If you’re parenting a child from a hard place, you have probably run into behavior that feels unfair—or even manipulative. It can leave you feeling frustrated, controlled, or even attacked. But here’s the thing: what looks like manipulation is often something very different underneath. It’s about survival, not scheming. For children who’ve experienced trauma, […]

  It is essential to consider the unique needs and vulnerabilities of each child when making decisions about technology use. Some topics to think about are: when to introduce technology, what protections to put in place, and how to stay informed about media trends.   Introducing Technology Remember that the decision to introduce technology should […]

  Adoption has a lifelong impact on everyone involved - children, birth families, and adoptive families. Most families seek post adoption support at some point - whether immediately after bringing a child home or years down the road. Post adoption support can include educational resources, support groups, respite opportunities, counseling/therapy, or parent coaching.   When […]

  The attitudes. The cell phones. The hormones. Are these things that come to mind when you think of teens in foster care? It’s true — all teens, whether in foster care or not, can be challenging. Being a foster care parent to teens is hard, but it is also incredibly rewarding. Plus, teens also […]

  It’s ok to say no…   People make the decision to be foster parents for many different reasons.  Many of those reasons come back to one core reason, the desire to help a child.  If you’ve made the decision to foster or are considering fostering, chances are good that you are compassionate.  That compassion […]

Ambiguous loss is a term that defines the heartache and grief that comes with losing a person or relationship that is surrounded by confusion or uncertainty about that person or relationship.  Finding closure is difficult with normal losses, such as death, but it is impossible with ambiguous loss when the loss is not officially recognized […]

Adoptive families know that therapy will benefit their child, but it can be difficult to know where to turn. Maybe you thought it was called “counseling” but then you started to see words like “trauma-focused” or “eye movement desensitization” or question the effectiveness of art/animal/music/sand in therapy. We’ve created this guide below to find the […]

A Book Review by Dana Poynter of "The Connected Parent: Real-Life Strategies for Building Trust and Attachment" authored by Karyn Purvis, PhD and Lisa Qualls with Emmelie Pickett   Several Nightlight employees, including myself, through a grant from Show Hope, had the privilege of becoming TBRI trained in 2012 by Dr. Karyn Purvis herself!  Nine […]

  As Father’s Day approaches, we want to honor all dads, especially those who have opened their hearts and homes to adoption. When it comes to stories of parenting, fathers do not often take center stage. That is why we asked two adoptive fathers to share their experiences during and after adoption. Each faced unique […]

  What is the primary goal of foster care? That’s the most important question to ask yourself no matter where you are on your journey through the foster care world — whether that be a prospective foster parent, a first-time foster parent, a veteran seven-year foster parent, or a social worker. The answer can be […]