Raising children in foster care or in pre adoption homes produces questions for families. Inner Circle Foster Care and Adoption Services provide families with support and on-going training. Since all children want to feel “normal,” it is important for these families to have the straight answers on how to handle some uncomfortable situations. To “normalize” the child and family’s adjustment, is to treat a child as you would any other child with love, acceptance, and honesty.
The first recommendation is to support sibling connections. Since brothers and sisters are the people we have relationships with throughout our lives, supporting contact whether by phone, Internet, or in-person is helpful to a child’s adjustment in care.
A second recommendation is regarding “Secrets and Lies.” The more open and honest parents can be about the reasons a child is out of the home; the better it is for the child. A child often feels they are to blame for a separation. Easing a child’s sense of guilt or blame is helpful for healing. No child is responsible for the complications leading to the separation.
A third goal is to establish family activities that are not traumatic. New experiences should include developing a child’s skills, interests, and talents. Every child grows when experiencing pleasure and mastery.
Inner Circle offers a welcoming, supportive, and diverse team of professionals whose aim is to help families get beyond loss and grief. Problem behaviors happen in all families, and children can be taught better coping strategies. Power struggles happen in all families. Children can be taught new ways to satisfy their needs. We teach our families to be consistent, to give attention, and to ask a child what do you need.
For further information about fostering and adoption, please call us at Inner Circle FFA at 818-988-6300.