Speaking

 

Robbyn lectures internationally on the effects of trauma and neglect, neuro-developmentally informed parenting, and ending family violence. She specializes in the treatment of children and adults who have suffered from early abuse and neglect.  Robbyn believes we can end child abuse in our lifetime. To that end, she promotes non-violent parenting and is the founder of StopSpanking, a non-profit organization dedicated to ending violence against children by raising awareness of the dangers of spanking and promoting parenting beyond punishment.

 

• Helping Dysregulated Kids: A Neurodevelopmentally Informed Approach to Working with Traumatized Children:
  Robbyn describes the neurodevelopmental effects of early abuse and neglect, the process of dissociation and hyper-arousal and its effect on the development of the four main areas of function in children (sensory processing, self regulation, relational skills, cognitive capability). She will discuss the continuum of harsh punishment and overt child abuse and the dose rate relationship to negative mental and physical outcomes. She describes effective treatment of self regulation problems often appearing as oppositional defiant disorder, ADHD, anxiety, tantrums, bullying behaviors. This workshop covers the overarching principles of positive discipline from a neuro-developmentally informed perspective.

• Re-Parenting for Resiliency
  Parents who have a high ACE (adverse childhood experiences) score or are struggling with poor resiliency often find parenting really difficult, and pediatricians and helpers are often at a loss of how to engage with this population in a helpful way. This presentation focuses on the effects of early adversity and subsequent risks of harsh parenting, and offers health providers and teachers resources so they can help parents build resiliency in themselves and their children. Much of what takes place between parent and child during the first five years is primarily the development of self-regulation through the influence of a secure attachment. Self-regulation becomes the foundation of optimal development and makes possible subsequent higher emotional and personality growth. Understanding the lessons of the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study (ACE study), we will discuss how to foster resiliency through co-regulation – a sensory sensitive, collaborative, relationally based and neurodevelopmentally informed approach to parenting.
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• Violence, a Family Tradition
  This lecture focuses on the root cause of family violence, the effects of harsh punishment on attachment and long term health, and the accelerating international effort to end spanking world-wide through legal and educational efforts.