Any family is a good candidate! Parent Coaching is available for any parent who needs additional insight into their child’s behavior. It is specifically designed for children who may have experienced attachment problems and trauma in the past. However, any child can benefit from these services.

For families who have recently adopted, Parent Coaching can help with applying principles of attachment and provide support in the initial months of adjustment.

For adoptive families who have been home for longer, or families doing foster care, a child’s growing feeling of safety and security in their home can allow new and challenging behaviors to emerge as a child begins to shed the survival skills that may have made them compliant in the beginning. Adoption is a lifeline journey; issues can emerge or re-emerge as a child goes through a new development stage. A reoccurrence can be confusing or frustrating to parents who feel like they have dealt with and resolved an issue. They may be surprised they need to repeat or return to strategies they used when they were newly home.

Parents of biological children also reach out for coaching services—coaching is for any family! You might be parenting biological children with special needs, or you might have entered a new developmental stage with a child whose behavior felt more manageable in the past, and now you need new skills. Our coaches are able to work with families of any background to find the right supports for you.

Parent Coaching sessions are 45-60 minutes long and provide parents with new and different tools and techniques that are different from traditional parenting. These tools and techniques are used to build additional strengths and parenting skills and to enhance relationships with the child.

Parent Coaching sessions can be done in the office, by phone, or through web-based meeting during Lifeline’s office hours.

Each Parent Coaching session is private pay and costs $100. DHR may cover Parent Coaching sessions for foster families.