Teaching Attachment-Focused Parenting:
Connections that Heal

Location:  Springfield, MA - Holiday Inn, Springfield - Holyoke

Have you ever been asked for help by a parent who says "Everything I have done with my other children doesn't work with her" or "I do love him, but he sure is hard to like?" Have you provided information and support to a parent who tells you that all the traditional methods don't work with this child and can even make him worse? The explanation may be that the parent is dealing with a child with various challenges to healthy attachment.

How can practitioners in mental health, education and child welfare best support parents in building connections that help heal children whose abuse/neglect/relationship histories have shown them that connecting with others is dangerous? Because youth with attachment challenges (Reactive Attachment Disorder) have difficulty trusting, traditional parenting interventions often don't work and we instead need to teach new models and skills in attachment-focused parenting.

Based on how children learn to attach/bond, this workshop presents innovative parenting approaches and practical parenting skills that are effective when the attachment cycle has been interrupted. Finally, we will consider best practice models for how to create systems of care that best support parents to provide healthy, attachment-focused parenting for hurting and often behaviorally challenged youth. Workshop participants will:

• Learn attachment and bonding principles
• Identify the signs, symptoms, and "feel" of children with challenges to attachment and the implications for parenting and family dynamics
• Create a practical "tool box" of attachment-focused parenting techniques
• Describe best practice methods that will educate and motivate parents to apply these techniques
• Develop effective support/empowerment systems for parents using attachment-focused parenting that is appropriate to the participant's setting.

This workshop will benefit practitioners who work with youth ages toddler to 18 and their parents (birth, foster or adoptive) in a variety of settings such as school, mental health organizations and the community. Workshop format will include lecture, case examples, and discussion. Bring your dilemmas!

Instructor

Mary Bettley, M.S.W, LICSW, Clinical Director at the Cardinal Cushing Schools has over 25 years of experience working with youth, adults, and families in outpatient, home-based programs, residential care, state hospitals, and schools. She is an adjunct professor at Lesley University, has been on the faculty at Harvard Medical School's Attachment Conference, and trains nationally on issues of attachment, trauma, and strength-based mental health care. Ms. Bettley is known for her humor and practical examples. She is the adoptive parent of two girls.