The need for attention is actually a need for connection. A child's behavior is, in fact, a form of communication, and it is driven by this need for an emotional connection.

When we see behavior as something that we have to manage, control, or shape, we miss the underlying message about the need that the child has.

...having secure attachments is not about being a perfect parent or partner but about maintaining communication to repair the inevitable rifts that occur.

For these women, reuniting with their children is their motivation to stay in recovery...The program offers a Circle of Security parenting class that helps women explore their own childhood traumas and learn to avoid repeating them with their children.