Welcome to My Power Struggle
by: David Kerrigan Power struggles happen, and it’s hard to avoid them. Hard but possible. You ask your child to take out the garbage. The child says, “No!” and maybe adds a few unprintable words. Suddenly your mind is flooded with fear. Fear that if you don’t win this battle you’ll never win the war […]
Perseverance & Endurance – Qualities of a Champion Runner … and His Adoptive Dad
by: Julie Beem If you read one story about adoption today – this is the one. Your social media feed may be full of news about attachment & trauma, Fetal Alcohol, and PTSD, but don’t miss this article. I can tell you now this article’s not going to be what you expect. But then again, […]
NATA Day 2015 – We Need Your Help!
We NEED your help. Every year, millions of children suffer from early childhood trauma and develop Attachment Trauma, also known as complex trauma. ATN and many other organizations involved with traumatized children and their families have designated June 19th as National Attachment Trauma Awareness Day. And this June, we are asking YOU – and EVERYONE […]
Proactively Give Yourself a Mother’s Day…Even if it’s Not This Sunday
by: Julie Beem It’s coming. There are ads, ads and more ads for flowers, clothing, chocolate…and Hallmark. Any preschool worth its weight is making handprint art and churches are planning luncheons and other celebrations. Ugh…it’s Mother’s Day! What a train wreck this holiday can be for families of traumatized children, especially those who were formed […]
The Delayed Effect: When the Fruits of Our Labor Finally Bloom
by: Craig Peterson Six months ago I sat down to write a letter to my 23-year-old son who was incarcerated three hours away. After re-reading the entire stack of his letters, I realized he’d done much soul searching. He had shared many deeply personal thoughts about his past failures. Was I now man enough to […]
“Don’t You DARE Say That”
By: Deborah A. Novo I love my dog. She is an 11 year old, white Schnauzer who exudes such love. My husband and I had just returned from our usual, evening walk with Sadie. We were standing in the kitchen, laughing and drinking iced tea when a storm came upon us. “Why don’t you pick […]
Events and Training Opportunities Coming Your Way!
Did spring break leave you feeling worn out? Fill up your therapeutic parenting tank with one (or more) of these trainings and seminars coming up. I hope you can take advantage of one or more! Austin, Texas — April 17 Empower, Embrace, Emerge Central Texas Attachment & Trauma Center (CTATC) describes its second annual conference […]
Adoptive Parents ARE Biological Parents
— By Julie Beem I had the incredible honor to interview Dr. Dan Siegel a couple of days ago in a webinar that will soon be released on ATN’s Learning Center. We did this in conjunction with Echo Parenting and Education from California. If you have not had the privilege to hear Dr. Siegel speak […]
Silly Ignorant Me: What I Thought My Child Heard
by: Craig Peterson When my mother and father spoke, I responded. So did my five siblings. That’s all we knew. I never gave the dynamic much thought until raising children of my own. You see, all six are adopted. Unfortunately, none responded to me like I did with my parents. Not even close. Didn’t my […]
Self Compassion for the Trauma Momma
We are delighted to bring you this guest blog from Robyn Gobbel, LCSW, who is a therapist specializing in adoption, attachment, and trauma and a founder of the Central Texas Attachment & Trauma Center. Robyn earned a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Utah and holds a Post-Graduate Certificate in Therapy with Foster […]