Attachment Disorder

How is the media about attachment disorder lately?  I really don't know even though I do therapy.  When I worked in child welfare the talk was much greater, but I am now in schools and never hear about it.  I believe part of it is the economy.  Families are being abandoned and having to deal with the issue on their own as there are not many resources available anymore.  I received a perfect email today from someone really struggling and they had tried many available resources but they did not work with true RAD kids - actually i prefer CWAD - child with attachment disorder.  So many options are a waste of time and very frustrating to parents, giving the CWAD even more power. I feel very bad for families when this happens as it is so much wasted time, but more than that, it is energy and emotional health at stake, that of the parents. Life's Outlook Here's my website .

I haven't heard much about what is going on in the world as the therapy world has been very slow due to the economy. Insurance companies are failing to provide reimbursements, the states are cutting their budgets, etc. and people have less money to spend on therapy, even though it is probably more necessary now than ever. I have had a number of families I have seen and then one of the adults lost their job and so they could not see me any more. Since I have been working in schools, the focus is much different. I have previously done trainings for staff in the schools to identify the disorder and that made a huge difference. So, when they identify it, they know something else is called for. From the larger perspective, I have not been involved on the national scene lately, so I do not hear much. There is definitely a great deal more research going on. I saw the story of a young boy - probably not a CWAD - but he grew up in Russia very afraid of his father, begging on the stree...

So, as I stated before, I am creating "Attachment Disorder - Session 1" as a therapist with 20 years experience in attachment disorder therapy. I feel there are many families who cannot come to therapy and the ones who do come benefit greatly from having someone there who gets it, understands their perspective, and understands their children. Hopefully, this cd will be available on august 3, 2009. The price will be $24.95 for a hard copy. I will decide about producing an mp3 download for $19.95. So please stay tuned. You can check my website at www.theattachmentgroup.org - i will be updating soon. As my practice continues, and those who adopt or help families in need by taking care of their children, the issues of attachment disorder continue. I will do my best and perhaps you can tell others about this. I also hope to record a training for professionals, as I have done 7 hour trainings, I just need to record them - the material is there. I also ha...

I have seen a number of families helping each other out. I think those P-cwad and C-cwad ) (parents and caregivers of children with attachment disorder) can be very supportive to each other as you all share common experiences and one of the best supports is talking to others who live through it or are living with it, and also those who have seen improvements. I also have had several parents who have been willing to provide some respite for others. I only recommend the respite if I think the respite caregiver will follow a structured, tight childcare. NONE of my P-cwad and C-cwad have ever wanted the child to go away and come home worse!! Makes things worse at home and child then feels superior. Many things in the cwad realm are mysteries - I often say I don't know why and, again, we could go crazy trying to get in the minds of these children and trying to understand them with our minds. Sometimes it is best to let go, shrug your shoulders, say it "just is" but discipline ...

I find that I have clients come from everywhere for therapy for attachment disorder and the need is GREAT. I am hoping to provide more trainings through video and audio cd, so more people, such as school people, etc. can access this information and I hope to make that information more applicable to these populations specifically. Truly, I have had people drive 3 hours for my services because it is so important that they have the support of someone who understands and can validate the parents' experiences, especially those of the mother, as her experience is often different than those of the father. As I continue this blog, I hope to provide more information about all this. In Joy, Chris Appell, LCPC

I have clients that never cease to amaze me. I am amazed at how different everyone is, yet how similar they are. I can tell many parents a great deal about their children without meeting them, yet I have many questions to ask, and the answers are often different. As a child approaches 10 or 11, I begin to point out that they are really hurting themselves and it is less about hurting "mom" than it is about hurting themselves - they are losing their childhood and staying miserable. I have seen many successes - children developing empathy - children stabilizing - families stabilizing. I always wish there was more I could do. Chris

Attachment disorder is a disorder that results from abandonment of an infant - in utero or the first 2 years of life. Families can be devastated by this disorder as it affects one of the children. Families feel alienated and misunderstood by others, as others cannot believe a child can exhibit such behaviors. In a future blog, I will discuss more symptoms and behaviors of the children. Children often experience multiple diagnoses when they have been adopted from other countries, orphanages, and/or within the child welfare system of the U.S. Some of these difficulties include Fetal Alcohol Effects or Syndrome, Developmental Delays, Bipolar Disorder, and ADHD, to name a few. I am a big believer in the genetic component and birth parent problems are often passed on to the children. More later!! Please feel free to add.