Strengthen Your Family
Learn how to promote strong, respectful bonds between family members and the child’s peers.
There are various factors and parenting tips that can help strengthen your family to promote strong, respectful bonds between family members and the child’s peers.
Knowledge of Parenting and Child Development
Parenting, especially for adoptive parents welcoming a child with a traumatic history, is a lifelong decision requiring skill that evolves with time, understanding, and a commitment to growth. It goes beyond biological ties, requiring a unique set of tools to navigate the complexities of a child’s past experiences.
The importance of continuous learning cannot be overstated, as it equips adoptive parents with the insights needed to help their child address and heal from the effects of trauma. Establishing a robust support network for the child is equally as vital, creating a space for shared experiences, empathy, and guidance.
Through ongoing education, an open heart, and a network of understanding supports, adoptive parents can create an environment where their child feels safe, loved, and supported, which will foster healing and a sense of belonging within the family.
Understanding the Needs of Children
A child's ability to interact positively with others, self-regulate their behavior, and effectively communicate their feelings will have a positive impact on their relationships with their family and peers. Parents and caregivers grow more responsive to children’s needs and are less likely to feel stressed or frustrated as children learn to tell parents what they need and how parental actions make them feel, rather than “acting out” difficult feelings.
Forms of nurture, such as cuddling, playing, communicating, spending time together, and active listening build positive bonds and act as models for children. When parents and children have strong, warm feelings for one another, children develop trust that their parents will provide what they need to thrive, including love, acceptance, positive guidance, and protection.
As parents and caregivers, you can:
- Provide your child with responsive care.
- Be affectionate and nurturing.
- Help your child feel the joy found in the “give and take” of relationships.
- Show your child that he or she is part of a large network of love.
- Nurture the child’s respect for differences.
- Promote an appreciation of their culture and the culture of others.
Encourage Social Connections
Promoting social interactions with friends, family, and neighbors as well as attending school and community events helps families build positive, supportive relationships and reduces the sense of isolation that is a risk factor for child abuse and neglect.
Ways To Increase Your Social Network:
- Overcome transportation, child care, and other barriers—for instance, taking a bus or carpool to a play group or joining a babysitting co-op to meet other parents and have occasional child care.
- Access community resources.
- Join a parent’s group or playgroup in the neighborhood, or start a new group.
Parental Resilience
Parents who are able to adjust to the regular pressures and unexpected occurrences of life while staying emotionally resilient typically manage to recover quickly when faced with a new challenge.
Ways to Build Resilience In Your Family:
- Apply stress management techniques, such as regular exercise, relaxation to music, and meditation or prayer.
- Prevent stress by planning ahead, anticipating difficulties, and having resources in place.
- Encourage participation and look for support from family, friends, faith communities, and other community resources.
- Exercise family management techniques, such as effective ways of communicating needs and concerns.
- Seek programs that offer family-to-family help or mentoring for personalized, intensive, sustained services or support, especially in times of crisis.
- Practice concrete skill-building in areas such as problem-solving, goal-setting, communication, and self-care.
Stable Support in Times of Need
There are a variety of resources available to provide support during the adoption process. Whether you are considering adoption, are in the process, or have already adopted, having access to resources can make a huge difference.
