Dysregulation and Meltdowns

We've all experienced it. A child demands something he/ she knows we won't allow. When we say, "No," out comes the attitude, the meltdowns, the whining, the demands, the picking (on, at, over...). It's not a RAGE (although the reasons behind it are often similar and it can quickly escalate to one). {Dealing with Rages} It's more like a meltdown or a tantrum.

The child in a meltdown usually has some control over how far they will go. They can still escalate into fight, flight, or freeze mode easily, but instead of "lizard brain" flight/fight/freeze physical aggression, we see mostly verbal threats, (although Kitty's still been known to kick cabinets and bite and scratch in a meltdown). We can usually get through to her and calm her down fairly quickly (Calming Techniques), if not actually de-escalate her before she “melts.”

Sometimes when Kitty is especially dysregulated she deliberately tries to pick a fight with me so she can have somewhere safe to express her emotions. She can't let others outside the family see that she has issues, that's not "SAFE." So she processes them with me. Which SUCKS!

Helpful Tip From a Trauma Mama: State, "I'm not interested in arguing," and walk away. That used to floor her. 

Triggers
We rarely know what trigger starts an individual meltdown. A test. A bully. A holiday. A traumaversary. HALT (Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired). A "life-changing event" (positive or negative). Even the let down after a good day and/or worry that they can't keep up the positive behavior so they self-sabotage. {Holidays, Birthdays, Starting or Ending School, and Other Traumaverseries}

{BTW, we're going to pretend I handle meltdowns like the perfect therapeutic parent  every time}

Dysregulated - When it's not just a single meltdown

For whatever reason, there are times when my child gets stuck in dysregulation. We see things like:

• The RAD Stink -You've heard of the "smell of fear"? Well, the smell of dysregulation in attachment-disordered kids smells like a combo of feces and the worst body odor you can imagine.
• Acting Out - physical or verbal threats and/or aggression, picking fights
• Suicidal threats/ ideation
• Acting In 
• • Manic/ Hyper: agitated; overly-sensitive; loud, pressured speech; over-zealous in relationships; loud, barking laughter; "vibrating" leg(s); popping knuckles (only does this when under stress); impulsive; difficulty concentrating
  
  
  • Self-Harming: gouging skin with fingernails; stabbing with a pencil; burning skin with an eraser... technically this is an "acting out" behavior, but Kitty has been known to do it secretly in public and often expresses concerns that she might self-harm and asks for supervision to prevent it.
  
  
  • Depressed: Statements she wishes to die; statements or acting as though she wishes to "give up;" statements that others "hate her;" belief/ statements that she is worthless/hopeless/unlovable...
  
  
  • Escape/Dissociate: physically leaving a room or "checking out;" unfocused; changing the subject (often apparently at random); distracting (asks questions or makes comments that changes the subject); napping/head down; the appearance of being exhausted; "shutting down"
  
  
  • Somatic issues: aches; pains; exhaustion; hunger. Has difficulty identifying correct emotional and physical feelings so is prone to emotional eating and ascribing real or perceived aches and pains to incorrect sources. Ex. If Kitty is feeling depressed or suicidal (possibly because she forgot to take her meds, skipped a meal, hormones, chemical imbalance, was triggered by a traumaversary or event...), she might blame this on a recent event (such as a fight with her sister) that may or may not actually be related.
  
  
  • Depressed: Sad; crying; whining; begging to go home
  
  
  • Overwhelmed: low frustration tolerance; disorganized; needs others to "chunk" assignments (break down into smaller more manageable pieces); forgets assignments or needed materials; hurries through assignments; requires frequent breaks to relax and regroup; frequent requests to leave the room; needs frequent redirection and individual attention; difficulty remaining focused and on task - needs frequent assistance/ reminders.
  
  
  • Anxious: hyper-vigilance; worry; hurries through assignments; obsessed with following the rules
  
  
  • Poor Boundaries: inappropriate interpersonal interactions. Inappropriate sharing/ venting with peers and others, particularly about abuse and perceived abuse (past and present); participating in or allowing physical and/or emotional teasing/ bullying; inability to recognize other's "boundaries" and bothering them; perceives others as threatening or abusive; tattling about rule-breaking; verbal lashing out; gossip (has spread vicious rumors regarding siblings/ friends and accused them of doing the same); threatens or hits peers (yes, this is an "acting out" behavior, but it is one that Kitty has acted on in school and the community).

• Chronic Anxiety level -  at a level 3 or above.
• Fidgeting, chewing/ sucking, tapping, can't sit still...
• Constant visits to the nurse - or other means of getting out of stressful situations
• Verbal diarrhea - cannot stop talking - usually about irrelevant nonsense
• Dissociated - can't stay focused. Not always functioning in reality. Easily distrac- SQUIRREL!
• Cycling or rapid cycling between being sensitive/ emotional/ fragile and aggressive/ angry/ frustrated --sometimes within minutes.
• Disturbed sleep patterns - chronic insomnia or sleeping all the time (shutting down to avoid dealing with life)
• Etc.

Some insight into why our kids act the way they do

Many times a child won't actually exhibit these behaviors anywhere but at home, because only home feels "safe" (this is perceived safety, not physical safety). Kitty would literally rather die than let others see she has "issues." I try to remind myself this means she trusts me more than everyone else, but that doesn't really make it easier to handle. (Why Does My Child Act Differently Away From Home?)


Getting a Child Regulated

Sometimes getting a child regulated can involve psych hospitalizations, med changes, an increase or change in therapy sessions, and possibly residential psychiatric treatment. In the meantime, I try to remove as much stress as possible and do what I can to make my child feel safe.

When Kitty gets dysregulated, we:

• make her world smaller. We cocoon. No chores. No schoolwork. No company. No expectations.{Chores, Responsibilities, and Other Things My Kids Can't Handle}
• work with the school to try to make my child's world less stressful there too.  
• regress expectations to make the child's life "age-appropriate" for what they can handle right now, which is usually younger than their physical age in children with trauma issues {Therapeutic Parenting Based on Emotional/Developmental Age}.
• have a letter party (shopping at a time of day when no one is there because crowds are stressful!) 
• have a special treat (pizza, homemade comfort food, fast food, and/or veg in front of the TV with a favorite video (or something I pick up at Red Box).  
• put the 4-foot-rule in place (although frequently we'll call it something else, like "playing with/helping mom.")
• line-of-sight supervision. 
• lots of calming techniques.
• childproofing instead of consequences and punishment.

Handling the Anger (My Own!)
Believe me, I get that it's the last thing you want to do. I get so mad at her that I just want to pinch her head off. I try to repeat my mantra - "She's only 6! She's only 6!" and remember that there are only 2 emotions (love and fear) {Beyond Consequences} and she's so scared that this feels like life or death to her. She's so terrified, that she drops into fight, flight, freeze, fawn mode. 

Hopefully, if I can get her regulated again, she'll go back to being my sweet kid, and stop asking for stupid stuff that we both know she can't handle. {Finding the Joy}

Then I do a LOT of Self-Care to refill my bucket after pouring all that support into her. {Handling Continuous Traumatic Stress - When Your PTSD Is Not "Post" Yet}

The Amygdala – Stopping Fight or Flight at the Source

APRIL 24, 2016 BY DONALD CRAIG PETERSON

The amygdala is part of the lesser-known limbic system which supports motivation, learning and memory. AND the ability (or the inability) to maintain emotional regulation.

For children, teens or young adults who experienced early trauma, receive a PTSD, RAD or other mental health diagnosis, or even struggle with typical stress, the challenges are real. When they’re overwhelmed, the amygdala goes into overdrive.  Dysregulation results. Over time the amygdala can expand and increase emotional intensity, 

With their brains stuck in high gear, they overreacted to the perceived threat – leading to absolute fear. 

By being re-traumatized, they felt compelled to survive. They felt compelled to be the one in control. They felt compelled to enter the fight or flight zone {I usually add "freeze" to this}

Handling Dysregulation:

No Commands or Demands

I avoid the direct, in-your-face approach. Clear commands – or reasonable demands – seem logical but usually do the just the opposite, whether at home or school. “Calm down.” and “You need to stop.” are two examples, often overused when dysregulation begins.

No "Why?" Questions

Any question requiring insight doesn’t help the situation either, such as “What’s wrong?” and “Why are you upset?” 

Most importantly, I seek to engage my child – as soon as symptoms appear. 

Re-regulation

Sometimes the re-regulation process can take two to four hours, which explains the drastic change in a child’s mood when waiting and waiting for emergency room care after a severe incident at home. And the subsequent denial of psychiatric admission.

Therefore, I never rush my child.

Diversion/ Distraction/ Re-direction:

Using the power of the brain, I focus on my child’s cortex – and its four lobes – to counter the negative response from amygdala. In other words, I create a powerful diversion within the brain. I call it “my quick fix of the wiring.”

At the same time, I am mindful and highly intentional in my efforts.

Distraction/ Re-direction is an important tool, especially with little ones.  Find a different activity or something to focus on that distracts from the event that is causing STRESS.

• Jump the Track - Often our kids get in to a habit or a "rut" when it comes to tantrums/ meltdowns. Our goal at this point would be to distract and redirect the child to prevent the meltdown that we can feel coming.  One friend with a child who loves candy, would toss pieces of candy at him when he starts a tantrum. He'd be so busy searching for where the candy went that he forgets about the tantrum.
• Outcrazy the Crazy -  Our kids get "stuck." Stuck in their hurt. Stuck in their big feelings.  Sometimes it's obvious that there are just in if for the fight, this argument is just going to keep going and the meltdown is about to start... that's when the best way to react is to act ridiculous! Take the focus off what's going on and change it up. Get all excited about the flying turtle you just saw out the window, get up and dance, grab your shoes and head outside to look for your "silly" (take your time looking for it. Get all excited when you find "it" - a pebble, a piece of trash, whatever). The point is not what you found or saw or did, but that you had a positive experience with your child or if not, then at least you got a break. ~~Christine Moer, an amazing therapeutic parent who also offers parenting coaching. 

Engage the Frontal Lobe - Factual Questions

To engage the frontal lobe, I ask a question or two based on fact – definitely not personal emotion. Questions starting with “what, who, where or when” are a safe bet, not “how or why.” Each question can be off the wall and fit the child’s interests or level of knowledge.

What color was the Joker’s hair? What about the Riddler’s suit?

Where does the President live? What color is the White House?

When is Grandma’s birthday? What age will she be on her 85th birthday?

Who is the king of rock and roll? Mine, not yours!

Helpful Tip from a fellow trauma mama: “Smell the Popcorn” trick. When the child is starting to get dysregulated, Try asking her a random question like, “Do you smell popcorn?” 

Movement

To engage the parietal lobe, I attempt movement if my child’s agreeable. Exercise – especially anything that applies deep pressure – has long been associated with emotional regulation. A neck massage or back rub can also hit the mark.

Pictures and Music

To engage the occipital lobe and temporal lobe, I use visual or auditory stimulation. Vibrant pictures or instrumental music often do the trick. A little Mozart can work wonders without mom or dad saying a word.

Engaging the Whole Brain - Make 'Em Laugh!

How about playing music, while dancing and asking a few silly questions? Nothing stops “fight or flight” like humor in my opinion, especially when my children laugh at me.

I’d much rather have my children laughing at me than physically attacking me.

Handling Child Stress

{I wrote this Handling Child Stress post for a fellow Trauma Mama whose children are reacting to school starting.}

When my children acted out (which was always worse around Holidays, Birthdays, Starting or Ending School, and Other Traumaverseries). when I wasn't so frustrated at them I could scream, I pulled them in. I reminded myself that they were terrified. This was life or death to them, and they couldn't really handle change or added stress (this has gotten better as they healed). Even my bio kids reacted this way to things like holidays and birthdays, just not to this extreme.


Structure and Support
Our kids need a LOT of structure and support, especially when they are overwhelmed.

I reminded myself that they were really so very much younger than they looked, and I was expecting a lot from them. I tried to change my parenting to better match their emotional age.

I tried to remind myself that they were SCARED and punishment for something that was out of their control was not just mean, it was pointless. What they needed was to feel safe and loved. That meant I couldn’t take away all fun stuff (even though I wanted to!!!)

Most of all, I gave them a LOT more structure and support. We went back to line-of-sight supervision, time ins instead of time outs, removed as many overwhelming events as possible (not just avoiding throngs of hyper children in places like sporting events and the park, but also the grocery store and Sunday School).

Yes, there were things I could do nothing about (school/ daycare), but I could talk to the teachers and minimize as much stress as possible.

Feeling SAFE
I tried to find calm, quiet, but still fun, things to do so they wouldn't feel punished (taking a walk, letter parties … ). This wasn't about being in trouble or loss, they'd had enough of that; this was about making their life smaller. So they would feel SAFE (this is perceived safety, -usually feeling unsafe is a leftover defense mechanism that is hard for our kids to get past)

At home, I did things like strip their room (helping me was overwhelming so I did it when they weren't there, although I let them know ahead of time) to a bed, a book/ quiet toy, and a stuffed animal, at one point I even had my daughter's dresser in my  room, and she "checked out" her clothing by bringing me the dirty ones,

THIS WAS NOT A PUNISHMENT!

 I tried to find ways to help them understand that. I pointed out that now cleaning their room would be a lot easier!    

When stress was high, my kids’ life was like being in the FAIR Club (our family discipline method  ), but without actually being in the FAIR Club. 

I used calming techniques a LOT.

Some other things we tried when Kitty got stuck:

We began making Kitty's life a little more "uncomfortable" though so she might be motivated to work on her issues. Little things like,

"I know you would like to stay home instead of having to do the grocery shopping with me, but dad is staying home with the other kids, and you have issues with dad and men, and you chose not to work on those issues in therapy, so you will be coming with me."

Because her issues were worsening, we shut down her world and removed as many stressors as possible.

Just like when someone is allergic to an unknown food you might put them on the elimination diet (- remove all possible allergens and add them back one by one watching carefully for allergic reactions). This can help you discover the food(s) that are causing the allergic reactions and possibly the amount of tolerance (like she can handle "this" and "this," but not if she's also around "that.")

• No interactions with siblings,
• No interactions with Hubby unless it is attachment related,
• No being left alone with anyone but me, which means no Grandma's house on weekends (she will have to go to bed early so Hubby and I can still have our alone time),
• I will be the one supervising her chores (when they are not done before I get home),
• No PG movies or Y7 TV shows,
• She can still have her Bratz dolls (*blech!*), but no more playing with her sister - it becomes more like play therapy and her sister doesn't need to hear the attitude and behaviors, so she can only play dolls with me - the rest of the time they stay locked in my toy box,
• Stripping her room more than it already is,
• Go back to issuing one outfit of clothes a day (to reduce the stress of choices, putting away her clothes, and not being able to find socks or other things),
• Reduce dramatically the number of chores (and allowance),
• No more sitting in the front seat of the car (she tends to yell at Hubby and me),
• I will make her school lunches and serve her meals,
• 4-foot rule applies whenever we leave the house (must stay no more than 4 feet away from me),
• No playing with neighbor children or in the front yard without me or Grandma present.

Hubby was afraid that I would essentially become her "warden" and the family's quality of life would deteriorate more than it already had. but I was not ready to give up on her, and we didn't really have a lot of alternatives. In the end, she thrived under the added structure (and attention), and the family's quality of life actually improved somewhat.

Age-Appropriate Environment
Looking back, I realize that we were actually providing a more Age-Appropriate Environment for her. In a lot of ways, she was emotionally only 4 (especially when she was dysregulated), and expecting her to act her physical age put so much stress on her that it made things worse.

Helpful Posts
A lot of times I screwed up. I lost my cool. I gave up.

Then I did a lot of Caring for the Caregiver because this is HARD WORK. 

I forgave myself for not being a perfect parent and putting my child first, which was REALLY HARD. Prioritizing Yourself, Your Family, and Your Child - In That Order!

 I put on my big girl panties, tried to Find the Joy, apologized to my child for not keeping them safe, and started over. 

Being a Therapeutic Parent often SUCKS, but it does get better!

Help! It's Summer!

image from thestayathomer.com

What do you do with YOUR kids during the summer?

 Summer plans (and school holidays and after-school care). 

Some of the things we've done when our kids got too old for daycare and summer camps:

• Week long theme camps at the local MUD.
• Counselor in Training program at the local MUD or summer camp.
• Volunteer work with programs that provide a lot of structure (animal shelter, local equine therapy places are always looking for sidewalkers, horse handlers and stall muckers - my kids love horses and outdoors) we found one program that often works with people needing to do court-ordered community service so there was a lot of supervision.
• Summer Job (for those that could handle it).
  Freelance - Through my work, I was sometimes able to hire the kids to do things like data entry or research. They got paid as contractors by the company I was working for, or I "subcontracted" some of my tasks to them.
• Intensive Outpatient (aka Partial Day Hospitalization)
• Hire a Nanny - a friend of the family with kids with special needs who "gets it," Grandma, Someone you hire from Care.com or the like - Here's some Interview Questions for Caregivers/ Respite Providers
• Vacation Bible Schools - (with a heads up to the administration) my kids are actually really good with younger kids.
• Summer school  
• Structured days. For example:
  9am -9:30am aerobics,
  9:30- 10:30am chores,
  10:30am - 11:30am Free time
  11:30-12 Help make lunch
  1pm -3pm Quiet activities (nap, study, reading, quiet play)
  3pm - 5pm Get ready and go to pool or park or craft store...
  5pm-8pm TV/Movie/ Electronics/ Quiet Time/ Dinner
  8-8:30pm Bedtime Routine (showers, stories)
  8:30/ 9pm (depending on age) Room Time (Quiet activities or sleep)
• (Mostly) Free Activities. 108 Alternatives to being bored and Trapped in the House, Post about Summertime Fun. 
• Homeschooling Workbooks (summer assignments, PACE workbooks, or just a grade level appropriate workbook that we found at the local teacher supply store) that they could do while I worked
• Attachment Challenge 
• Integrity Study or similar
• Hang out at work with parent (obviously this only works if it's an option) - my kids had homeschooling workbooks and markers and stuff. We also had a lounge they could watch TV in if they got their work done. We'd go for walks on my lunch hour.
• Run a Home Day Care - I had a friend that opened a home day care so she could be home for her own kids and make a little money by watching others. If the kids you watch are also special needs, the parents may be a little more tolerant of your child’s issues. I have to admit that her child had very mild behaviors so this wasn’t as big a deal for her.
• Mother's Helper (with a friend who "gets it"). I know one parent who has her child be a mother's helper for a friend. The parent gives the friend the money to pay her child's salary (the child doesn't know). This way the child earns a little money and doesn't realize he/she is actually being supervised.
  My daughter wanted to be a preschool teacher when she graduated high school. I didn't believe this was a good option for her (for many, many reasons). I asked a friend who ran a home day care if my daughter could "volunteer" there. My friend got a pair of extra hands and my daughter got to experience working with multiple children. Unfortunately, I was not able to convince my friend that my daughter should never be left alone with the children and the children weren't properly supervised a few times (luckily nothing major happened, although there were some close calls). 

WHAT WE DID: 

Friends and Family as Caregivers/ Nannys
I trained my mom (yes, I know how blessed we were) in how to handle my kids and she watched them after school for many years. It was very draining for her and she often had to say, “Wait until your parents get home,” rather than deal with our son (who could be aggressive and was the size of a full grown man).

We did the same thing with a neighbor who had special needs kids the same age as mine. Her kids were bio and didn’t have the trauma/ attachment issues that mine did (“just” extreme mental illness that included psychotic breaks), but my kids liked and respected her. My kids also have “Charming RAD,” so they didn’t want her to think badly of them and that helped a lot. 

Flexible Work Hours/ Stay at Home
I was lucky in that for a couple of years, I was able to adjust my hours at my job so that I could be home when my kids got home. Then I moved to working from home. We had an adoption subsidy that helped us afford this. 

Tag Team
I do know some parents that tag team. One parent works nights, the other days.
Hubby and I did this somewhat. On days when I had to go to a meeting, he would work from home (or go in late or come home early). It’s definitely hard on a marriage, but might be the only solution for some. 


I wish I had more ideas. Like most parents with tough kids, this was an area we struggled with a lot.

Additional Tips for Handling Professionals/ Caregivers Dealing with Your Child

For talking to professionals dealing with your child – this post on School has some resources for dealing with educators (check out the image and link to a fantastic presentation at the top of this post – it’s awesome). We've given out the equivalent of New School Year Letters to both summer and after-school caregivers. 

For finding a good care provider - 
Interview Questions for Caregivers and Respite Workers 

For dealing with people who just don’t “get it.” 
Dear Person Who Just Doesn't "Get It." 

Leave a comment with what you do with your kids!

Legal Guardianship vs Power of Attorney - Notes

A power of attorney and a guardianship are tools that help someone act in your stead if you are, or become, incapacitated. With a power of attorney, you choose who you want to act for you. In a guardianship proceeding, the court chooses who will act as guardian. ElderLawAnswers.com


Power of Attorney (POA)
You might want to look at POAs instead, or until, you get legal guardianship.

A POA is an estate planning document that gives a person you choose to make decisions and act in for the incapacitated person.

A POA allows you to work on your child's behalf, but your child can still say no. If you make a decision your child can still change/ overrule it at any time. They can also revoke part or all of the entire POA at any time.

There are several different kinds of POAs -

• Medical (so doctors can continue to talk to you about your child after they turn 18 and you can continue to fill out forms, make appointments, talk to insurance companies...). This POA does not allow you to involuntarily commit your child to a psych hospital, but I'm not sure guardianship does either.
• Special Ed POA - when a child turns 18, the school is no longer required to invite you to IEP meetings. This POA means the IEP team has to continue to invite you to meetings and you can still have input.
• General/ Financial POA - which gives you access and control over your child's finances and estate; however, the child can overrule you.

It is important to note that whichever alternative is chosen, your youth should have an understanding of what the alternative implies, and parents need to understand that if the individual states, “I don’t want you here at this meeting” or “I don't want you to participate in this decision,” this statement could signify a revocation of a Power of Attorney.

My kids fought tooth and nail against legal guardianship, but they found POAs to be very convenient (they hate filling out all the forms at the doctors, insurance, government stuff...). So far, having several POAs and being my daughter's Rep Payee for her SSI has generally been a less expensive alternative for us.

Legal Guardianship

Guardianship deprives a person of the right to control their own life, sometimes in almost every aspect. It can be expensive and a lot of work for the guardian. Often we can get by with alternatives to guardianship.

If an adult becomes incapable of making responsible decisions due to a mental disability, the court may appoint a substitute decision maker, often called a "guardian," but in some states called a "conservator" or other term. Guardianship is a legal relationship between the guardian and the person who because of incapacity is no longer able to take care of his or her own affairs (the "ward").

The guardian can be authorized to make legal, financial, and health care decisions for the ward. Depending on the terms of the guardianship and state practices, the guardian may or may not have to seek court approval for various decisions. In many states, a person appointed only to handle finances is called a "conservator."

Because guardianship involves a profound loss of freedom and dignity, state laws require that guardianship be imposed only when less restrictive alternatives, such as a power of attorney, have been tried and proven to be ineffective.

What is guardianship? Guardianship is the legal tool for becoming the spokesperson and decision maker for someone who is not able to exercise their own legal rights and responsibilities after age 18.

How do I decide whether or not my child needs a guardian? This is a difficult decision and one not to rush. Think about the skills you need to live in our society, then consider if your child has those skills or might acquire them or even function with some help given informally. If not, then explore the guardianship option. Also note that the process can be costly.

What are alternatives to guardianship? Options are Powers of Attorney, Supported Decision Making, Representative Payee for SSI, HIPPA form for medical providers; you can also get limited guardianship instead of full guardianship if your child can do some things for himself, but needs your authority for other areas.

When do I start getting ready for guardianship? You are your child's natural legal guardian until the day they turn 18, so you can't do it before that day. Since the documents required for the process must be relatively recent, start by the time your child is 17.5, giving yourself plenty of time to find a lawyer and prepare to go before the Probate Court judge.

What if I don't get guardianship right away when my child turns 18? At age 18, your child gains all the legal rights of any adult in our society. If your child needs some help with decision making, you may be able to help them make decisions by training and coaching from the sidelines. Even if your child does need more help, an occasion when you will need authority to make decisions may not arise right away. Do note that schools will turn to your child for a signature on the IEP if you do nothing after they turn 18. To learn about legal authority required in particular situations, talk to your physicians, school staff, and attorneys familiar with the guardianship process

We looked at guardianship, but unlike some other counties in our state it is very expensive here and you have to have 2 medical professionals agree that your child needs it. Since my daughter switched psychiatrists at age 18, the new pdoc didn't know her well enough to make that determination. The combination of the two issues led to us tabling the idea of legal guardianship. 

Now that Kitty is older and making more risky choices with life altering consequences, we are discussing guardianship again. 


Several helpful websites on guardianship:

http://texasguardianship.org/guardianship-basics/
http://texasprojectfirst.org/Guardianship.html
Alternatives To Guardianship (from http://texasprojectfirst.org/Guardianship.html)


It is important for parents to know that guardianship is not the ONLY option; in addition to guardianship, there are the following options:

Supportive Decision Making
The supporter (who has a fiduciary obligation to put the interests of the other person first, just like a guardian or an agent under a power of attorney) gets access to records, gathers information and guides the person s/he is supporting but that person makes the decisions.



Additional Resources: 

In my opinion, parents should consult an attorney before deciding on any option. Each family and individual will need to decide what is best for your situation.

Social Security Representative Payment program http://www.ssa.gov/payee/
Trusts (see ne
Consent to Authorize Advocacy (for public school setting) http://www.texasprojectfirst.org/Consent%20for%20Advocacy%20schools%20fill%20in%20form.pdf
Here is the blog of a parent who decided to get Power of Attorney for her child instead of guardianship: http://leahandbrandonblog.blogspot.com/2011/03/ssi-and-power-of-attorney.html

Contact with Biofamily

Why do kids want contact with biofamily? 

There are lots of theories. I think this article and my response, Five Hard Truths About Adoption Adoptive Parents don't want to Hear - A Response, answer some of these.

1.  There is not one 'real' mother. 
I totally agree with this one. Both biomom and I are my children's "real parents." This generally isn't an issue in our house unless my child is mad at me, at which point I may hear, "You're not my Real mom." I try to take this in the spirit it was intended (a way to strike out because my child is feeling upset).

"You're not my real mom."
"That's funny, I feel real. Honey, do I look plastic to you? Believe me baby, this is not a Barbie body!" {This is probably not the best response, but in the heat of the moment, it's usually the nicest thing I can think of. Truthfully, it doesn't really matter what I say at times like this, because they are so dysregulated at this point that they are heading for, or are already in, fight/ flight/ freeze mode. Handling Dysregulation and Meltdowns} 

Do be aware that even though our heads understand this, it still hurts to hear it. As always, you need to do lots of Self-Care to fill up your drained emotional reserves.

2.  No matter how good our childhoods are, most of us fantasize about our origins.
I think EVERY child fantasizes about their origins. I remember imagining I was adopted or really an android or an alien... and wishing it were true!

This is a hard line to walk with my kids though. I firmly believe that it is vitally important not to hit my kids over the head with the realities (or suspected realities) of their family of origin or allow my kids to vilify them either (which Bear liked to do), but at the same time, we need to "keep it real" so that they don't focus all their energies on the dream and miss out on being a part of our family. This is especially hard with their black and white thinking.

NOTE: One thing I firmly believe is one should never criticize bio family to the children, something I learned from my mother, who never criticized my father in front of me, despite a nasty divorce.  Knowing my children are idealizing their bio family doesn't change my belief, but it is a little frustrating to know that my lack of reality checks makes possible some of their fantasies and/or disconnects from our family.

I believe that they want to go back to biofamily to live the fairy tale/ fantasy they have used to escape over the years.  That little Orphan Annie reality that my "real family" is perfect, rich, will never make me do chores or be held accountable for anything I do (not that they do anything wrong-  because it was everyone else's fault)...

I also know that deep down the thought terrifies them! Kitty especially - she fantasizes that her biofather (who doesn't even know she exists and we can't locate) in his shining armor will ride in on his white horse and carry her off to his castle and make her a princess. While at the same time, she's afraid that this stranger will come in and steal her from her family and the life she's finally allowed herself to trust enough to want.

4. My reunion will most likely be disappointing because reality never lives up to dreams. This does not mean it isn't needed.

I firmly believe that whenever possible kids should have a reunion with their birth family, but when they're adults --& and the chance to explore their origins and imagine what their life might have been like, when they are hopefully emotionally stable, and secure in the knowledge that they have a loving family which they are very much a part of and that any relationship with this other family is a "bonus."

Especially with social media, more and more kids are being reunited with birth families when they are not emotionally ready, often causing additional trauma.  The waters got "muddied" in our case, because the children had sisters that stayed behind with biomom when she put my two in foster care, and we wanted to keep that door open so they could maintain that relationship.

Because of their black and white thinking, my kids felt torn by massive loyalty issues -- that if they allowed themselves to be a part of our family then they were betraying their birth family.

Bear always had one foot out the door anyway, to avoid being abandoned again. It wasn't rational, but he felt that if we weren't forcing him to stay (which we would never do!), then we were kicking him out. He never allowed himself to come all the way in to try and see if he wanted to become part of our family because that other door (with the tempting fantasy that everything would be perfect if...) was always hanging just outside his reach.

I think that "escape hatch," especially during those volatile teen years, kept him feeling abandoned over and over again - constantly picking at a raw, open wound and preventing any healing.

Not Allow Contact?
I often wish that we'd done what a lot of my friends have done: Not allow the children to make contact with bioparents until they are 18. It sounds harsh, and I'm not saying we should deny the connection or feelings -- just stop the contact until the child is old enough to have established his her identity and place in the world.

Torn loyalties are hard enough for adults to handle.

We tried to prevent contact to some extent (we limited contact to biosiblings to only when they were visiting the children's bio grandmother). We made sure the children knew that the courts (not us!) were the ones that said that contact should not be made by either party until the child is 18.

Unfortunately, preventing contact is hard to do in today's world (phones, texts, IMs, social media...).

Fear and Trust
Bear's issues were more about "loyalty." In his black and white world, he felt that to attach to our family was betraying his biofamily. I think he also has a "sour grapes" philosophy - he's afraid that if he does trust us enough to get close - that we'll reject him (because we'll find out he's not perfect). So he uses his fantasy of biofamily as an excuse to not get close to us and therefore reject us before we can reject him.

{Bear reached out to his biofather repeatedly over the years. Each time, his biofather would indulge Bear for a while, then Bear would abuse this by calling and texting multiple times a day (often every 5 minutes if his biofather didn't pick up), causing issues at biofather's work. Until at last the biofather would just shut down all communication. Every time this happened, Bear felt abandoned all over again. We didn't know about all of this - all we saw was that every now and then, Bear would shut down and retreat into himself. He would also push us away even harder.

We also discovered that Bear had been in communication with biomom the whole time he lived with us. I don't know what he was telling her but he'd been telling us all along that he hated her and that he didn't want to speak to or see her when it was an option. 

The last time, Bear's biofather showed up (for the first time in years) was while Bear was in jail. Biofather apologized for not being there for Bear, promised Bear he was clean now and going to be a part of Bear's life, and then almost immediately, he stopped all contact - again. Bear never heard from him again.

Months later, Biofather and his mother were killed and Bear's half-sister was seriously injured in a car accident. All the papers only mentioned Bear's 2 half-siblings that were raised by his bio-father. He'd kept them and let Bear go into foster care and terminated his parental rights. Bear felt abandoned yet again.}

SOME REASONS ADULT CHILDREN GO BACK TO BIRTH FAMILIES

1.  The biggest is that they want to negate the rejection/ abandonment.  They don't want to believe that the family didn't want them, because that means the child is unworthy and unlovable. They may believe that contact with biofamily will "prove" that their family really loves and wants them.

2.  Extreme denial.  My kids can dissociate from reality, and distort it to the extent that they rewrite history, and absolutely BELIEVE the new version.  They don't remember, or want to remember, the real past - good, bad and everything in between completely gone forever.

3.  Black and white thinking.  People are either evil or on a pedestal.  Our kids literally don't see the shades of grey that describes all humanity.  Most people are wonderful, caring, supportive, relationship possibilities (best friend, girlfriend, new mom..)... until Bear or Kitty flips a switch and ALL they can see is the person's flaws.

Bear is especially bad about this.  He goes through girls like Kleenex, discarding them when they show the tiniest sign of imperfection (I believe my son thinks that love means they are instantly and totally devoted to him, anything less and he's afraid they will abandon him. So at the first sign of independence, he rejects them before they can reject him) or alternatively, they get too close (and he runs before they can see his flaws and reject him).

The kids have idealized many members of biofamily, and literally, don't remember any of their flaws.  When Bear went to live with his bio Grandpa after high school graduation, real life quickly took over. BioGrandpa became human (worse, a human who had some authority over Bear), and Bear couldn't accept that.  In less than a month, Bear was ready to move on.

4.  Escape.   "My adoptive parents (and everyone else) are the reason things aren't going right.  If I can get away from them then my life will be perfect."  Hubby and I tell our kids that they need to work on their issues instead of running away from them because the issues are inside of them and will follow them everywhere.  They don't want to/ can't believe us.

Obviously, these reasons are all linked to each other!

Our Story
When our kids came to us from foster care at ages 11 and 13, relationships with biofamily were "complicated." Bear was old enough to have phone numbers and contact info memorized, so we really had very little control over his contacts with biofamily. Although physically 11 years old, emotionally Kitty was only about 4 (on a good day), so she didn't understand why she needed a new family (Kitty's bio on the online adoption site where we found her specifically stated that Kitty didn't understand why she needed to be adopted).

I have been told by the kids' former therapist that Biomom was not allowed to see the children in foster care because she determinedly told them she blamed them for what happened. Both kids felt they were sent to foster care because they were "out of control." In therapy, we worked hard on helping Kitty understand that going into foster care was not her fault – mostly successfully but not completely.

I know better than to run down a birth parent in front of the kids (from my experience as a child of divorced parents) so I’ve always avoided making Biomom look bad to the kids, and even tried to help the kids understand why she may have done the things she did. This sometimes came back to bite me in the butt as Kitty has “forgotten” all the "bad stuff" and desperately wants to go “home.” Still, we have been dealing with this as it happens, and through EMDR and attachment therapy we’ve been trying to help her process her severe PTSD.

Contact with Biofamily/ Biosiblings Before 18
We've always allowed contact with biofamily, except for my children's birthmom. We especially wanted our children to have a relationship with their biosisters, even though the girls still lived with Biomom. We did set up some ground rules so everyone would feel safer.

We encouraged the kids to write letters and send birthday cards, but they didn't really like to write. We allowed phone calls but tried to have the kids only talk to their sisters when the girls were visiting Biograndma.

We had a big problem with Biograndma sharing a lot of information (usually negative) with Bear and Kitty. I had to specifically ask her to be careful about the information she shared with the kids, because it was extremely upsetting, especially for Kitty, to hear about Biomom's most recent abusive relationships, among other things. Sometimes Biograndma complied with my request, sometimes she didn't. I know she felt that Bear could handle it, so shared more with him - unfortunately, he tended to pass on the information to Kitty.

My Contact with Biomom
Bear had been emailing the half-sister of one of his biosisters. Although not related to Biomom, this older teen was living with Biomom as her "nanny." The girl had been communicating with Bear on MySpace before he lost his internet privileges, and he asked me to contact her. She seemed willing to answer some questions about the children's histories and gave me some insight into many of Bear's "stories" about his childhood.

Unfortunately, I decided to use e-mail to send the girl some current pictures of the kids - and that's where it got sticky. The girl gave my e-mail address to Biomom and included some of the questions I'd asked the girl (about Bear's alleged history with gangs and drugs, why they were both behind a year in school, whether or not Bear had been in psychiatric treatment facilities...).

The great part about it was biomom answered some of the questions and was willing to share baby pictures(!) and even some information about the biofathers. The last item was especially important for Kitty whose father left after only a few days relationship with biomom, I'm assuming because the carnival moved on - he never even knew she was pregnant. Kitty had no pictures or information about him. Biomom also told me more about things like who they were named after and how much Native American blood they had.

When Bear heard that biomom was pregnant again. I confirmed it with her and then presented the news to Kitty in attachment therapy (only because she was about to have a phone visit with her younger sisters and I didn't want her to find out from them).

In the beginning, I was talking to biomom every couple of weeks. Every year, I sent her a picture of Bear and Kitty at Christmas and on their birthdays. It made Bear crazy to know that I was communicating with Biomom and he asked me not to tell her anything about him. I respected his wishes. I also told her that the kids were unable to handle direct communication with her and asked that anytime their biosisters were visiting grandparents or someone else to please let us know so that Bear and Kitty could talk to them on the phone without having to be worried that Biomom was present.

Over the years, Biomom would send a message that she was planning on sending the kids a gift (birthday, Christmas) and maybe include something from their childhood (Bear's wrestling medals, a blanket that Kitty had loved...). We only ever received one package. The continuing disappointment was traumatic for the kids.

Biomom Visit
And then she requested a visit!

My first instinct is to say, "H*@#  NO! I did NOT sign up for this!" This was a closed adoption and we had been told by all involved that not having contact was definitely in the children's best interest.

After much deliberation, I decided to leave the visit up to Bear. After years of saying he hated her and didn't want any contact, Bear surprised me by agreeing to the meeting (I discovered later that he'd been in communication with her all along).

Kitty's therapist reaction
I talked to Kitty's attachment therapist and we went back and forth about whether or not to allow Kitty to see Biomom during the visit. Kitty had been having lots of issues and had recently been in a psych hospital. We had decided to pull Kitty out of private school (they couldn't accommodate her special education needs anymore and we couldn't afford it anymore). Biomom's visit was the day before the new semester starts, which is when Kitty would start public school for the first time in 1 1/2 years. Great timing, huh?!

We had a lot of reasons why Bear should get to see biomom and Kitty shouldn't. (He's older, he didn't just get out of a mental institution, his therapist agrees that he's at a stable point in his life and can handle it...). But I worried that it could seriously damage our relationship if I said no (especially if Bear got to do it and she didn't). It felt like a lose/lose situation.

Finally, I told Kitty in therapy that Biomom was coming and gave her a choice on whether or not to see her. Kitty chose, big shock, to get to see Biomom. We told Kitty that we had many concerns, and listed a few of our reasons this might not be a good idea. No effect, but at least we got them out there.
Kitty stated, "I know it's strange, but I still love her." We reassured Kitty that that is not strange at all!

We asked Kitty what would she like to get out of the visit. Kitty asked about Bear's rules and goals. I told her that Bear wanted to confront Biomom about putting him in foster care and ask questions about Biodad. Kitty didn't understand why Bear was angry at Biomom. When we asked Kitty what questions she had, she mentioned her biofather (although she had no ideas for specific questions) and at one point wanted to know if the Grandmother that she was named after (birth name) was dead (Bear had told her that she was). She had no intention of asking anything "controversial" or confrontational.

Ground Rules:
We informed Kitty that there were some things we wanted her to understand.

1. This visit does not mean she is going to start seeing or talking to Biomom all the time - maybe not until she is 18.
2. This meeting is for closure.
3. We do not want to share a lot of personal information about our family (although biofamily sisters, grandmother, aunt, cousins - know almost everything and have most likely shared with biomom).
4. If we feel that she is getting overwhelmed we will stop the meeting immediately or change the subject (we made that part of the ground rules).

Our ground rules for Biomom (most of these came from the therapist and I and/or Bear):

1. No lies (Bear specifically wants the truth about TPR - Terminating Parental Rights).
2. Biomom acts like the adult (no cussing, no yelling, no blaming)
3. This visit does not mean ongoing contact.
4. The therapist, Hubby, and I can change the subject or end the session at any time.
5. Bear added: No hugging or touching, and,
6. No talking about the future (he believes it is none of her business).

I think Kitty was more excited about the fact that she gets to eat out then the actual visit (the therapist thought it would be better for Kitty to have an activity rather than sitting in a room staring at each other. She was disappointed that their younger sisters will not be coming.

Letter to Biomom: 
Hi (Birthmom),

As two people who love (Kitty's birth name), I need to discuss something with you. I probably shouldn’t talk to you about this, but I’m not sure what else to do. I’ll be honest and tell you that I have almost canceled this visit several times, and I’m still not sure I’m doing the right thing for (Kitty). I haven’t told (Kitty) about your visit yet for many reasons. One being that she is going through an extremely difficult time right now and we’re not totally sure why – it could be some recent med changes, it could be hormones, it could be the holidays, it could be a lot of things.

Over the last two years, she has made a lot of progress. She has slowly bonded to our family, and although she is still very hurt by all the abandonments (perceived and otherwise) that she’s had in her life, we’ve seen her slowly begin to trust us and believe that we love her and won’t send her away – even when she’s acting up.

I know you never intended to hurt her, and she loves you loyally. I have always tried to explain to the children that it must have been so hard for you dealing with their issues as well as your own troubles. I have always made it clear to the children that I fully expect them to always love you. You were their first mother. My problem is that (Kitty) has never really understood why she can’t just go “home.” She has unknowingly built a fantasy about her life before foster care and adoption. She only remembers the good things and denies any hurts or problems. Those concerns are of course still there, affecting her life and relationships. We work hard to get her to address them in therapy so that she can deal with them now instead of allowing them to fester and negatively affect her.

January 1st - 5th, (Kitty) went into an inpatient mental health facility. This is the first time this has happened since we’ve known her (about 2.5 years) - although I understand she has been hospitalized for similar issues a couple of times when she was younger. She is so emotionally fragile right now. I am VERY worried about her.

I plan to tell her about your visit at her next therapy session (Tuesday). I feel stuck between a rock and a hard place on this, and I am hoping you can help us. The way I see it I currently have 3 choices.

One, is to stick to the original plan, and let her know you are coming, but that her therapists and I feel she is not at a good place for meeting you. That Bear is older and more emotionally stable. I know she will not understand and will completely disagree (she usually ignores and denies her feelings). I feel that most likely this will damage my relationship with her, possibly permanently (I hope I don’t sound overly dramatic here, but I know you must remember being a teenager and fighting for your independence and identity with your parents? I know how rejected I felt by my parents who had a nasty divorce. My father tried to manipulate me and use me as a pawn to hurt my mother. I still have never really forgiven him). We had planned to have her write a list of questions and things she wants us to ask you about, but I doubt this will be sufficient to make up for not getting to see you.

Two, to allow her to see you and just deal with the inevitable fall-out. I’ll be honest, what terrifies me about this is that she will ask you to take her home or something similar. That you will (of course) tell her that you love her and that you never wanted to give her up, or worse, that it was her fault she was placed in foster care because she was out of control. She will blame my husband and me for keeping her from you (I know it’s not rational, but very likely), and the damage is still done to our relationship. Plus, she feels abandoned/ rejected by you when you have to leave her here.

So, as one mother to another, I’m begging for your help with this. Do you think that (with the assistance of her attachment therapist), you could help us give (Kitty) the closure she needs, and ask her to honor the bond that she has with us? I’m not asking you to tell her you don’t love her, just to encourage her to know it is OK with you for her to love my family too and be loved by us. That there is room in her heart for both of us, and that she belongs with my family now. I fully believe that if we work on this together that we will both benefit from the abundant love this child is capable of. I know that (Kitty)’s therapist (different from Bear’s) has offered to help us with this.

Please be honest with me. I feel that Kitty is in a very dangerous situation here and that we will need to walk a fine line to help her. If you do not feel that you can do this, then I will just stick to the original plan and hope that she doesn’t hate me too much. Can you tell her that you love her, but that she is where she needs to be?

Just to make things more difficult, Kitty starts public school on the 20th (the day after your visit). We’ve had her in a tiny private school for the last year and a half, but cannot afford it now because of the economy. She is excited about this, but it will still be VERY stressful for her.

Mary

Biomom Agrees to Ground Rules:
Biomom's Response

Planning the meetings:
Letter - Therapists' opinions
Kitty's EMDR therapist's concerns

The meetings:
Our meeting with Biomom and therapists (no kids)
Biomom - Kitty visit
Biomom - Bear visit
Biomom's letter after first visit.

Second Biomom visit - 3 years later with siblings
Second Visit - Biomom with siblings

Other Contact with Biomom
Letters with Biomom about reading my blog

Going Back to Birth Family (after age 18) 
Like many adoptive families with a closed adoption from foster care, we never intended our children to have contact with their birth parents until after age 18. We had been told by the kids' "Team" that this was definitely in the children's best interest. We always let the kids know that we understood that they still loved the bioparents (even the ones they'd never met). Of course they did! We encouraged them to talk about their feelings and let them know we accepted them. This post talks about why this is so important to our kids.

We made a lot of mistakes. We did a lot of things right. Every family's experience is going to be as unique as they are. I wish you much luck in whatever you decide.

Interview Questions for Caregivers and Respite Providers

Interview questions for caregivers and respite workers. 

Compiled from various sources and adapted by Sarah Hedge.

• Look for people who are willing to work with kids with special needs. 
• Do a full interview process (phone screening, in-person interview in a public place, opportunity to meet kids in your home for those who pass everyyhing else).
• Don't forget to ask questions about how the person would handle specific situations that you think may come up. 
• Do background checks, reference checks, and drug screening. 
• Look for two people, one preferred and a back-up person too. 
• She used care.com, but this would work in other situations.

Phone Interview Questions:

1. First, I want to tell you a bit about what we are looking for and what we can provide:

We are a very active family who is involved in a wide variety of activities. We are looking for a consistent caregiver so that we can meet each of our kids' individual needs more directly, have some time together as a married couple, and to have some time for parent self-care. Our family is looking for a non-smoking, college-educated caregiver who is comfortable with a friendly cat and an energetic dog. To best fit our family's needs, the caregiver is relationship-oriented, with a warm and fun personality, but who is also comfortable following established routines and maintaining established boundaries in an empathetic manner. We are looking for someone who is communicative and reliable, active, creative, and willing to be trained in how to best meet the special academic and emotional needs of our kids.

2. Given this information, is this a position you might still consider?

3. Tell me about yourself.

4. Why do you enjoy taking care of children?

5. Why are you interested in this position with our family?

6. What are you seeking in your next position?

This summer, our family needs a consistent caregiver NUMBER OF DAYS PER WEEK. Dates and times may change as activities do. We are mostly looking OUR PREFERRED DATES AND TIMES FOR RESPITE.

7. How many hours are you available per week?

8. What are you looking for in terms of schedule?

9. When are you available to start?

10. The role would depend on the day and time, but may include any or all of the following:

• supporting kids in following through with our family's established routines, 
• academic help, such as listening to kids reading aloud, or help with math work, 
• supporting the kids in cleaning up after themselves or helping the kids complete their assigned chores, 
• simple meal preparation and resulting dishes, 
• using your own safe and reliable car to drop off at or pick up from kids' activities, and 
• having fun, of course! 

We can be flexible with these roles and times with the right caregiver. Is there anything on this list that you would prefer not to do?

11.  We are happy to provide $10-$20/hour depending on your experience and the roles you play, training to address the academic and emotional needs of our children, and established routines and expectations so there isn't any (or much) guesswork involved. What hourly rate are you looking for?

12. What are your key skills and strengths as a caregiver? If you were hired, how would you propose to use those skills with our family?

13. Of course, everyone can always improve their skills. What do you want to do better when taking care of kids? What is your plan to improve your skills in that way?

14. Now, I’m going to ask specific questions about your background:

• Eligible to work in the U.S.?
• Valid DL? Car insurance? Clean driving record? Safe & reliable car?
• Ever been convicted of a crime?
• Ever had involvement with Child Protective Services?

15. What questions do you have?

NEXT STEPS:
Phone Interviews through DATE
In-Person Interviews through DATE (bring DL, proof of work eligibility, references)
Checking references, background checks, drug testing
Kid Visits through DATE
Hiring Decision ASAP after that!

16. Given our conversation today, is this a position you would still consider for yourself?

***************

In-person Interview Questions (in a public place):

1. What do you enjoy most about working with kids? What do you find most challenging?

2. What are you most proud of as a caregiver?

3. Could you tell us a bit more about your experience working with kids who have emotional and/or academic needs?

4. Do you have any formal education or training that would be relevant to working with our kids?

5. How would other parents describe you? How would kids describe you?

6. What types of kids would you enjoy spending time with for hours at a time? Who would enjoy spending time with you for hours at a time?

7. If hired, what would you do especially well?

8. What is your view of disciplining children, and what should be the caregiver’s role?

9. Describe the most challenging child you have worked with. How did you address the challenge?

10. How do you handle kids that are pushing boundaries? Being sassy or talking back?

11. What would you do if one of our children begs for something we say is off limits?

12. What are your personal interests and/or hobbies?

13. If you had 5 hours to spend with our children, and no particular agenda, how would you organize your time and day?

14. Do you view your personality as flexible and easy to roll with change, or do you need more structure and ability to plan ahead?

15. What’s your five-year plan?

16. Why should we hire you?

17. What questions do you have?

NEXT STEPS:
In-Person Interviews through DATE
Checking references, background checks, drug testing
Kid visits through DATE
Hiring Decision ASAP after that
Nanny Contract
Tax Forms
1 month trial period to see if it’s a good fit

18. Given our conversation today, is this a position you would still consider for yourself?

LOGISTICS: Take photo of driver’s license, proof of car insurance, proof of work eligibility, references

***************

Reference Check Questions:

1. What were the starting and ending dates s/he worked for you and what were his/her responsibilities? What were the ages of the children s/he cared for?

2. What are her strengths in working with children, and what are her weaknesses?

3. Did you ever do a performance review with her? If so, what areas was she working on? What were your goals for her?

4. What were the circumstances of her departure? (If there are two sides to the story and you feel like there’s a red flag, probe the issue further.)

5. Would you hire him/her again?

6. How would you describe his/her personality and temperament?

7. On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate each of the following: his/her maturity ______, initiative _____, responsibility _____, ability to communicate _____.

8. How did you supervise him/her and what kind of style worked with him/her?

9. Did s/he like to get feedback? How does s/he handle feedback? Is s/he open and approachable? Give an example of when you asked him/her to do something differently. How did it go?

10. Did s/he feel comfortable bringing an issue up with you? Give an example, explain how you worked through it.

11. Is there anything I need to know that would help me supervise him/her better?

12. Did you and s/he share the same philosophies on things like discipline, or how neat to keep the house?

13. Can you give me an example of when s/he had to manage a challenging behavior with a child? What was the situation and how did s/he handle it?

14. Did you ever have a concern about how s/he handled a behavior issue with a child?

15. Did you ever suspect that s/he had a drug or alcohol problem?

16. Did you notice anything – personal or professional – that interfered with his/her ability to do his/her job? Was there any specific safety-related feedback you needed to give him/her?

17. Did s/he come to work on time? If s/he was late, what do you think the reason was?

18. Did s/he ever take the kids any place without your permission? Did s/he let friends or a significant other come to the house without permission?

19. How did s/he respond to a real emergency? What happened and how did s/he handle it?

20. Is there anything else that I should know about him/her?

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME!


Edited to add:
Don't forget to ask questions about things that are specific to your household / lifestyle:
Pet allergies or fears?
Ok with going up and down stairs in a 2 story house?
Comfortable supervising kids in a pool?
Can drive kids to sport or club activities?
Willing to handle unusual or aggressive behaviors?
Willing to administer medication?
Comfortable with the child having friends over? 

Books and Methods Review - Therapeutic Parenting - Ross W. Greene

Kids do well if they CAN. This has nothing to do with whether or not they want to. Our role is not to make him want to, he already does. Our role is to figure out what is getting in his way, and help him. Changing our focus to finding out what is challenging him, helps both the child and ourselves.

I know that for myself, understanding why the child is acting this way, makes it feel a lot less like a personal attack, much easier to feel empathetic, and less likely to be personally triggered by it. (Finding the Joy)

Dr. Ross W. Greene's website http://www.livesinthebalance.org/
Dr. Greene's YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/user/DrRossGreene 

The Educating Traumatized Children Summit had Ross Greene, Ph.D. as the keynote. A review of the  interview by Julie Beem of the Attachment Trauma Network (ATN). Dr. Greene is the author of The Explosive Child and Lost at School, Lost & Found and Raising Human Beings. He's the originator of the Collaborative and Pro-Active Solutions (CPS) model. (More about CPS pdf)

“Kids with trauma history don’t need more punishment, and quite frankly they don’t need more stickers.” Ross W. Greene

*****The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, Chronically Inflexible Children by Ross W. Greene

Marythemom:  I really like this book and found that it describes my kids pretty well. Even though the causes for their behaviors might be a little bit different, I’ve found a lot of the techniques he uses are easily incorporated into the therapeutic parenthing techniques that I do with my kids. Understanding more about why they act the way they do is invaluable in helping me stay calm and better deal with my children’s behavior.

The Explosive Child

You know the things that are commonly said about behaviorally challenging kids: they're manipulative, attention-seeking, unmotivated, stubborn, willful, intransigent, bratty, spoiled, controlling, resistant, out of control, and defiant. There's more: they are skilled at testing limits, pushing buttons, coercing adults into giving in, and getting their way. 

You know (perhaps from personal experience) the things that are said about their parents: they're passive, permissive, inconsistent disciplinarians. They've botched the job.

Don't believe any of it. Thanks to the research that's accumulated over the past 50 years or so, we now know better. What we know can be summarized in one sentence:

Behaviorally challenging kids are challenging because they're lacking the skills to not be challenging. 

Challenging kids are lacking the skills of flexibility, adaptability, frustration tolerance, and problem solving, skills most of us take for granted.

The most important way to tell they are lacking in these skills? Because your child isn't challenging ever second of every waking hour. He's challenging sometimes, particularly in situations where flexibility, adaptability, frustration, tolerance, and problem solving are required.

Complying with adult directives, interacting adaptively, handling disagreements, completing a difficult homework assignment, dealing with a change in plan... they don't have the skills to respond adaptively to demands and expectations without falling apart.

The most important theme of this book - kids do well if they can.

They're not enjoying the screaming and shouting and crying and swearing and hitting. The kids described in this book are not choosing to exhibit challenging behavior any more than a child would choose to have a reading disability. 

The primary strategy you'll be using to reduce challenging episodes, the strategy this book will be teaching you how to use, is problem solving. Not putting stickers on a chart. Not sending your child to time-out (and holding him there when he won't stay). Not screaming. Not berating. Not lecturing. Not depriving him of privileges. Not taking away his Xbox for a week. And certainly not spanking.

In fact, as you may have noticed, these strategies sometimes cause more challenging episodes than they prevent.

Dr. Greene describes how best to:

• Understand the factors that contribute to challenging episodes.
• Identify the specific situations in which challenging episodes are likely to occur.
• Reduce or eliminate challenging episodes by solving the problems that cause them. 
• Solve problems collaboratively (rather than unilaterally) and proactively (rather than reactively). 
• Help your child develop the skills to be more flexible, solve problems, and handle frustrations more adaptively. 
• Reduce hostility and antagonism between you and your child.  

Amazon.com Review -  
Flexibility and tolerance are learned skills, as any parent knows if they've seen an irascible 2-year-old grow into a pleasant, thoughtful, and considerate older child. Unfortunately, for reasons that are poorly understood, a few children don't "get" this part of socialization. Years after toddler tantrums should have become an unpleasant memory, a few unlucky parents find themselves battling with sudden, inexplicable, disturbingly violent rages--along with crushing guilt about what they "did wrong." 

Medical experts haven't helped much: the flurry of acronyms and labels (Tourette's, ADHD, ADD, etc.) seems to proffer new discoveries about the causes of such explosions, when in fact the only new development is alternative vocabulary to describe the effects. 

Ross Greene, a pediatric psychologist who also teaches at Harvard Medical School, makes a bold and humane attempt in this book to cut through the blather and speak directly to the (usually desperate) parents of explosive children. His text is long and serious, and has the advantage of covering an enormous amount of ground with nuance, detail, and sympathy, but also perhaps the disadvantage that only those parents who are not chronically tired and time-deprived are likely to get through the entire book. 

Quoted dialogue from actual sessions with parents and children is interspersed with analysis that is always oriented toward understanding the origins of "meltdowns" and developing workable strategies for avoidance. Although pharmacological treatment is not the book's focus, there is a chapter on drug therapies. --Richard Farr –

Walking Tour for Parents
Dr. Greene's Collaborative & Proactive Solutions model consists of three basic ingredients. 

1. We need to make sure you have the right lenses on. 
2. We need to help you identify all the expectations your child is having difficulty meeting (we call those "unsolved problems") and decide which ones you want to tackle first. 
3. Then, you'll want to start solving those problems collaboratively and proactively. (Solved problems don't cause challenging episodes...only unsolved problems do.) 

In each step, there's either streaming video or audio programming to help you understand and implement various facets of the model. Walking Tour for Parents


Lost at School: Why Our Kids with Behavioral Challenges are Falling Through the Cracks and How We Can Help Them
Psychiatrist and Harvard professor Greene follows up The Explosive Child with an in-depth approach to aid parents and teachers to work together with behaviorally challenging students. 

Greene's philosophy is driven by the recognition that "kids who haven't responded to natural consequences don't need more consequences, they need adults who are knowledgeable about how challenging kids come to be challenging." 

Greene's "Plan B" system, which is fully and clearly explained in the course of the book, emphasizes identifying challenging behaviors - acting out, hitting, swearing, poor performance in class-and then working with students to find actual, practical ways to avoid them. 

Helpfully, Greene uses a fictional school for examples, devoting several pages to illustrative anecdotes in each chapter, greatly increasing the material's accessibility. Greene's technique is not fail-proof, principally because it requires the good will and hard work of all participants; a section on implementing Plan B in the face of real disagreement or apathy would have been helpful. However, Plan B has all the qualities of accessibility, logic and compassion to make it a solid strategy for parents and educators. 

Treating Explosive Kids: The Collaborative Problem-Solving​ Approach by Ross W. Greene

The first comprehensive presentation for clinicians of the groundbreaking approach popularized in Ross Greene's acclaimed parenting guide, The Explosive Child, this book provides a detailed framework for effective, individualized intervention with highly oppositional children and their families. 

Many vivid examples and Q&A sections show how to identify the specific cognitive factors that contribute to explosive and noncompliant behavior, remediate these factors, and teach children and their adult caregivers how to solve problems collaboratively. The book also describes challenges that may arise in implementing the model and provides clear and practical solutions. Two special chapters focus on intervention in schools and in therapeutic/restrictive facilities.

Dr. Greene Dr. Greene is the originator of the innovative, research-based approach now known as Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS), as described in his influential books The Explosive Child and Lost at School, and in his recently released books Lost & Found and Raising Human Beings. 

Dr. Greene served on the teaching faculty at Harvard Medical School for over 20 years, and is currently on the faculty in the Department of Psychology at Virginia Tech and at the University of Technology in Sydney, Australia. He is also the Founding Director of the non-profit Lives in the Balance (www.livesinthebalance.org), which provides a vast array of free, web-based resources on his model and advocates on behalf of behaviorally challenging kids and their parents, teachers, and other caregivers.

Books and Methods Review - Therapeutic Parenting - Christine Moers

I will always credit Christine Moers with being the therapeutic "guru" who got me through the toughest times with our kids. Unfortunately, she no longer coaches and her YouTube videos and blogs are now private, but it's still possible to rent her video Chaos To Healing: Therapeutic Parenting 101. It's really good and I highly recommend it. 

This is probably going to sound like a commercial or like I'm a total fangirl (which I am), but I have to tell you about my favorite Therapeutic parenting "guru," Christine Moers, a foster and adoptive parent of children from "the hard places."

I like that she's so approachable and doesn't pretend to have it all together. She's nothing like me -- she's got dreads and tattoos, was a pastor's wife, and owns a trailer park -- but at the same time, we're kindred spirits. She's walked the path I'm on. I've met her several times over the years, and she is exactly the same in real life as she seems in her videos and on her blog.


DVD
Now, I know you want more. You're in luck! She worked with Billy Kaplan ( President and Clinical Director at House Calls Counseling) to create a video called Chaos to Healing:  Therapeutic Parenting 101  Author, Daniel Hughes, writes VERY good books about attachment, but (in my opinion) they are very academic and pretty dry. Christine Moers and Billy Kaplan have created an entertaining, practical description of Daniel Hughes' concept PACE (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity, Empathy). They also explain what Safety means to our kids and why it's so important.

YOUTUBE VIDEOS
She has an amazing series of YouTube videos on Therapeutic Parenting. If you haven't checked them out, go do it! I'll wait.
. 
See! I told you she's awesome! This is the only video I could find; I'm guessing it's because it was done with someone else. But it is one of my favorites - the Pee Song about dysregulated kids. Sometimes you just have to laugh! Lol

Unfortunately, Christine Moers is on an indefinite break from coaching and speaking while she heads back to school. 

BLOG
Christine Moers had been blogging for years at http://www.welcometomybrain.net/ before she moved most of the content over to ChristineParentCoaching.com. She has a very real and open style of writing that doesn't feel preachy.

PARENT COACH

For some of us, this gig is hard. Whether a friend sent you to this site or you stumbled across the page in the middle of the night as tears are streaming down your face ... you just found someone who understands. Look around to see if Christine might be just the cheerleader you are looking for.
- http://christineparentcoaching.com

She gets it. She really does, and she helps you become better at "getting it" too. After talking to her you feel inspired and empowered to believe that, you've got this and the added tools in your toolbelt to do it.