Encouraging news!

Today was appointment day! The doctor gave Katya a series of psychological tests and also conducted an in depth interview to learn more about her life prior to being in our family. Dr. Federici speaks fluent Russian so Katya was a little more relaxed and able to speak freely during the interview. Thankfully, with much hard work and intensive counseling, Dr. Federici sees a positive outcome for Katya. This is great news. During our last appointment he was preparing us for the worst. He told us today that he had a post-institutionalized child in his office last week and all he wanted to do was call an exorcist! We will see the full results of the tests early next week but he was pleased with what he learned so far. A few positives are:
*Katya has a normal to above normal IQ. (This makes therapy SO much easier)
*She does NOT want to go back to Russia
*She is on grade level academically (in Russian) which means she will catch up faster
*She does not like where she is now and does not want to go back (which will be helpful in her behavior modifications)
Dr. Federici referred us to a behavior analyst that he has trained to work with Eastern Bloc children. She will design an intervention plan for Katya's return. Her website is:www.alternativebehaviors.com and her name is Nadya Molina. I took it as a positive sign that he decided not to be Katya's primary mental health provider. Nadya will come to our home and help us map out a plan for Katya, however we will still be following Dr. Federici's basic outline of attachment therapy which is broken down into three levels. We will enter into Level One when she comes home and it will last anywhere from four to six weeks. Katya's five major rules are:
1. You must remain within three feet of a parent at all times.
2. You will have no contact with anyone besides your parents, Katie and Steven.
3. Your parents decide what you are required to do each day.
4. There will be no TV, radio or any other distractions.
5. You must be successful at level one before you begin level two.
I asked Dr. Federici about medication, and he said she may benefit from Wellbutin but that will be determined later. (I should have asked him about medication for ME to get through Level One!)
Katya will be coming home on June 21st. We had to delay her homecoming because Fred has a business trip all next week and the doctor said he should be home the first few weeks after her return.
We were told to remove everything from her room except her bed and a lamp. It hastens "people" attachment NOT to have material things in which to attach. This will be an exhaustive and intense four to six weeks but it's what we have to do.
We hope to visit Katya before she comes home and are awaiting a call from the facility's director about a possible visit this weekend.


From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
Attachment therapy is the term most commonly used by practitioners and critics for a controversial category of alternative child mental health interventions intended to treat what practitioners describe as attachment disorders. The term generally includes accompanying parenting techniques which proponents consider as important as the therapy itself. Attachment therapy is a treatment used primarily with fostered or adopted children who are believed to have certain behavioral difficulties, including disobedience and lack of gratitude or affection for their caregivers. The children's problems are ascribed to an inability to attach to their new parents because of suppressed rage due to past maltreatment and abandonment.