Attachment Disorders

Angry Adopted Child

Unfortunately, children with attachment issues tend to be the children that need the most help, which are children that are adopted. Whether special needs, or “neuro-typical,” there is a higher risk of having a child with attachment problems, or a diagnosis along the lines of Reactive Attachment Disorder whom is adopted.

As explained in the video, that is because it starts with the very complex relationship with mother and baby in utero. It is not to sound esoteric but there is not only the physical connection with Mom and baby, but a connection driven by neurological and hormonal interactions from baby to Mom and vice versa. Not to mention the energy that is created by Mom’s body, and baby’s body and how those interact.

Again, not to sound “out there” but we are essentially bags of water and electricity. Water and electricity is energy, don’t think for a second you are not “giving off vibes,” because you are. You feel it when you walk in a room and you may think “that just didn’t feel right.” Or that person “wasn’t the right fit.” I digress.

Healthy attachment starts at conception, and if a Mother carrying a baby knows that they do not want the baby then there is hurdle number one for that kiddo. It then is followed by experiencing gravity when born, gravity drives motor and vestibular system responses which BUILD THE BRAIN. This is then needed to be followed by skin on skin contact with Mom and Dad. Lastly the remaining piece of neurology that must develop is motor function. See our https://hmlfunctionalcare.com/neuro-development-101/ page and others to learn more on that.

Even if that child is going to the most loving home, from day one, we at HML find that there can still be attachment issues. This can lead to sensory processing problems and not give a good foundation to allowing the child to understand how they feel, therefore not express in a healthy manner how they feel, and therefore not relate to others, especially their parents. If we can help increase their sensory processing abilities, they can then have a greater ability to process the world around them and not get “sensory overloaded” and go into fight or flight which leads to the behavioral outbursts, violent outbursts, or other dangerous behavior.

At HML we find ourselves working heavily on sensory processing with children with attachment issues. This can lay down the developmental foundation for the child to get more out of more traditional therapies such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Applied Behavioral Analysis, etc.