Click here to send us a topic idea or question for Weekend Wisdom.

Did you know that the current reigning Miss Kentucky is a foster alum? We spoke with Ariana Rodriguez about her life leading up to the pageant circuit, what motivates her, and how her foundation, The Lucky Ones, is changing foster care experiences for foster kids in Kentucky.

In this episode, we talk about:

• You made history as the first Miss Kentucky to have been in foster care. Can you start from the beginning and give us the story that led to this title?
• What was it like living with your grandparents? What were the positive changes? What was hardest about this time of your childhood?
• How did that time in kinship care help shape who you are today?
• Were you able to stay in touch with your siblings?
• What gaps or “pain points” for kids in foster care or kinship care did you experience in those years?
• How did these lived experiences begin to transform into a passion or mission for advocacy? Was there a pivotal moment when you said, “This is my platform”?
• What personal strengths emerged from your past that you leaned on (resilience, empathy, leadership, etc.)?
• How do your childhood and care-system experiences continue to inform your daily life, mindset, or choices?
• Are there challenges or triggers that still surface for you because of your past experiences? How do you navigate them?
• What are your relationships with your siblings like now?
• Tell us more about The Lucky Ones
• Do you have a specific story you can share that illustrates the impact of your work?
• Are you gaining new connections and collaborations to help further the mission of your platform?
• What’s next for you, personally (as Miss Kentucky, as an advocate, as a leader)?
• What’s next for The Lucky Ones? Are there new programs to launch, etc?
• What advice do you have for young people currently in the foster or kinship-care system who may feel uncertain about their future?
• For foster or relative caregivers?
• If you could speak directly to the decision-makers (legislators, social services, educators) about one thing to make a meaningful difference for foster/kinship care kids, what would that be?

Support the show

Please leave us a rating or review. This podcast is produced by www.CreatingaFamily.org. We are a national non-profit with the mission to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them.

Creating a Family brings you the following trauma-informed, expert-based content:

• Weekly podcasts
• Weekly articles/blog posts
• Resource pages on all aspects of family building

Click here to send us a topic idea or question for Weekend Wisdom.

Question: I recently listened to a podcast featuring an adoptee, a birth mother, and an adoptive parent, which was great. The adoptee talked about when it hit her that she was adopted and feeling like her birth mother threw her away. My sons are adopted through the foster care system. One is technically still a foster child. My oldest was removed from his birth mother immediately after being born and placed with us. My second son spent about a year with his parents in a very neglectful situation, and drugs were a factor in both situations. I'm wondering how to respectfully have that conversation with my sons when the time comes. Note, please, that we are a two-dad household, so there's no hiding the adoption from them.

Resources:

• Talking about Adoption at Different Ages
• How to Make and Use an Adoption Lifebook
• Talking with Young Children About Adoption and Birth Parents
• Books for Kids Adopted from Foster Care
• 9 Things Adoptive Parents Must Do Before Age 13

Support the show

Please leave us a rating or review. This podcast is produced by www.CreatingaFamily.org. We are a national non-profit with the mission to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them.

Creating a Family brings you the following trauma-informed, expert-based content:

• Weekly podcasts
• Weekly articles/blog posts
• Resource pages on all aspects of family building

Click here to send us a topic idea or question for Weekend Wisdom.

Are you familiar with pathological demand avoidance? Do you need helpful strategies to raise a child with the challenging behaviors that characterize PDA? Listen in to this conversation with Dr. Cynthia Martin, a clinical psychologist, the former Senior Director of the Autism Center at the Child Mind Institute, and founder of CM Psychology in Manhattan, NY.

In this episode, we discuss:

• What is Pathological Demand Avoidance?
• What makes PDA different from typical defiance or resistance?
• Is PDA considered an official diagnosis, or is it more of a way to describe a cluster of behaviors that we’re seeing in some kids?
• What do we know about the underlying causes?
• How does PDA relate to other conditions like autism or ADHD? What are the overlaps with trauma, prenatal substance exposure??
• What are the types of behaviors parents or caregivers might see?
• How can a caregiver tell the difference between a child who can’t comply and one who won’t comply?
• Where do parents start when considering if their child has a PDA profile?
• What observations or examples should parents share to help a clinician understand their child’s challenges?
• What kinds of strategies are effective for parenting a child with PDA traits?
• How can parents reframe their approach so that daily demands — like getting dressed, brushing teeth, or doing homework — don’t turn into constant battles?
• What types of therapies or interventions tend to be most helpful?
• What do you say to caregivers who are feeling worn down and ineffective? Where do they start?
• How can a parent or caregiver set their child up for success even if they do have this PDA profile?
• What words of hope or encouragement would you offer to parents and caregivers just starting to investigate?

Resources:

• Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) in Kids - Child Mind Institute
• Demand Avoidance: Why Kids Refuse to Follow Directions - Psychology Today
• Symptom Tests for Children: Is Your Child Showing Signs of Pathological Demand Avoidance? - ADDitude: ADHD Science & Strategies
• Unstuck & On Target - Evidence-Based Curricula and Resources for Professionals and Families to Support Executive Functions.

Support the show

Please leave us a rating or review. This podcast is produced by www.CreatingaFamily.org. We are a national non-profit with the mission to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them.

Creating a Family brings you the following trauma-informed, expert-based content:

• Weekly podcasts
• Weekly articles/blog posts
• Resource pages on all aspects of family building