Intensive Therapeutic Programs

Program Philosophy
It is our belief that most of the clients referred to us can be helped; it is even a stronger belief that the families who come to treatment can be helped. We believe that treatment can be done at any age if the child, adolescent, or adult contracts for such treatment.

Presenting Problems
Families seek help from us to repair damage brought about by early trauma, such as abuse, neglect or abandonment. Families also seek help to strengthen their bonds with one another, and may find that the family member with attachment difficulties is destructive, dishonest and a chronic source of chaos. Those who have adopted children with various degrees of attachment issues find them difficult to parent, to manage, to love and to keep. We believe that the foundation of these difficulties is faulty attachment within the first five years of life.

Mothers are frequently the target of their children's anger and fathers may not experience the same maltreatment. Since one of the goals of therapy is to help the parents get "in charge" in a good way, the parenting coalition must be solid. To that end, sometimes the therapy process will focus on the parents' release of old anger, on relationship issues, and sometimes on unaddressed emotional issues of one or both parents, which inhibit the formation of strong attachment bonds.

Program Overview
We offer a wide range of services, including assessment, diagnosis and treatment in our two-week intensive program.

The two-week intensive program includes approximately 40 hours of services, including but not limited to: psychotherapy, EMDR, CranioSacral therapy, parent education, academic coaching and social skills training. The two week intensive is a ten-day program. The one-week intensive is a five-day (20-hour) program.

All therapy conducted at the Institute for Child and Family Development is done under three clear contracts:

1. Contract between the parent(s), child and therapist: The child must be helped to acknowledge and accept the reality of the problems and must know that, while not responsible for the cause, s/he must accept responsibility for participation in the healing process.
2. Contract between the parent(s) or adult clients and therapist
3. Contract between the therapist and child

In contrast to play therapy or client-centered therapy, in which the client chooses the subject matter, the therapists and parents are in charge and direct the course of therapy. In our experience, clients with Attachment Disorder will not voluntarily face their painful emotions. Denial, avoidance, and dissociation are the defenses that allowed them to survive their trauma and they are not disposed to giving them up easily. The client is given the difficult choice of facing the consequences of not resolving problems or going through the painful work of solving them. This choice is given to the client genuinely and repeatedly but in a compassionate, understanding, and supportive manner. Consequently, therapy is quite direct and the client, as part of the contract, must agree to acknowledge the problems that brought the family to treatment. Our belief about therapy is consistent with that of ATTACh in that "it must be done in a manner which promotes attunement, sensitivity, and developmental appropriateness".

The course of therapy takes into account the unique needs of each adult, family and child. Perhaps the most critical factor in positive treatment outcomes are parents who are strong, committed, compassionate, and open to their own emotional growth and to learning and applying parenting skills specific to their child's needs. The skill of the clinicians in selecting and implementing treatment strategies most appropriate to each child and family is also a considerable factor in outcomes of this therapy.

Parents must be available at all times during the intensive program; it is not possible to schedule therapy around work hours.

Referring therapists are encouraged to come with the family and be part of the treatment team, if they are available to follow up with the family after the two-week intensive.

No cell phones or pagers may be used during intensive therapy sessions.

Intensive Therapeutic Goals for Families with Children

1. Reduce parents' perceptions of helplessness and hopelessness by establishing realistic goals.
2. Help the child to develop a more secure attachment by increasing trust, reciprocity, and emotional closeness with the parent.
3. Establish treatment goals for the client, including the following:
   • Help the client to deal with trauma, loss, and grief issues
   • Direct his or her feelings of anger appropriately so that the client may come to some positive resolutions.
   • Help the client to reduce anxiety through down regulation.
4. Provide parents with tools to use in the home and with information for school personnel regarding how to handle their child's behavior outside of the therapeutic environment.
5. Reduce the client's destructive behavior.
6. Enhance the client's self-concept.