Understanding the parent-child attachment bond and the impact of adverse childhood experiences is vital for care givers to understand the importance of their role in supporting the healing of developmental trauma. When this is achieved, both parent and child feel safe and lovable enough to engage in a healthy attachment-bond.” Most are based on principles of building safe, strong relationships that combine affection and comforting along with clear behavioural expectations and routines, ‘ explains Hughes. ‘Therapeutic parenting is especially developed for parenting children who manifest special needs, whether they be based on stressful or traumatic life events or constitutional factors.’

Sarah Naish - Centre of Excellence in Child Trauma

Empathy involves us opening our hearts and minds so that we can share in what others feel. When this is other people’s pain and despair, it can make us vulnerable. What supports our children to heal and grow is a safe and healthy attachment bond with a care giver who offers them a safe base from where they can go and explore the world. As Jane explains, this behaviour is a symptom of the child’s sense of overwhelm triggered by traumatic memories. They’re not conscious of what they’re doing and parents need to put into place careful plans and strategies to cope.

Guides and resources

The Scared Gang helps children recognise their own survival patterns through the characters, each representing a different pattern, they tell children how they can self-regulate through the use of food and sensory-based activities.

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And how can parents successfully raise traumatized siblings so that they retain happy memories of their childhood? Respond with empathy using the PACE model (playfulness to connect and diffuse a situation, acceptance of the child whilst not accepting of aggression, curiosity to detect your child’s need, all steeped in empathy).​ Therapeutic parenting is often regarded as being exclusively for traumatised children who have nearly always been in care, fostered or adopted. But this isn’t always the case. Sami also recommends Rosie Jefferies and Sarah Naish’s book “ William Wobbly and the Very Bad Day”.For me as a personal safety coach and physical intervention expert witness and advisor, it has been so interesting to talk to the parents about that moment – where they are feeling challenged about how they are still committed to being therapeutic in their approach and yet they have a moment where they are feeling physically threatened by the child, yet they are still trying to be therapeutic. And there’s a balance about feeling protected in yourself, so that you can then be effective in employing therapeutic approaches. It helps promote secure attachments and allows children to reflect on their thoughts and behaviours without being judged. Trauma-informed practice Other recommended resources include “ Harry and the Dinosaurs Go To School” and “ Topsy and Tim Start School“ There’s plenty of good advice here on effective de-escalation techniques and Jane also refers to two courses* provided by the National Association of Therapeutic Parents (the NATP) as well as to the non-violence resistance courses available through many local authorities in the UK.

Therapeutic parenting: Experts reveals the benefits of Therapeutic parenting: Experts reveals the benefits of

This legally inaccurate advice creates anxieties and fear, feelings which then impact on how well the carers perform during the communication phase of these incidents. There are many types of therapeutic parenting,’ says Dr Dan Hughes, a US-based clinician specialising in children with emotional and behavioural problems. Hughes developed Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP).

At Dynamis we know that every school in England has what they refer to as the “runners – children who try to leave the classroom or the school building. Our advice to them often is to get better fences! When a child really wants to leave the classroom, the way we would interpret that is that they’re in a panic state, and they’re in full “flight”. Something in that classroom has really set them off, has really triggered them and escalated their state. The last thing you want to do is keep that child in that space if opening a door to the classroom is a safe option for you. The main concern has to be that the child can’t get off the school premises, and thereby, in a tizzy, run in front of a car, for example. We would normally advise teachers to allow that child to escape the classroom if they really needed to.

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Why Can’t My Child Behave?– by Dr Amber Elliott. Friendly expert advice on how to respond to difficult behaviours and emotions for parents of children with developmental trauma. She has over 30 years’ experience of supporting children who have experienced Developmental Trauma having worked as a social worker, owned a fostering agency and founded both Inspire Training Group and the National Association of Therapeutic Parents (NATP). She has direct experience of therapeutic parenting having adopted five siblings, her experiences raising her children have helped form the basis of her knowledge. Therapeutic parenting is about creating a sense of belonging in the parent-child relationship. Boundaries are developed to increase safety and nurture is used to reduce shame.Today I want to introduce you to Sarah Naish, and let you in on some excerpts from a conversation that I had with her recently. Sarah is an author and an expert on therapeutic parenting. We’ve been working together for a while on developing and delivering a training course which teaches strategies for parents who are at home and have to deal with managing violent behaviour from their children. In the case of older children who were subject to abuse in their early years, they may well be vulnerable to some form of sexual grooming. It is important to consider caring language with working with children who are looked after. We all use terms like ‘respite’ and ‘placements’ in front of children which is not ideal or thoughtful. Playfulness: creating an environment of lightness and interest when communicating; for example, using a light tone when telling a story and expressing fun and joy over being stern or irritated