Scottish Adoption Book of the Month Review - June 2015

THESE REVIEWS ORIGINALLY APPEARED ON THE SCOTTISH ADOPTION WEBSITE AND ARE REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION

The Whole-Brain Child by Dr Daniel J. Siegel  and Dr Tina Payne Bryson
 
This book is written by a clinical professor of psychiatry and a psychotherapist who each offer examples of their own parenting techniques to illustrate the whole-brain perspective approach to parenting. The stated aim of The Whole-Brain Child is finding ways to survive difficult parenting moments whilst enabling child/ren and family to thrive.

My favourite parts of the book were the practical suggestions offered under catch phrases such as “Remember to Remember”. This is aimed at helping children exercise their memory by giving them lots of practice recalling important events, thus enabling them to build a coherent narrative necessary for a secure attachment.

There is a very helpful summary of the strategies involved which has been written to stick up on the fridge as an aide memoire. The book is written in a humorous way illustrated by cartoons giving two scenarios of responses to a situation, including the whole-brain response.

At first sight it appears an easy read, but half way through I found I needed a bit of peace and quiet to grasp the finer points of neuroscience. What I took away was the message to pay attention to what is going on inside our minds…to recognise our feelings and name them, as it the first step to being able to integrate our experiences instead of being overwhelmed by them.

Catherine Watson
Senior Practitioner, After Adoption Team.

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