Claire & Tony’s story

Claire and Tony asked to be referred to the Parent Support Specialist because they were struggling to find common ground in managing the behaviour of their son, Tom with learning difficulties. When Tom struggled to interpret what was asked of him, Claire would be angry and Tony would give in to Tom’s demands. This created stress within their relationship and this was picked up by Tom, causing him to show this family stress through more distressed behaviour.

With help from the Parent Support Specialist, Claire and Tony looked at where their feelings and attitudes about parenting originated and with greater understanding they were able to make changes to the ways they reacted to Tom. The Parent Support Specialist also helped them to understand Tom’s behaviour and that he used this to express his distress and needs. Following suggestions from the Parent Support Specialist, Claire and Tony were able to find common ground about establishing routines for Tom, putting in place an effective rewards and consequences system and being more playful with Tom as a way of helping him to express his feelings and to regulate his emotional responses.