So what are the behavioral issues a post institutionalized child & family may or may not have to deal with?I have learned that this varies so much from child to child, you can read blogs of some families just home and they will say “ we are fine, he is attaching just fine, no problems here, its like he has been here all along”, while another family will be having issues right away with eye contact, tantrums, sleeping and eating.


I do think some families have honeymoon periods where the child’s true issues don’t rise to the surface perhaps because the child is on guard. I think that with some kids once they start feeling more and more secure then the real issues come out. I don’t think you can say once your home a week, month or year even that you are out of the woods. It seems some children have just one or two of the issues and others have more. Some of them can range from mild or severe.


One of the fist issues we witnessed in Livi was violent rocking and head banging as a way to self soothe. Nothing can prepare you for this. Then as we worked on attachment some new behaviors cropped up while others went away. Below is a list of behaviors that can occur and we have experienced most of them in some form or another.



1.Rocking and head banging.

2.Issues with food- stuffing, hoarding, gorging or avoiding food all together.

3.Easily over stimulated.

4.Trouble with sleeping- nightmares and night terrors.

5.Indiscriminate affection with strangers- very cute , charming and manipulative behaviors.

6.Sensory disorders- sensory seeking or sensory avoiding.

7.High pain tolerance- can sustain a injury and go on playing.

8.Attachment & Bonding Problems- issues with eye contact, trust, control and attaching.

9.Lacks cause and effect thinking.

10.Inability to give or receive affection.

11.No impulse control.

12.Hurts self and others.

13.Demanding of attention.

15.Avoids attachment or shows signs of Anxious Attachment.


Related articles

Adoption Research

Dr. Federici article













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