December 30, 2017
Adoption and Parenting Reads of the Week
Back to reality!
If the holidays are your thing, we hope you enjoyed them. If not, welcome to the weekend anyway!
This weekend, as always, we’re sharing some of our favorite reads of the week. There are some beautiful and informative pieces about navigating challenges in adoption, as well as how to raise young ones empowered by empathy, resiliency, compassion, and assertiveness.
Enjoy, and see you Monday!
Eight attachment techniques to use with your adopted child. “Many adoptive parents are shocked and a little concerned when their child is finally placed in their home, yet they don’t feel an instant connection. In fact, it may even feel like your child doesn’t even want to be there. So how do you go about playing “catch up” and bonding with a child who was placed with you as a toddler, young adult or teenager? It’s not easy, but it is definitely not impossible. With some patience, consistency and creativity, you and your child will slowly create that connection you both desire.”
Five tips for finding the silver lining in your adoption challenge. “If you have several different ways of perceiving a situation, go with the most positive as your truth. This isn’t denial; it’s merely making reality “doable” and bearable. Resolve to take every possible negative outcome and turn it into a positive.”
What to expect from your first days home with your adopted baby. “The first emotion that adoptive parents tend to experience, and perhaps the one that surprises them the most, is guilt and it comes in a couple of forms. The first is a version of what all new parents feel. Becoming parents is hard and there will be moments, even during those very first days, that you experience feelings other than elation. And yet, after trying so hard to build one’s family, along with those other emotions comes guilt about feeling anything other than overjoyed about a successful adoption. It is important to understand that, as for all new parents, it is normal and expected to feel a roller coaster of emotions, some of which can be considered negative.”
How to raise assertive and confident young women.
Why foster youth students in Seattle are beating the odds.
How to raise kind and empathetic children across every setting.
The secrets of resilience: what does it take to overcome life’s adversities? “Social scientists have shown that these risks are real, but they also have found a surprising pattern among those whose early lives included tough times: Many draw strength from hardship and see their struggle against it as one of the keys to their later success. A wide range of studies over the past few decades has shed light on how such people overcome life’s adversities—and how we might all cultivate resilience as well.”