This book presents an innovative relational and community based therapeutic model to ensure children's essential attachment needs are catered for in intensive mental health care. The text combines an overview of theory relating to attachment and trauma before laying out a model for working with children and adolescents in an attachment-informed way. The approach applies to a diverse range of settings - from in-patient psychiatric settings, through to schools-based programs, and provides the reader with the knowledge and guidance they need to introduce the approach in their own service. It also addresses the complexities of working with specific clinical populations, including children with ADHD, ASD, RAD and psychosis. Accessible for entry level clinical caretakers, yet sophisticated enough for clinical supervisors, this book is essential reading for professionals looking to improve the effectiveness of child and adolescent treatment programs.

Babies and young children who have experienced early adversity miss out on good, nurturing relationships, and the sensorimotor development that goes along with them. Their bodies therefore lack a solid foundation for sensory integration. This book lays out a practice model - the Building Underdeveloped Sensorimotor Systems (BUSS) model - to help identify and assess whether these gaps are present in a child's sensorimotor systems. It also advocates the potential of rebuilding the gaps in these systems - using games and activities that take place within loving parent-child relationships - to offer the child a healthy, attuned base from which to develop sensorimotor skills. Also included is a section on parents' experiences of using these activities with their children. With a positive view of approaching sensorimotor underdevelopment, these strategies and case studies all demonstrate that, with the right kind of attention, these children's systems can be rebuilt.

Trauma and attachment are commonly used terms, but are complex concepts. 'Trauma' refers to negative experiences that cause us to fear for our safety, whilst 'attachment' describes meaningful relationships with someone we love or respect. Why, then, is so much of the language surrounding these concepts so obscure, and why is it so challenging to help children who have experienced trauma, and lack healthy attachment bonds? Providing grounded advice accompanied by accessible 'doodles' throughout, this guide aims to bring some clarity to the subject. It explains the differing attachment patterns in children who are adopted, fostered, or have experienced early trauma. The book also provides advice on how to repair attachment difficulties and to build secure, loving relationships. With new material on cultural diversity and sexual exploitation as well as specific guidance for trafficked and asylum-seeking children, this fully updated new edition provides you with all you need to know.

This book presents an innovative relational and community based therapeutic model to ensure children's essential attachment needs are catered for in intensive mental health care. The text combines an overview of theory relating to attachment and trauma before laying out a model for working with children and adolescents in an attachment-informed way. The approach applies to a diverse range of settings - from in-patient psychiatric settings, through to schools-based programs, and provides the reader with the knowledge and guidance they need to introduce the approach in their own service. It also addresses the complexities of working with specific clinical populations, including children with ADHD, ASD, RAD and psychosis. Accessible for entry level clinical caretakers, yet sophisticated enough for clinical supervisors, this book is essential reading for professionals looking to improve the effectiveness of child and adolescent treatment programs.

This open access book sets out the stress-system model for functional somatic symptoms in children and adolescents. The book begins by exploring the initial encounter between the paediatrician, child, and family, moves through the assessment process, including the formulation and the treatment contract, and then describes the various forms of treatment that are designed to settle the child’s dysregulated stress system. This approach both provides a new understanding of how such symptoms emerge – typically, through a history of recurrent or chronic stress, either physical or psychological – and points the way to effective assessment, management, and treatment that put the child (and family) back on the road to health and well-being.

An innovative somatic and attachment-based treatment for working with children and adolescents who suffer from complex trauma and neglect "[This] is a ground-breaking new approach to treating traumatized children, based on the combination of keen clinical observation, sensory integration, and a deep understanding of the latest advances in the neuroscience of trauma."—Bessel van der Kolk, MD, best-selling author of The Body Keeps the Score The SMART (Sensory Motor Arousal Regulation Treatment) program addresses three key processes that can be derailed by developmental trauma--somatic regulation, trauma processing, and attachment-building--and uses movement and sensation to target the neurological structures that support emotional and behavioral regulation. Transforming Trauma in Children and Adolescents teaches therapists the eight key skills required for SMART mastery and provides seven regulation tools for clients, helping children and adolescents manage their feelings and attend to developmental tasks like making friends, participating at school, learning to play with others, and developing a sense of self that includes--but isn't defined by--the trauma they've experienced. Enriched with case studies and recommended adaptations, the book includes resources for parents and other caregivers who want to provide ongoing supportive care outside the clinical setting.

In this book the authors describe the specific steps to take in order to conduct focus groups in education and psychological settings. The reader is shown how to prepare for a focus group, create a moderator's guide and analyse the results.