Category Archives: Adoption

Why do my child’s support professionals say that behaviour management doesn’t work?

Conventional responses to behaviours of concern, such as reward and punishment strategies, are widely considered to be ineffective in addressing the complex and challenging behaviours exhibited by children and young people who have experienced complex, relational, or early/developmental trauma. This … Continue reading

Posted in AAA Caregiving, Adoption, Attachment, Fostering, kinship care, trauma informed, trauma informed care, Trauma Informed Schools | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Removal from family: An enduring sensitivity

The decision to remove a child or young person from the care of their birth parents is a grave one that confronts child protection authorities daily. Removal occurs with the intention of protecting the child from harm and securing their … Continue reading

Posted in AAA Caregiving, Adoption, Attachment, Fostering, kinship care, Parenting, trauma informed, trauma informed practice | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Child welfare intervention outcomes: what does trust in the accessibility and responsiveness of adults look like?

In this the final blog of the series, I will present what I think functional learning about the accessibility and responsiveness of adults in a caregiving role for needs provision looks like. I recommend that the reader also take a … Continue reading

Posted in AAA Caregiving, Adoption, Attachment, Fostering, kinship care, trauma informed | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

What attachment security looks like

In the first blog of this series about child welfare intervention outcomes, I wrote about the importance of knowing, and being able to say, what progress toward successful outcomes looks like. In this second blog of the series, I will … Continue reading

Posted in Adoption, Fostering, kinship care, trauma informed | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What do children in care need to recover from relational trauma?

In recent posts I have referred to three things that children in out-of-home care need, and need adults who are responsible for their care and welfare to understand, to support their recovery from complex relational trauma. These three things are: … Continue reading

Posted in AAA Caregiving, Adoption, Attachment, Fostering, kinship care, Parenting, trauma informed, trauma informed care | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

How do I get my child to go to sleep in their own bed?

In this blog I describe a methodology I used with my own children, and recommend in my practice. Before doing so, I would advise that this is a routine that I sustained across years. My children and I enjoyed this … Continue reading

Posted in AAA Caregiving, Adoption, Fostering, kinship care, Parenting | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

How long does it take for therapeutic care strategies to work?

The ‘failure’ of a therapeutic care strategy to achieve the desired outcome on first administration does not necessarily mean that it will not or that it is a worthless strategy. Children and young people who are recovering from a tough … Continue reading

Posted in AAA Caregiving, Adoption, Attachment, Fostering, kinship care, Parenting, trauma informed, trauma informed care | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Why does my child need ‘therapeutic care’?

A child’s adjustment, like many aspects of their functioning, is usefully thought of as sitting on a spectrum ranging from maladjustment at one end to positive adjustment at the other end. Where a child is on this spectrum depends on … Continue reading

Posted in AAA Caregiving, Adoption, Fostering, kinship care, Parenting, trauma informed care | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Why does my child chew their clothes?

Chewing their clothes is not necessarily evidence of wilful damage or a lack of respect. For many children it is an exaggeration of a very natural way in which they regulate their nervous system. As such, it is better conceptualised … Continue reading

Posted in AAA Caregiving, Adoption, Attachment, Fostering, kinship care, Parenting, trauma informed | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Why does my child follow me to the bathroom?

Those who take care of children who are recovering from a tough start to life commonly report that the child in their care follows them to the bathroom, and becomes unreasonably distressed when prevented from doing so. In my experience … Continue reading

Posted in AAA Caregiving, Adoption, Fostering, kinship care, Parenting, trauma informed, trauma informed care | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment