Rating: 
Summary: Save yourself, get this book.
Review: After seven years of raising my neice, we recently had her diagnosed with RAD. We knew something wasn't right, but this book describes her without having met her. It's an amazing book filled with insight and practical parenting methods that work immediately and effectively. We saw dramatic improvements in just a few weeks. The book literally saved us all, we didn't know if we could continue to raise this child. Unfortunately many of the therapists did not recognize her issues as RAD, and this book even has insights our current therapist has not had. It's a MUST for anyone adopting or raising another person's child.
Rating: 
Summary: Overrated, misleading and potentially a big problem
Review: Another book on childhood disorders written by a lay person is a dangerous proposition. Let alone, all the confusion and hype about "RAD" which is the new disorder of the millenium after ADHD and created by Evergreen Types. Just remember what has happened to all these RAD type therapists--many have hit the news for their "treatment" which has hurt and even killed some children due to poorly trained "parents and therapists". There are so many issues that this book forgot-mentally challenged children, autism, neurologically impaired children, major mental illnesses, etc--all which may look like RAD. This new label gives people something to hold onto when they may be really missing the true problem (and proper treatment ) of their child. We have 3 adopted children who were all called "RAD" when we learned the real facts-autism, retardation, and neurological impairments. Kids with these issues haven't a clue about "attachment" due to medical issues. This book make it sound so easy and truely misleads parents who may forget what a good assessment can do.
Rating:
Summary: Agree With The Professionals--Not A Book For Distribution
Review: As a Child Psychiatrist and Researcher for 25 years, this kind of book will only cause more problems than good in the long run. When parents without Clinical Training and true professional and educational experience start writing these kind of "treatment books", we are in big trouble. It does have all the essence of "Evergreen Approaches" and it is clearly biased in the same manner as what was exposed in the tragedy in Colorado with the death related to "re-birthing-attachment therapy". Also, all of these techniques are UNPROVEN, costly, unscientific and misleading. Even for those of us who truely know the real problems with "Attachment Disorders" (which is never a sole diagnosis), professional and common sense , multi-dicipline treatment needs to be completed--not just what a parent feels works based on her personal experience and "observations". This book, along with all these other quasi-professional books on "attachment/holding therapy"(again, all the Evergreen people who taunt success without proven techniques and research outcomes) are dangerous, yet appealing to the desparate parent. This book draws on their desparation and misses a great deal of medical and psychiatric facts.
Rating:
Summary: Not a book written by a professional
Review: As a Mental Health Professional with 20 years of experience working with disturbed youth, this book can be quite problematic as it WAS NOT written by a profession, but a parent. Many people may "follow" this path of treatment, but the author left out so many vital pieces of information such as medical conditions, proper evaluations, and all necessary, multi-diciplined treatment approaches. NOT recommended for families having complicated children due to it's biased, parental perspective without scientific research, knowledge or techniques that have been carefully studied.
Rating:
Summary: Good for Everyone!
Review: I am a guidance counselor who is also the mother of a 7 year old who came to live with us in July. This book is helpful to me not only in addressing her attachment issues but in my work with children in my school. Attachment issues do not occur ONLY in adopted children. There are many birth children who have such issues. This author is quite clear on how to address such needs and how to provide logical consequences for behaviors that need to be helped. MANY PARENTS COULD BENEFIT FROM THIS BOOK.
Rating:
Summary: Saved my life
Review: I got a hold of a very worn/loved copy of Nancy Thomas' book while my 6 year old adopted son was in a psychiatric hospital. We were seriously giving up on our son until I read this book. We postponed his adoption and worked the ideas in the book. I am proud to say that we are now completing the adoption and though not "cured" he is turning into a really neat kid. Please read this....it may save your life!
Rating:
Summary: Lots of great tools here!
Review: I have read many books on attachment and bonding and found this to be the most helpful. Nancy Thomas shares many concrete ways to #1--help your child improve his behavior and #2--help you maintain a loving attitude toward the child in the process. Patience, joyful living, and 'smiling eyes' can be hard when a child challenges every request, but Nancy's tips make it so much easier. My son is still quite young and his attachment issues are mild, but I am so glad to have these tools now before his behavior is 'cemented'. The book is helping us to maximize our bond to each other right now, which of course tremendously improves my son's chance for a bright future. I recommend this book to *anyone* who even wonders if their child *might* have attachment problem. Some of Nancy's tips have also been effective with my well-attached children.
Rating: 
Summary: Very helpful for the parenting of son
Review: I read the other reviews with a mix of humor and sadness. We started out as most adoptive parents do, full of hope and dreams. We did not understand the effects of abuse and neglect as profound as what goes on in the Romanian orphanage where our son came home from. He was there for 4 long years and the damage - neurologically, developmentally, spiritually, etc., was unbelievable. I embarked on a journey to learn all that I could about this disorder - attachment disorder - you know, the one that some misinformed people say isn't real or is just a catch all for other behavior problems. This disorder was diagnosed by two psychologists - PhD's - yes, I got a second opinion - desperate, maybe - stupid, NOT. Frustrated by the lack of knowledge and ability to treat this disorder in my area - I covered four states and even branched out beyond that - I came to realize that I was my child's best hope. I had to find out how to help him and not rely so much on the ones that were supposed to help. Sure, we could waste years of our child's life on ineffective therapy and parenting - the kind with stacks of research to back it up but you get no where as the ones that are supposed to help blame the parents and the child gets sicker and ends up in RTC. I decided I was going to find a way to help my child. I bought and read EVERY book on attachment and attachment disorder. Had my son screened/treated for Sensory Integration Disorder, CAPD, PTSD, ADHD, neurological damage, etc. I worked to bring together all of the peices of the healing puzzle. There was NO professional able to do this for me. Not even the best in our area! We found a therapist who trained with two well respected doctors in the attachment field. We traveled 3 hours both ways once a week for a year to give our son the help he needed which was to bond to me. I homeschooled him, he stayed home with me 24/7 for three years, and some of the parenting techniques that I used included Nancy Thomas'. I pulled from several different sources under the guidance of our therapist. This book is for parents to learn how to effectively parent their child with the goal of attachment. Is it the only approach out there for these children - of course not. Parents need to get feedback from their therapist and from other parents who live this life. When parents want to know where to turn for help with parenting these hurt children, I let them know about all of the books about parenting attachment disorder, including this one. I do urge all parents to be working with a therapist who has been properly trained and is a member of ATTACh. Also, there must be a balance of structure and nurture. The balance has to be there. Sometimes, people lean too far to the structure side and forget the nurturing. Parenting techniques are only ONE piece to the healing puzzle - therapy, regression techniques, medication if needed, all the adults in the child's life on the same page, school dealt with in a positive manner, support for the parents, and other diagnosis screened and treated. The author does touch on this. When conventional parenting and therapy fails us, we turn to those who have lived this life for over 25 years and have had great success in helping these children learn to love and trust. To do any less would be sentencing our children to a life of loss, grief, abandoment, with no connection to another human being. If you are a parent that needs support, don't hesitate to contact me at nancyjhg63@yahoo.com Nancy Geoghegan
Attachment Disorder Site PS: My son is doing very well. He has his struggles and we will help him through but he loves, trusts, has empathy, and his development is catching up. Without those who author books to help us, we would not be as far as we are.
Rating:
Summary: real life with RAD kids found here
Review: I'm a clinician working with kids/families in a treatment foster care program. These are tough, tough kids who deserve a real chance at life. Nancy Thomas has lived through the process of helping these kids work through the agonizing process of learning to trust, learning to live. She doesn't sugar coat what it takes. If only more people knew about these issues. Families are falling apart over the problems caused by and experienced by these kids. Proper treatment could help so many...
Rating:
Summary: real life with RAD kids found here
Review: I'm a clinician working with kids/families in a treatment foster care program. These are tough, tough kids who deserve a real chance at life. Nancy Thomas has lived through the process of helping these kids work through the agonizing process of learning to trust, learning to live. She doesn't sugar coat what it takes. If only more people knew about these issues. Families are falling apart over the problems caused by and experienced by these kids. Proper treatment could help so many...
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