October!!!!

How did that happen!?! 

It is baffling and it's hard to put away the sandals and take out the boots!  September is always a difficult month for families and even more so for families with children who have suffered loss, transitions, and trauma.  Back to school, back to routine, is always challenging to say the least.  And guess what?  It is as hard for the grownups as for the kids.  

Change is in the air as we transition into new seasons, new things to learn.  Change for us at PACT means looking for new opportunities to do keynote addresses, consulting, and training.  Our funding has been reduced for our Riverside work, and we have to make up a loss of almost $20k.  So keep us in mind if you are looking for a speaker or if you are seeking supervision, consulting, or training. 

Update on key issues for the past month and what we have been doing:

• An abundance of families who met the birthmother or parents at the time of infant adoption, but did not keep in touch.  Children are now between ten and twenty and want to begin contact.  Parents realize that kids can find anyone online, and they prefer to do it in a methodical and caring way - so they come to us.  We have had many successful reunions this month, and many are slowly meandering toward a connection depending on the pacing of the child and of the birth and adoptive parents.

• Parents with children who have pretty extreme behavioral issues that get in the way of camps and school performance and that impact the other siblings in the family.

• Parents who want assessments done to figure out what course of action is best to build skills and strategies for helping their children to self regulate and to interact in a more functional way.

• Parents and adult children trying to figure out how to deal with the need for some continued support while wanting independence and feeling angry (both sides).

• Expert witness cases to determine permanency planning for kids who have had too many moves.  One eight-year-old has been moved thirteen times - the judge (luckily) says that this time we have to do something that is permanent.

• Parents and kids preparing for trips to their homeland - some to Guatemala and Cambodia, and some to China and Ethiopia.  We have a whole protocol to help children pack their "emotional suitcase" for such an auspicious journey.

• Parents seeking assessment and help deciding on the best kind of school and programs for children who joined this permanent family at an older age and have gaps in their education.

• Monthly consults with agencies: discussing concerns with two or three professionals and the family and the recommending directions to go in.

• School visits to educate the middle school to do the best thing for a child and family.

• Gazillion Voices Google Hangout interviews with Amanda Baden, Patrick Morris, and Darrick Rizzo.  Excellent interviews to be posted soon: http://gazillionvoices.com/category/interviews/#.VDKovWRdWpU

• Gary Mallon is joining me in writing my book of How To's for professionals and parents in adoption and complex blended families.  I love having Gary join me to make this project richer and to move it along as I am doing too many books at once!

• Working on marketing of our New York and Boston Course and of our new online Consult/Supervision project!  See the info below.

• I am planning a "Little Day About Adoption" with Phyllis Lowinger and Penny Callan Partridge in the Berkshires.  The workshop will be held on Saturday, November 22, and all will be welcome (parents, professionals, adult adopted people, and others)!  Look for details later this month, and you can email eakinnect@gmail.com for more information.

PACT Client Satisfaction Survey

If you have used PACT services as a professional or as a parent or other individual involved in complex blended families, please complete this brief survey.  We are working to ensure that our services are tailored to your and your family's needs.  Thank you for your time and your feedback!

The Trauma Center of the Justice Resource Institute, located in Brookline, is currently recruiting children ages 6-12 for research study investigating neurofeedback and biofeedback for trauma symptoms in kids. We will be offering FREE treatment for children who have experienced trauma and are currently in therapy. This is a great opportunity for children and families to receive treatment that would otherwise cost as much as $3,000! Here is some more information about this study and the noninvasive treatments we are offering:

http://www.traumacenter.org/research/Child%20Biofeedback%20Study.php

If you know any children or families who could benefit from participating in this research study, please let them know about this opportunity or contact me directly for more information. Here is a copy of our flyer:

http://www.traumacenter.org/research/Flyer_2.25.2014.pdf

Please feel free to contact me with any questions or to refer a participant at 617.232.1303 x240 or akharaz@jri.org

Thanks for spreading the word about this great opportunity.

Sincerely,

Anna Kharaz, M.A.

Staff Clinician, Research Coordinator, and Yoga Instructor

The Trauma Center

Justice Resource Institute

1269 Beacon Street

Brookline, MA 02446

(617) 232-1303, x335

(617) 232-1280 (fax)

http://www.traumacenter.org/