How can you spot attachment disorders in teens?

Originally Posted By Waiting in TNI'm far from an expert, but I found what seemed to me like possible RAD signs in a 12-yr-old child we'd been selected for last year, and so I began asking more questions. The responses to the questions seemed to support my hunch, so we decided not to be matched. I may have been wrong, but I'd read so much about it that I had to follow my hunch. The signs were some phrases in a psych evaluation -- "has traits that may signal a future personality disorder", "can be syrupy sweet", were a couple I remember. A mention of her being "rough" with animals. And I found virtually nothing positive to balance those comments out. No mention of her ever having any attachment with anyone. She was being placed with a younger brother, but in the pictures of them, he had an arm around her, while hers were wrapped around herself. I got an appointment for a phone conference with her therapist, but he didn't keep it; he finally called 2 weeks later, and left a very curt disinterested message without leaving his phone number. Still, I have wondered if I jumped to the wrong conclusion. Also, having read about successful RAD therapy, I no longer consider it necessarily a hopeless condition, as I did at first. Just my 2 cents.

Originally Posted By Dr. Arthur Becker-WeidmanResearch on adoptable children in U.S. foster care clearly shows that 50% of adoptable children have symptoms of attachment disorder and 80% of maltreated infants have such symptoms.If the teen was removed from his/her birth parents because of abuse or neglect and the history of the neglect is significant and the child was in the home for 2+ years before removal, then it is very likely that the child has Reactive Attachment Disorder. In addtion, if the child has had 3+ placements after removal from the birth home, it is very likely the child will have RAD. If the child has both sets of circumstances, it is nearly a certainty that the child has RAD...especially if the child is a teen. There are many sub-types of RAD and not all are angry, aggressive, and violent. The saddest cases are those children who are superficially engaging and appear "normal" because they are "as-if" children attempting to figure out what you want. Arthur Becker-Weidman, Ph.D.,Center For Family Development5820 Main St., suite 406Williamsville, NY 14221716-810-0790AWeidman@Concentric.net[url="http://www.Center4FamilyDevelop.com"]http://www.Center4FamilyDevelop.com[/url]