[Barksum]

All of the above posts are great -- do follow through with ther advice and check out the web pages and books they suggested.

Thanks especially to Armychic for the child's perspective! We don't see that too often.

My suggestions when considering any child adopted from the foster care system is to recognize that the overwhelming majority will have some form of attachment issues. Not necessarily RAD, but at the very least they will have some form of hesitancy over yet another caregiver coming into their lives, etc. At least if you know what you are looking for you will recognize the little signs and be able to address them to help keep them from ballooning into major issues.

The second suggestion is to research the kinds of therapy available near where you live. Not all therapists are familiar with the issues that foster/adoptive children face. There are many issues foster/adoptive families face, not just RAD, so it is helpful to know what kind of help is available in your area.

Another thing to consider when adopting special needs children is the high incidence of prenatal exposure to alcohol. Do some research into this because children in the foster system are often given multi-labels (ADD/ADHD, ODD, RAD, mental retardation, learning disabilities, etc.). Often these labels are given instead of the base diagnosis of PEA (prenatal exposure to alcohol). PEA child DO often have other issues, but the cause is organic and due to PEA. I am appalled at how little attention is given to this issue within the foster system and the adoption system.

FASD (fetal alcohol spectrum disorders) is the newest term I've found in my research. Just as RAD is one end of the continuum of attachment issues, so there is a whole continuum of fetal alcohol issues. Also, FAS (fetal alcohol syndrome) is no longer considered the "worst" of fetal alcohol conditions, just the most obvious in physical manifestations and thus the most recognized.

You might add looking into the professionals (drs, therapists, etc) available in your area who are familiar with fetal alcohol issues as this can be a "sneaker condition" that unexpectedly pops up as the child ages. (Trust me on this one! LOL I speak from experience.)