Help for the Hopeless Child: A Guide for Families (With Special Discussion for Assessing and Treating the Post-Institutionalized Child), Second Edition

Rating:
Summary: Finally, An Expert Who Really Knows My Kid!
Review: After going from "expert" to expert, place to place, and medication to medication, we found someone who really understands post-institutionalized children. We wasted tons of money at Evergreen and two other treatment facilities, and even more wasted time and money all these quack attachment therapists. Family counseling, play therapy, residential, and we were still stuck with misery. We read this book, saw Dr. Federici and his team, and they put our family back on track in six months. It was VERY HARD to do, but the best way to really help. Practical, family-centered, and no-nonsense. We had read all the other books out there by the "experts', but never heard the solutions--only the RAD diagnosis. Now we have peace AND control in our home. We hope Dr. Federici keeps writing and lecturing, as he can really teach his colleagues how to get it right.

Rating:
Summary: A Book For Families In Desparate Need of Help!
Review: After struggling for years, and reading all these other books on attachment, behavior problems, therapy and about everything else, we got Dr. Federici's book and finally found someone who really "gets the picture". We have also seen about everyone who claims to be the real "expert' in attachment, behaviors, traumatized kids, etc. They quickly took our money, gave us all kinds of theoretical discussions about how screwed up our kid was (like we did not already know!), and then did everything from some wierd holding techniques (which made it worse), talked to him and us, then told us "to keep coming". Never an end till we read this book. Even with the typos, it was clear, solid and structured. Certainly not an easy treatment, but one where we saw results in one month, compared to the years of wasted therapies. This book is a MUST for families who got deceived by their adoption agency and are really struggling.

Rating:
Summary: The book to buy--if things seem truly "hopeless"!
Review: Dr. Federici has been "in the trenches", as a mental health professional dealing with children with problematic behaviors, and as the adoptive parent of post-institutionalized kids. For this reason alone, his book, and his tough treatment program, deserves serious consideration for anyone dealing with a seriously out of control child. Having said this, I am actually glad we didn't read his book before adopting our child from Ukraine, who was indeed seriously out out control the first few months. Although we followed some of the recommendations that are mentioned in his book (many of them have been on the web in various forms for some time), I can't claim to have kept within arm's length of our son for six weeks, and we didn't strip his room or keep him off the TV or from outside activities. There are many kids adopted from East Eurpean countries (I suspect more than the percentage quoted by Federici) who adapt relatively easily to family life. This book is clearly not intended for parents of those kids, although virtually anyone adopting children from insitutionalilzed settings will glean important information and insights from the book.
There are grammatical and spelling errors throughout the book, and the editorially inclined may be tempted to bring out the red pen. But this is a minor criticism of an otherwise wonderful book, which will be truly a "life raft" for parents of out of control children.

Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Book For the Most Difficult Child
Review: Dr. Federici is the only professional we have encountered who really understands the problems parents face. None of this hand-holding, RAD, ODD, and other fancy labels--just hard (parental) work. His Edition II is more detailed than I, and has helped tremendously.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Book And One We Can Understand!
Review: Dr. Federici's book put us back on track and 'in control" of our family after years of wasted, costly therapy for our two Romanian children. We had tried about everything, including this "neurofeedback" for RAD which was a total waste as our child had brain damage, not RAD like all these therapists like to push (RAD,ADHD, Bipolar, ODD--seems they diagnosis all these kids with it when they do not know what else to do). We called Evergreen, Villa Santa Maria, and a few other places that claimed to be able to help, but none had a solid plan, but sure wanted the money. So we went to Dr. Federici and his "team approach" and got further in three months, than we did with all the other professionals over the span of four years. This is the right approach and book when you are at the end of your rope, and is endorsed by some of the real experts in the country. Also, this Dr. actually has Internationally Adopted kids of his own, so he gets real life credit. He neds to lecture more to get the correct word out to families in need.

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Summary: FROM A FAMILY WHO ADOPTED THREE RUSSIAN CHILDREN
Review: Dr. Federici's book saved our family. We were drowning in chaos and confusion, and with 3 very troubled adopted children. His book is an extension of his practice model (proper evaluation and intensive parent training). All the other professionals we saw did not have a clue how to handle our children, so we went on our own and got the right help we needed. Nothing crazy like "holding therapy" which we tried and discontinued. This book give structure and hope when all else is or has failed.

Rating:
Summary: Finally, Someone Who Gets It!
Review: Dr. Federici's Second Edition is great. He wastes no time in getting to the point as to what is wrong with our child that we have struggled with for years. After all these "experts", medications, support groups, internet advice, we finally found someone who really sees the whole picture. We saw him for evaluation and training, and have implemented his "program" which is tough to do. We have seen more change in 3 months, than with 5 years on wasted therapy from all these "attachment experts", psychiatrists, and others who claim to know Post-Institutionalized children. This book is great for the struggling family.

Rating:
Summary: The Best Book For The Toughest Kids!
Review: Finally, finally, an expert who gets the whole picture. We have struggled with our adopted Romanian and Russian children for years, and have seen all the other "experts" out there who had all types of tricks, but no solutions. We used all the drugs in the world, got sick of play, attachment and family therapy, and finally got to the heart of the problem with Dr. Federici's common sense approach. We wish we would have done this years ago (and tons of money ago). Maybe the others out there who claim to know about post institutionalized children will read his book and learn something.

Rating:
Summary: Extremely Helpful After Many Failures
Review: This book was the best we had read and used in all of our struggles with our older, Russian adopted kids from one of the infamous "summer camp programs". We were not at all prepared for the problems, as we were told "love will fix it all". That was not the case, and we waded through one non-effective therapy after another, especially medications and "attachment therapy" by the so-called experts. Dr. Federici's approach woke us up, made us accept what we got, and helped us to get a grip on our children and reality. This book is a must for the desparate and those who really want solutions to real problems--not hand holding, nebulious attachment therapy , play therapy or the medication roller coaster.