Infant And Toddler Mental Health

Countless studies have demonstrated the power of early intervention to permanently alter the course of a child's life. Yet-heightened by the past decade's research breakthroughs in genetics-the nature versus nurture controversy rages on.This volume dispels some of the persistent myths surrounding this controversy. Unlike largely theoretical texts that describe infant behavioral and emotional difficulties and other psychosocial challenges affecting young children, this eminently practical guide illustrates what to do in numerous clinical situations. Written by clinicians who work with infants and children and their families every day, this reality-based approach addresses the most common and important problems in infant psychopathology (e.g., trauma, sleep, feeding, excessive crying, attachment disruptions), covering models of intervention from pregnancy through infancy, attachment issues, and transgenerational themes. Here, you'll find topics rarely addressed elsewhere: the theoretical and clinical implications of trauma during early childhood and its effects on emotional regulation, cognition, and attachment; the effects of day care and changes in caregivers on infants; and unique commentaries on two case examples by a diverse international panel of clinicians and researchers, illustrating the differences of opinion, approaches, and perspectives that together generate more effective assessment and treatment.This thought-provoking clinical reference is a "must read" for developmental, child, and adolescent psychiatry educators and practitioners-and nurses, pediatricians, occupational therapists, and clinical social workers-as they help the youngest members of our community through theoretical understanding and practical intervention.