What happens to a child who grows up with virtually no parenting, love, affection or human touch? “Nearly everything we learn about being human—how to speak, how to walk, everything—comes from the people who raise us,” Oprah says. “Today, we’re going to look at what happens when nobody does.”
This was my son.
Dr. Bruce Perry, a Child psychiatrist featured on the Oprah show states that neglect is the absence of necessary stimulation in order to build a certain part of the brain. In order for children to learn, to stimulate areas of their brain they NEED stimulation. Without stimulation they will …read more

Institutional Autism is not a genetically induced Autism like most diagnosed here in the States, but one learned from years of neglect and sensory deprivation. Dr. Federici, a renowned adoption psychologist has done a vast amount of research on this topic and written numerous articles. He and M. Rutter, am American Psychologist indicate some of the major symptoms of institutional autism as:
• Sensory and social deprivation can result in the autistic-like behaviors.
• These behaviors may diminish after the child is removed from the initial deprived environment.
• A substantial minority of children will continue to exhibit these difficult behavior patterns for …read more

I’m super excited about the 14th Midwest Adoption Conference that my husband and I will be attending this weekend. I have signed up for a session with Ronald Federici…a neuropsychologist in the adoption field and an adoptive parent.
Because AJ has many signs and symptoms of Institutional Autism we consulted Dr. Federici about two years ago to get his input. We were not able to go visit but instead corresponded via email and received some very valuable information from him.