One of my four pregnant daughters sent me this from Baby Center. She sent me the article, not the link itself, and I find the information to be very distressing. No wonder behavior modification has no effect, no wonder love and logic seeps right past their radar.

MONDAY, March 5 (HealthDay News) — Children who experience traumatic stress can suffer brain damage that results in a decrease in the size of the hippocampus, a part of the brain involved in memory and emotion, research suggests.

The researchers... more

“Andrew Riley faced 128 felony charges Tuesday that included theft, vandalism and intimidation, but he is no adult; he is a seventh grader.”

At 52 I’m hardly an old fuddy duddy, but I remain shocked and astonished at today’s youth. What is going on?

Is it because music, movies and TV seem to glorify crime? One is cool if one seemingly beats The Man? Is that it? Has popular culture sunk our society?

I feel as if I... more

.This beautiful young lady is my oldest daughter who I often talk about in my blog. Her name is Terri (Stacey is her birth name). She is 22 years old and she is one of the best moms in this world.

I am so proud of her that words can not describe just how much love I have in my heart for her. She is the type of daughter I would wish for everyone. Now that does not mean she did not put me through age appropriate "Hell". It just means that we survived it and we have a very comfortable relationship.

When I hold her... more

The intervention, the “project” that we are embarking upon in regards to my RAD daughter, a sort of Mission Impossible could also be subtitled “Nothing Left To Lose.” Having tried all sorts of resources and therapies so far, and gotten nowhere, this last therapeutic placement is all we have. Everyone involved agrees it may, or may not, accomplish much, but we have nothing left to lose.

When she steals from us, or from school, there are no privileges to take away anymore as she has lost them all. A rewards system never worked, behavior modification... more

With 39 kids you’d think I wouldn’t bother trolling newspapers in search of articles about children, but I’m constantly attempting to figure children out, to understand their internal motivations, and to circumvent the negativity that can, and does, land on my own children. I also want to continue encouraging them and helping them to discover what they want to do with their lives.

There is a huge part of me that believes that if I talk issues through to my children, and listen to their responses, I can try and prevent them from making some poor... more

“The mother brought the three boys to the Loganville police station. The boys were crying as they confessed, police said.”

These three young boys, ages 7, 9 and 11, broke into a business, stole some items, including a fire accelerant, and set a fire that burned four homes…sort of accidentally.

I am very big on accountability and personal responsibility. Very big, I am annoyingly pro-law, I respect authority and doing the right thing. I have boys this... more

My very large family has a huge case right now of separation anxiety. For three days last weekend five teenagers were on a youth group trip, this week three are on a school trip. Our house runs lopsidedly without all family members. Nothing seems right, everything is way off kilter. I have a lot of wide-eyed children.

Coming out of foster care, my children have all been traumatized by multiple placements, deep losses, abuse and neglect. Their finely tuned radars detect anything amiss…anything at all. More than other children, children like mine have... more

Today was the Master Treatment Plan collaboration for my 15 year old son residing in a wilderness program. It is 100 miles away through winding mountain roads, and I invited a pregnant daughter of mine and her three year old son. They were awesome travelers.

I also took my four and five year olds. Both have lived with me for two years and really do not like to leave our property other than to go to Wal-Mart or church. Too stressful for them to crawl in the van, buckle up, and hunker down for a couple of hours driving. It peels off their... more

Growing up and moving out can be as problematic for the older adopted child as was the initial act of moving in.

It hurts to leave, it dregs up the old abandonment and rejection issues, rips the scab off of barely healed wounds, too primal to ever truly heal.

My 20 year old son, hasn’t even been here for eight years, oldest parentified sibling of a large sib group now ages 9, 11, 13, 15, 16 and 18, is talking about moving out. Claims “it’s time to do so.” I don’t have a problem with a kid moving out at age 20, although the truth be told,... more

All my life I’ve usually been able to look into the eyes of someone at work, at church, and in my social outings and be able, to some degree, to determine their thoughts and reactions to a situation. Obviously one’s deepest thoughts are unfathomable, but one’s reactions can be fairly predictable.

Regular people smile when happy, cry when sad, and laugh when amused.

“Exposure to complex trauma can lead to severe problems with affect regulation.”

Once again I am deep in Focal... more