Every day, all day, I deal with his extreme behavior. He screams, puts holes in walls, urinates on his toys, breaks things, physically assaults me and so much more. I’m doing the best I can but it’s frustrating and overwhelming.
Most people, maybe even you, blame me for my child’s behavior. This makes me feel even worse. I already blame myself most of the time, especially Read more
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Adoptive and foster parents usually reach a crisis point before we get help. No doubt, our children need us to be that calm and steady,…
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J Michael Straczynski’s (JMS) new memoir, Becoming Superman: My journey from poverty to Hollywood, is compelling, heartbreaking, and inspirational. It
I am so excited to share this exciting new resource with you! The Brain Game is a new psycho-educational, 20-minute
To better serve children with developmental trauma, Kolk has proposed adding a new diagnosis to the DSM called Developmental Trauma Disorder (DTD). The new diagnostic…
Kids with RAD have an indefatigable need to control the people and situations around them because they only feel safe when they prove to themselves…
Due to trauma during her early development, the lens Kayla viewed the world through was warped. It made even loving caregivers seem unsafe. Situations and…
Raising a child with developmental trauma can be incredibly difficult and isolating. The more you understand your child’s trauma history, and learn about the science…
The Kids we Lose is a PBS documentary that explores how ineffective discipline techniques in schools feed the school-to-prison pipeline. It does a great job…
Adoption finalization is a reason to celebrate. Parents have filled out mountains of paperwork, waited months or years and shed
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This story was produced by Side Effects Public Media, a news collaborative covering public health. Negative childhood experiences can set our brains
My son Devon has a long track-record of making false allegations against staff at treatment facilities where he’s a patient. “I’m afraid
Caleb, 11, was thin with blond hair, glasses, and a big smile where crooked teeth jockeyed for space. He and
Adults who grew up in so-called “typical” families—the families we pay no or little attention to because it looks “normal”,
“It’s like living in a prison. We can’t go anywhere. All doors are locked. Alarms everywhere. We can’t have friends
What’s your success been with Residential Treatment Facilities (RTF)? My son, Devon, has been in 2 group homes and 5
Dear Friend, I’ve told you before how I’m struggling with my child’s behavior but I’m not sure you understand how
When Annika and Zeb adopt Carl, an 11-year-old boy from the foster care system, they’re confident he’ll heal and thrive
“It’s unreasonable to force a parent to bond with a child whose behaviors have led to his or her PTSD,”
Effectively parenting children with a history of trauma requires a paradigm shift. This short video by psychologist Jacob Ham is
Originally published by the Institute for Child Development. Carol was bitter and angry—on edge. Shortly after we met through a
Here are the stories of one dozen children with Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) and how their families found the answers
For years I pulled out my hair not understanding why my parenting strategy was working with my birth and other
The media is calling the Parkland massacre “preventable” and pointing to missed warning signs. But, I’ve heeded the warning signs. All these mental health services,…
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Since I was about 16, I have wanted to adopt children. Not babies, children. I really felt God had called
I adopted my three cousins six years ago. Mom and dad of one boy died of drug overdose, other lost
It took Jay and Jodi Bean of Alpine years to figure out why their new daughter brought anger and fear
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