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 Adoption: Everyone’s story is different. Families and individuals need a competent mental health clinician who understands the richness and complexities of adoptive families and first families. Susan is qualified and committed to serving this population with best practices and under the highest ethical standards.
Since 2003 Susan has dedicated her post graduate research and training to adoption related psychology. Her research with a young adult trans racially adopted population was featured as a poster presentation at the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy in 2003 and later on was published later in 2007’s Handbook of Adoption.
She is a nationally recognized speaker and educator on adoption counseling and was featured on We Can Do Better, the DVD companion to Adopted: the Movie, to share her clinical knowledge and experiences as a trans racially adopted person. Susan has been featured in Adoption Today magazine and is an Ask the Expert and Growing Up Adopted contributor for Adoptive Families magazine.
Susan has experience working with the following members of the adoption constellation:
- Children adopted as infants, toddlers, middle childhood, and teen years
- Children adopted internationally, domestically, privately, kinship, or via the child welfare system
- Children and teens adopted internationally through summer “hosting” programs
- Young adult and adult adopted persons
- First or birth parents who are currently making an adoption plan or have done so in the past
- Adoptive parents: both current and prospective
- Blended, adoptive, foster, and reunified families
Some common issues that many persons from these populations experience include the following:
- Questions about their adoption story
- Grief and loss stemming from adoption history, infertility, or making an adoption plan
- Pre adoptive trauma including child neglect and abuse
- First and birth family searches and reunions
- Open adoption planning
- Parental post adoption depression
- Homeland / heritage tour preparation
- 7 Core Issues (*Please ask Susan for more information.)
- Adoptive parenting questions and concerns
- Bonding and attachment struggles (*Please note that Susan in no way utilizes, engages in, or participates with organizations that promote harmful, coercive, and banned practices that sometimes are referred to as “attachment therapy.” Susan practices Theraplay®, www.theraplay.org and Circle of Security ©, www.circleofsecurity.org).
Types of Services Provided:
- Individual and family therapy
- Attachment enhancing family play therapy
- Adoptive parenting consultation
- Pre adoption consultation
- First or birth parent counseling
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