By Nancy Thomas I was reaching for the whole milk in the grocery store when another shopper looked down her nose and growled, “ You aren’t giving that to your children are you!? They should have skim milk or 2%!” I replied, kindly, “Let me get your name and phone number so I can give […]

Passing the 5 Tests for Trust with RAD   Children with RAD, Reactive Attachment Disorder, are searching for a super hero to keep them safe. The key to healing their heart AND their brain is that feeling of safety. They test all adults they are entrusted to. That includes: Parents, Teachers, Therapist, babysitter, Sunday school […]

Written by Nancy Thomas Trauma hurts. It ripples through lives creating a tidal wave of health problems well documented in the “ACE” studies. Horrendous things happening to little ones interferes with normal brain and personality development UNLESS there is someone the child trusts to be a safe haven during that time. Usually that is the […]

The season for giving is upon us! The problem is, with our wounded children, that is a recipe for disaster! Children with RAD, Reactive Attachment Disorder, write the “gift list” with what they expect to receive to avoid the meltdown (like blackmail). Then they still melt down!! My children did the “gift list” with what […]

An old Bedouin metaphor says: Never let a camel get his nose in your tent. In the US we say: “Give them an inch and they will take a mile”. Truer words were never spoken when it comes to working with a child with RAD! Because they have massive trust issues, they choose to rule. […]

There are severe challenges to living with and helping to heal a child with RAD child. Critics that have judged and condemned parents without all the information to make a decision is one of the most hurtful. I have tried and tried to explain and teach to get these clueless folks to understand. Many times […]

My friend Tim said, “This week with my daughter has been like living in a firestorm. She keeps creating sparks and embers for me to run and put out.” I can picture that! It is how we live when we have a child with RAD. As parents of these challenging children we are continually putting […]

Written by Nancy Thomas My stomach turned! Once again a gentle loving family had been misguided and hurt for years by an adoption worker telling them that RAD (Reactive Attachment Disorder) was rare and not to worry. When they called and described deeply concerning symptoms she told them it was “a period of adjustment” and […]

My puppy knew before I did one summer day at Healing Hearts Camp. Families desperate for help sat on the cool grass on the hill to watch a demonstration. Elan B-lined for one extremely angry, violent girl and parked herself up against her. The look my dog gave me was intense, as if to say, […]

The eyes are the windows to the soul. Yesterday I got a piercing hate look from a big, 15 year old boy that I am working with. It was a portal to cold, dark, evil. It was a long look as he walked by and drilled it into me. It is still echoing in my […]