This article is an excerpt is from the first chapter of Finding Hope in Despair: Clinical
Studies in Infant Mental Health, edited by Marian Birch, was published by ZERO TO THREE
in June 2008. In this excerpt, the editor describes the core concepts, techniques, and
challenges of therapeutic intervention with infants and very young children and their
families. In the other chapters in the book, clinicians provide detailed case studies of
interventions that felt like “heartbreaking failures.” Each case study is followed by a
response from another clinician who comments on the challenges and the outcome of the
intervention.

Should young children be allowed to play with scary toys? What do you say when a toddler tells you daddy hurt mommy last night? Children who have experienced trauma bring their anxieties and concerns to child care. This Zero to Three guidebook helps caregivers understand the effects of trauma on children's responses and behaviors, and how to provide the kind of caring that helps children traumatized by violence, loss or natural disasters feel safe and resilient again.

Many of the most vulnerable residents of the states hit by Hurricane Katrina were poor children and were disproportionately African American. The National Center for Children in Poverty has an analysis.

As the war in Iraq and worries about terrorism at home continue to challenge our children's resilience and sense of safety, experts and organizations across the country are pulling together new resources on the Web to help. Here's our updated list of some of the best.

Whether a trauma happens in a family, a community or a country, children respond differently and need different supports to heal and adapt. Fortunately, the Web offers a wide world of resources, and Connect for Kids has collected some of the best.

The American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress also has an online checklist for response during and after a school-based crisis.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is giving planning grants to assess children's needs and determining how pediatricians can help ease the plight of children in the aftermath of the deadly tsunami. You can donate to the AAP Friends of Children Fund for tsunami relief.

The National Service-Learning Partnership's Web site offers a variety of resources for parents and teachers to talk to young people about the tsunami disaster in Asia, as well as information on youth-led fundraising efforts.

Reading Rockets has a list of books that parents and teachers can use to help children grasp the human aspect of the disaster in a non-threatening way. The books on the list don't explain how a tsunami is formed or illustrate its terrible aftermath -- instead, they highlight children whose lives are outwardly different but inwardly the same as
children everywhere. For more information, contact Laurie Fry at 503-399-7999.

A coalition of more than 100 organizations -- representing 10 million
young people in all 50 states -- launched a nationwide "Quarters from Kids" campaign to enlist every child and youth in America to support the tsunami relief and rebuilding efforts in South and Southeast Asia.