
[Spring Summit] Understanding Challenging Behavior Through a Brain First Lens
March 11 @ 9:00 am - 10:30 am
FreeNeuroscience research underscores the influence of environmental factors, teratogens, and prenatal or postnatal stressors such as trauma, alcohol, and drug exposure on brain development. Many children impacted by these factors also face behavioral struggles. Why do traditional parenting techniques often fall short for such children and what alternative strategies can parents use to effectively support their children? This workshop will teach participants how to apply a brain-first approach to parenting children who have challenging behaviors. Through this lens, behaviors are redefined and solutions are aligned with research findings, offering new insights into supporting affected children more successfully.
Eileen Devine is a licensed clinical social worker and founder of Brain First Parenting. She has over twenty years of clinical experience and for the last dozen of those years, has focused on supporting parents across the globe who have children with brain-based differences and challenging behavioral symptoms. Through her work, she teaches parents and professionals how to support individuals with challenging behaviors by moving away from consequence and reward systems, to an approached rooted in neuroscience, and focused on the brain – behavior connection. In addition to her clinical expertise, Eileen is the parent of a teenage daughter who lives with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, a serious brain-based condition.