Mindfulness as an antidote to stress

Caring for a child who has experienced early life adversity can be stressful in many ways.    Adoptive parents who I interviewed experienced high levels of stress through being unprepared to parent their children; experiencing physical and emotional abuse from children; isolation; fighting for support and understanding; and feeling worried for the future.   My personal … Continue reading Mindfulness as an antidote to stress →

Regulation and the adoptive parent

Emotional regulation is an unconscious act for many of us.  When emotionally regulated, we often feel calm, connected and safe within ourselves and with the world in general.  While life may not be ‘perfect’, our sense is one of hope. We are alive in the present moment.   When we become unregulated, we move out of this calm, connected, … Continue reading Regulation and the adoptive parent →

Attachment and the adoptive parent

Many adoptive parents understand the term attachment as it relates to their children.  Many of us – myself included – will not have heard this term until we attended adoption preparation training.  I remember listening to a 2-hour session on attachment theory and thinking I wanted to adopt a ‘secure’ child (as I write this today I … Continue reading Attachment and the adoptive parent →

Bonding and Attachment

A week or so back I was invited to speak about my research into adoptive parent mental health with Al and Scott who run the Adoption & Fostering podcast.  It was a great opportunity to be able to talk about some of the real challenges that adopters face.  A link to the podcast is attached below.  During the … Continue reading Bonding and Attachment →