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Why is it important for children to stay connected with the other parent and extended family?

Without ignoring the fact that the more people involved in your child's life the more financial resources  available to assist you when that child needs a new computer, an ipad, or dare I say it a car.

These relationships and attachments to significant people play an important role in your child's health and ongoing wellbeing.   The  connections formed with significant people in the first four years of their life assist in the development of their brains.  Their relationships or attachments directly impact their resilience later in life, during teenage years as well as adulthood and assist them in being able to have healthy adult relationships.

There is no magic age at which the disruption of these relationships is not harmful. Attachment disruption can cause anxiety, depression and in extreme circumstances trauma.  Symptoms can include, holding in bowel motions, constipation, self soothing acts such as thumb sucking, hair twirling, chewing on their clothes, nail biting, faeces smearing and other behaviours.

Here is a great Ted X talk "How every child can thrive by five" that may help you understand a little better the importance of connection for your child. 

Completing our parenting course Circle of Security International will also help you develop and establish healthy connections with your child.  You will learn about children miscuing, telling you what they think you want to hear, and what you can do to prevent this.  

We believe that we can always get better at parenting and it is never too late.

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Other useful videos & articles:

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The science behind how a parents affect child development

The beautiful hard work of co-parenting

When attachment is disrupted

 

Legal Study Assignment written by a teenage boy from first hand experience - "Child Abuse, Family Violence and Family Law."​​