Rapid City Foster and Adoptive Families

07/30/2020

This is really good... something that could really help with our kids from tough places!

The average person wouldn’t think that they can learn something from decoding the body language of a murderer. Little do they know, there is more than a litt...

03/02/2020

"I started watching the Babies documentary on Netflix today.
In the first episode, scientists did a study on what happens in parent's brains when we fall in love with our babies. They compared the bonding hormones that are released in the body when you have a baby biologically to the hormones released in adoptive couples.

I don't usually cry over scientific research, but this one confirmed something I've always known.

They showed that the amygdala; that primitive, mama bear part of our brain that lets us know that we are responsible for another life and makes us hypervigilant in protecting, loving and nurturing our child, is opened during pregnancy, child birth and nursing and remains active for the rest of your life.

But the most surprising discovery to these scientists was what they found when they studied this same part of the brain in adoptive parents who became primary care givers to a child from different biology.

Their amygdala was open and activated to the same extent as a biological mothers. The bonding hormones in both types of parents were identical.

Their research proved that becoming a parent had nothing to do with biology or having a baby, and everything to do with simply choosing to love and care for a child for the rest of your life. It's the choice to parent that makes you one.

As someone who never thought I'd get the chance to be a mother, there isn't a discovery out there that feels more important than this one." -Kortni Miller

To follow Kortni's adoption story follow her on Instagram at born.from.my.heart

01/07/2020

Do you all find holidays hard with your foster or adopted kids? How did you fare this Christmas?

12/03/2019

I would love to get a support group going in this area after the holidays. What are some ways that you would like to see support?

04/19/2018

February 8, 2017 By Institute For Attachment and Child Development Why kids don’t “outgrow” reactive attachment disorder (and what happens when they grow up without help) Temper tantrums, the physical need for daily naps, or thumb sucking—these are things that children usually outgrow with t...

04/16/2018

Three months home! How’s she doing? Is she going to be okay? Is the emotional damage of two years in an orphanage and foster care going to be repairable? I breathe in these questions everyda…

01/11/2018

April 6, 2016 By Institute For Attachment and Child Development For moms who call us in tears about their adopted kids with reactive attachment disorder Here at the Institute for Attachment and Child Development, adoptive mothers call and email us every day with the same sort of statements. They inc...

12/05/2017

I've found this true. Birthdays are hard as well.

For most people, the holidays are a time of joyous celebration, spending time with family and friends. But for kids in the foster care system, this isn’t the case. These are the top five reasons why Choice Network believes the holidays are the hardest for children in foster care:

11/04/2017

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1575743582472422&id=111833908863404

11/03/2017

This is a great video. We've found this to be true with our fosters/adopted kiddos.

Told to us through the voices of children, this unique animation teaches us that by putting together the seven-piece jigsaw puzzle of 'Developmental Trauma',...