Attachment Therapy

I wanted to take some time and address attachment therapy and child parent psychotherapy (CPP) in one of my first blogs.

I learned about attachment and CPP many years ago while working with children in a local agency and I was lucky enough to enter the training, what I learned was amazing and changed my career path and focus in therapy all together.

As a counselor that works with children and adults I find a theme throughout my years of experience, that hurt people hurt people … and often times (most times) inadvertently or unintentionally. We develop relationships at a very early age and this process helps us learn about the world around us and impacts our development and future relationships.

Creating a safe and secure environment and relationship between a caregiver and child is of paramount importance and many things can disrupt this process. One of which is a caregivers past trauma.

I don’t want to scare anyone as there is so much information on how to be the best parent and what not to do but while I don’t want to add to this conundrum, I do want to take time to address what healthy attachment looks like and how finding a good attachment based counselor may be a viable option for you and your family.

Early childhood trauma can take many forms and can affect relationships and how a child develops. In my work I have seen many times where a trauma early on has impacted a child and they don’t receive help until much later in life (sometimes all the way into adulthood). These behaviors become ingrained and embedded and thus are much more difficult to manage and improve. Helping process this trauma through early intervention and improving the caregiver-child attachment can make a world of difference and prevent further worsening of symptoms.

Caregivers can benefit from this type of counseling as well and most, if not all, sessions would include the both the child and caregiver. Counseling focuses on the relationship and building secure attachment.

I would recommend this therapy to anyone who has had a trauma themselves, their child has experienced trauma, or experienced a break in attachment with their infant or young child. For instance a NICU or hospital stay, adoptions, parent illness, military deployment, postpartum depression/anxiety, or a lengthy separation.

If you have any questions about attachment therapy or how it may benefit your family please feel free to give me a call.