Raising and Healing Abused and Neglected Kids with Dr. Karyn Purvis

Creating a Family: Talk about Adoption & Foster Care

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Children adopted from foster care or from abroad have often experienced abuse, neglect, or trauma. These children require a different form of parenting. In 2015, we interviewed Dr. Karyn Purvis, author of The Connected Child: Bring Hope and Healing to Your Adoptive Family, and the founder and Director of the TCU Institute of Child Development.
In this episode, we cover:

• Why is parenting kids who have been abused or neglected different from traditional parenting?
• What are the 3 most important things I should do during the first 6 months home with a newly adopted child?
• How can we discipline our children while still remaining connected and creating attachment?
• How can we help a child who has tantrums whenever he hears the word “no” or is told he can’t do something?
• How long should parents stay home (if possible) when you adopt?
• An adult adoptee asks: I’ve seen before where you say that “Adoptive parents become the biological parents through connection. We change their Biology.” I’ve seen adoptive parents now call themselves biological parents because of this statement. I wonder if it isn’t important for adoptive parents to accept they aren’t their child’s biological parents? Does their lack of acceptance affect how the child adjusts and reacts?
• You talk a lot about being proactive with children who have experienced abuse and neglect in order to help them and to improve their behavior. Can you explain what you mean?
• Parenting kids adopted from foster care and internationally can be hard on the marriage, especially when one of the parents is the one getting educated on the type of parenting these kids need and the other one has not “bought into” it yet. How to help that parent get with the program.
• Suggestions for maintaining a strong marriage when adopting older kids?
• How to handle criticism (implied or direct) about your parenting style when you are trying to follow the empower-to-connect style?
• Practical tools for encouraging attachment.

This podcast is produced by www.CreatingaFamily.org. We are a national non-profit with the mission to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them. Creating a Family brings you the following trauma-informed, expert-based content:

• Weekly podcasts
• Weekly articles/blog posts
• Resource pages on all aspects of family building

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Support the show

Please leave us a rating or review. This podcast is produced by www.CreatingaFamily.org. We are a national non-profit with the mission to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them.
Creating a Family brings you the following trauma-informed, expert-based content:

• Weekly podcasts
• Weekly articles/blog posts
• Resource pages on all aspects of family building