Connecting with Kids Through Stories: Using Narratives to Facilitate Attachment in Adopted Children [Paperback]

Denise B. Lacher (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 2005 | ISBN-10: 184310797X | ISBN-13: 978-1843107972

Children whose early development has been damaged by abuse or neglect are notoriously difficult to reach. Through many years' therapeutic work with adopted children and their families, Denise B. Lacher and Todd Nichols have developed an exciting and innovative technique which uses stories as the main mode for helping parents to communicate and connect with their troubled children. Connecting with Kids through Stories is an accessible guide to Family Attachment Narrative Therapy for the parents of adopted or fostered children, and for the professionals who work with them. Providing a thorough theoretical grounding, and detailed information on therapeutic techniques and how to assess progress, the book shows parents how to create their own therapeutic stories to promote increased attachment and improved behaviour in their child. The authors describe how different kinds of narratives can help with specific difficulties and illustrate their techniques with the story of a fictional family who develop their own narratives to help their adopted child heal.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...written simply and coherently. ...provides an excellent guide for showing parents how to create stories that enable the child to discover new meanings: those associated with success, not failure, hope, not hopelessness." Daniel A. Hughes, Clinical Psychologist, So. China, ME "...offers parents a supportive tool for entering their child's life in a subtle though direct manner. Parents should find that this book is one answer to their on-going question of 'What can we do?'" - Gregory C. Keck, Founder and Director of the Attachment and Bonding Center of Ohio, Cleveland, OH

About the Author

Denise B. Lacher is a licensed psychologist and Director of Attachment Programs at the Family Attachment and Counseling Center of Minnesota. Denise joined the Center in 1994 after obtaining her Masters degree in psychology and has presented nationally on the subject of attachment. She has extensive training in attachment theory and the treatment of attachment disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder. Todd Nichols is Executive Director of the Family Attachment and Counseling Center. He is the co-developer of the Child Behavior Rating Scale, a proprietary instrument to measure changes in behaviour. Todd has been President of the Association for Treatment and Training in the Attachment of Children since 2001. Joanne C. May is a licensed psychologist and marriage and family therapist. She founded the Family Attachment and Counseling Center of Minnesota after completing her doctorate in clinical psychology in 1989. Joanne is codeveloper of the Child Behavior Rating Scale and has presented extensively on the diagnosis and treatment of children with attachment difficulties.

Product Details

• Paperback: 143 pages
• Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers (February 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 184310797X
• ISBN-13: 978-1843107972
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #199,436 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Attachment Therapy, January 6, 2006

By 

Molly Smith "M. Smith" (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Connecting with Kids Through Stories: Using Narratives to Facilitate Attachment in Adopted Children (Paperback)

This has helped our family tremendously. It is the most effective and non retraumatizing technique we have found for using with our attachment disordered children.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Read for Adoptive Parents who Face Attachment Issues, May 3, 2010

By 

Reader - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Connecting with Kids Through Stories: Using Narratives to Facilitate Attachment in Adopted Children (Paperback)

This book truly changed my life. It was amazing!

As an adoptive mom who struggles to connect with a daughter who was institutionalized for most of her first year of life (and thus struggles to attach), this book provided a new look at a problem I've been trying to grapple with for years. This amazing, fresh approach to viewing attachment issues was extremely helpful.

The authors show us how to connect with our adopted children by telling them stories that help us "claim" them as part of our family, help them heal from specific trauma, help them get past developmental roadblocks, and help them understand what it means to be "successful" and make good decisions.

It's a short book that's easy to read, and written for parents (rather than tharapists). At first the approach of storytelling seems way too simple for such a complex problem. But I can personally attest that following their suggestions has made significant differences for my family.

When you struggle to connect with a child, telling them a story gives you a much easier way to connect than to lecture, demand, coerce, etc. And for those of us who struggle to connect on an emotional level, storytelling helps you do just that with your child.

I wish I had read this book years ago. If your child has attachment issues and you struggle to connect, I highly suggest reading this book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars no examples and frustrating, November 12, 2011

By 

megan - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Connecting with Kids Through Stories: Using Narratives to Facilitate Attachment in Adopted Children (Paperback)

i was so excited to find this book, and then so frustrated after i read it! the author tells you to make up stories for your child but gives no concrete examples, no themes, no structure. i simply couldn't figure out what she was talking about. a disappointment. just a bunch of theory, which may work for someone studying for their counseling degree but not for me as a parent.