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
Understanding the devastating impact of early childhood trauma requires a paradigm shift. It’s invisible to the untrained eye so we tend to minimize its severity, …
It can be challenging to Christmas shop for kids who are living in residential treatment facilities (PRTFs, RTFs, or group homes). There are almost always …
Due to startling research on the impacts of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) on children, there is emphasis on “trauma informed care” in many sectors – …
Learn more
Aging out of RTF and into the real world: A dangerous proposition
Raising a child with Developmental Trauma
Immigration isn’t the only “system” that’s harmful to …
J Michael Straczynski’s (JMS) new memoir, Becoming Superman: My journey from poverty to Hollywood, is compelling, heartbreaking, and inspirational. It provides unique insight for adoptive …
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 …
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 …
Our recent Facebook poll showed up to 95% of adoptive parents are not sufficiently trained on developmental trauma and the related diagnoses including Reactive Attachment …
This story was produced by Side Effects Public Media, a news collaborative covering public health.
Negative childhood experiences can set our brains to constantly feel danger and fear …
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 Devon might make up a …
Adults who grew up in so-called “typical” families—the families we pay no or little attention to because it looks “normal”, okay, or good-enough—can struggle too. …
What’s your success been with Residential Treatment Facilities (RTF)? My son, Devon, has been in 2 group homes and 5 psychiatric residential facilities (PRTF). They …
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 …
Effectively parenting children with a history of trauma requires a paradigm shift. This short video by psychologist Jacob Ham is incredibly effective in helping us …
Originally published by the Institute for Child Development.
Carol was bitter and angry—on edge. Shortly after we met through a mutual friend, she told me about …
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, …
Here in Charlotte, NC we’ve recently had a lot of news about Strategic Behavioral Center, a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF). You can read the …
