Developing Emotional Attachments in Adopted Children Adopting children is an incredibly rewarding experience for many

parents whether or not they have biological children of their own.

Yet, adoptive parents, while thoroughly scrutinized by adopting

agencies, are often given little information about their adopted child,

in terms of family history or specific parenting skills that will help

their adopted children develop strong emotional attachments. Only

recently have post-adoption resources become available for

adoptive families. Though these resources are few nationwide,

adoption and post-adoption agencies are becoming more aware of

the need to inform parents of a child's prior history and the

potential for cognitive, behavior and attachment problems.

VIEW ARTICLE

Issues Facing Adoptive Parents of Children with Special Needs

The typical scenario of a young married couple adopting an infant

from birth has changed dramatically and has been redefined. Today,

many children being adopted are not infants, but are older children

of various races being adopted from either the public foster care

system or orphanages oversees. Often, children in these groups

have suffered abuse, abandonment, and/or neglect.

Due to a history of trauma, these children are considered “special

needs” and require special parenting once adopted into permanent

homes. Many of these children are dealing with mental health issues

such as Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), Conduct Disorder

(CD), Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD), Post-traumatic Stress

Disorder (PTSD), and/or depression.

Read what the Beyond Consequences Institute says about

parenting children with these special needs.

VIEW ARTICLE

Madisen Needs a Family Who Will Stand by

Her Forever

Madisen is a funny, helpful

eleven-year old who has

been blossoming this past

year. She enjoys animals,

coloring, board games,

singing, and has been getting

more and more into reading

books. She loves

experiencing new things, and looks forward to

outdoor adventures with her future family,

especially parks, drawing with sidewalk chalk,

and waterslides! Most importantly, Madisen

hopes for a family who thinks she is a special

person, will love her and be her support system

forever.

A two-parent or a single female parent

household with consistent structure and routine

would be ideal for Madisen. It would also be

best if Madisen were the youngest or only child

in the household, as she gets along best with

older children she can look up to. Currently,

Madisen’s DHS worker will consider families

residing in Iowa and bordering states in order to

maintain relationships with her relatives.

Madisen is a little girl who hasn’t had many

chances in her short life. She deserves a loving

family who will accept her as their own—a

family who will stand by her forever. Will you

be Madisen’s forever family? To learn more,

visit the Iowa KidsNet website.

Parental Openness Can Help Children Learn to Trust The North American Council on Adoptable Children’s newsletter Adoptalk features an excellent article by Dr. Jonathan Baylin

and Dr. Daniel Hughes. The Science of Parent-Child Relationships: Parental Openness Can Help Children Learn to Trust explains

how research has shed light on the effects of trauma on children and youth, and how parenting children who mistrust can

affect caregivers' brains as well. VIEW ARTICLE

C O N F E R E N C E & H O T E L I N F O The conference will be held at the Five Sullivan Brothers

Convention Center in Waterloo which is connected to the

Ramada Hotel via skywalk.

H O T E L A R R A N G E M E N T S Hotel arrangements should be made directly with the

Ramada Hotel (205 West 4th Street, Waterloo) by calling

319-233-7560. Please mention you are attending the IFAPA

Conference.

View Conference Brochure

Register for the Conference

VIEW THE ENTIRE FALL

TRAINING SCHEDULE

REGISTER FOR A TRAINING OR

CALL IFAPA AT 800-277-8145 EXT. 1

WORKSHOPS - Friday, October 17 (8:00am - 4:00pm)

A1 - They Do Remember: The Impact of Early Medical Trauma on

Children

A2 - Sit Still & Be Quiet—Parenting the Child with ADHD

A3 - Attachment – What is it & How to Make it Happen?

A4 - CPR & First Aid

B1 - A Guide to Childhood Developmental Trauma in Kids with

Special Needs

B2 - I Like This Child, But What About Those Behaviors?

B3 - Navigating the Social World

B4 - CPR & First Aid

C1 - Keeping Track of What You’ve Got: 9 Ways to Organize

Caregiving Paperwork

C2 - Children’s Mental Health: Managing Multiple Diagnoses

C3 - Managing Your Child’s Behavior

C4 - Self-Care in the Foster, Adoptive & Kinship Realm

FALL CONFERENCE October 17 & 18, 2014 / Waterloo, Iowa

WORKSHOPS - Saturday, October 18 (8:00am - 4:00pm)

D1 - The Impact on Children Who Witness Domestic Violence

D2 - Parenting Parents: Supporting Pregnant & Parenting Teens

D3 - “I Won’t Do it & You Can’t Make Me”: ODD in Kids/Teens

D4 - CPR & First Aid

E1 - Hope for Healing: Understanding Trauma & Attachment

E2 - Childhood Depression & Suicide: Recognizing the Signs &

Effective Ways to Respond

E3 - How Teenagers Become Sex Offenders – A Label That Never

Goes Away

E4 - CPR & First Aid

F1 - And Off to School We Go…

F2 - Answering the Tough Questions

F3 - Children & Sexual Misconduct: Case Studies in Foster Care

F4 - When Your Child Worries too Much, too Frequently, or too

Repetitively: How to Deal with the What-If’s

IFAPA TRAINING

Helping Children Heal from the

Double Trauma of Sexual

Abuse and Placement When children are sexually abused within their family

they are likely to experience trauma. When they are

subsequently placed in foster care they often

experience a new trauma associated with loss of all

that is familiar. As those children begin to trust their

resource parents it is more likely they will disclose the

earlier abuse. The response of the resource parents

to the disclosure can either help with the healing

process or further traumatize the child. This

workshop will describe techniques and strategies that

promote the healthy growth and development of

children who have been sexually abused and then

placed in foster care.

Saturday, Oct. 4 (9am-4:30pm) - SIOUX CITY

Saturday, Oct.11 (9am-4:30pm) - ANKENY

IFAPA TRAINING

“Don’t Worry About It!” Anxiety,

Panic & OCD

We all worry and at times feel anxious and at certain

times worrying can turn in to real symptoms of

anxiety and panic. And in more extreme cases, anxiety

and panic can manifest itself into obsessive thoughts

and compulsive behaviors. Have you ever wondered

exactly why it is that we worry and experience

symptoms of anxiety and panic? The purpose of this

workshop is to help participants gain greater insight

and understanding behind the biology of why anxiety

exists and teach the skills needed for children and

adolescents, as well as adults, to be able to manage

anxiety, panic, and obsessive thoughts and compulsive

behaviors more effectively.

Saturday, Oct. 4 (9am-4:30pm) - COUNCIL BLUFFS