It takes a village to raise a child, any child, but especially a traumatised child.
We can’t do it alone. We need other people who can step in and get to know us and our children.
We need people who will reinforce our loving messages to our children - that we love them, that we have their best interests at heart, that we're safe, that we know what we're talking about, that we're worth paying attention to - family, friends, neighbours, school, social workers, therapists, police - whoever we can get on board.
We need people who will reinforce the message to our children that they are good, that they have many strengths, that they can problem solve, that they can find safe and respectful ways of being in the world.
We need people who can diffuse tension when things are getting heated, who can give us time apart to avoid things getting heated, and who can build bridges when relationships have been damaged.
We need people who share our values - compassion and acceptance, looking behind behaviour without excusing it, personal accountability, growth mindset, and gentle authority.