January 2012
Happy New Year to all the families and friends of Creating Connections Counseling! This year I am especially grateful for all the parents who are unrelenting in their efforts to help their children achieve health and happiness. I am humbled and awed by the courage and perseverance that I witness every day in my practice as families move forward on their journeys of healing. This has truly been an amazing year!
As most of you know, many families I work with have also chosen to pursue an adjunct therapy called Neurological Reorganization (NR). Since August of 2008, I have been tracking the progress of clients doing an NR program by administering assessments every three months, including behavioral, developmental, sensory, and trauma symptom assessments. This program is extremely challenging to implement consistently, and not all families referred completed the program. However, for the eight graduates of the program, the transformation was nothing short of remarkable. It's exciting to see such positive, comprehensive results from an alternative therapy, as traditional methods of medication and behavioral management so often fail to address the needs of children with complex trauma histories and disrupted attachment patterns. I will continue to track the results of this treatment program throughout 2012. NR practitioners are scheduled to visit my office every three months.
In the fall of 2011, I completed A Guide to Therapeutic Parenting, a tool I provide to my clients. This guide includes critical concepts for a therapeutic mindset, daily practices of a therapeutic parent, and responses to more than fifteen common behavioral problems in an accessible manual. This manual is now available to the general public to purchase from my website.
Also this past year, I was recruited by staff from Iowa Kids Network in Des Moines and Davenport to present about the successful treatment of children who have survived complex trauma and attachment disruption. These were great opportunities to meet families and professionals united in their cause to help adoptive children. I look forward to continuing the mission of bringing peace and connectedness to adoptive families.
For anyone who is interested in therapeutic services through Creating Connections Counseling, I currently have openings and am accepting referrals for my practice for daytime, after-school, and evening appointments. Best wishes to everyone in 2012!