Description: Sometimes the struggles while parenting is not rebellion in the child, nor is it poor parenting in the parent. Sometimes the problem lies in the attachment between parents and children. This is a brain problem – with answers. In this episode of Breaking Bread, Craig Stickling teaches us about Reactive Attachment Disorder.
Critical content contained in this episode:
- Attachment is a deep and lasting connection between a child and a caregiver established in the first 36 months of life.
- Attachment is a construct built over time.
- Attachment impacts a person’s self worth, emotional management and ability to build relationships.
- Characteristics of poor attachment in a child can manifest itself in the following ways:
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- detached and unresponsive behavior
- difficulty being comforted
- defiant behavior
- poor boundaries with strangers
- difficulty trusting parents
- While cause and effect is difficult to tease out, Reactive Attachment Disorder rises from early trauma and stresses and should be understood as an infliction of the brain.
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- While trauma and stresses may be present in the early years of a child it puts them at higher risk of Reactive Attachment Disorder but doesn’t mean that they necessarily will suffer with attachment issues.
- The road to recovery includes reorienting a child’s brain toward their parents. Establishing “mom and dad know best" and can assure safety along with unconditional love is foundational.
Resource: "When love is not enough” by Nancy Thomas