As HFA folks so often say, “It’s all about relationships.”
HFA embodies the four cornerstones of healthy relationships (safety, comfort, predictability, joy). Once parents experience these in a genuine way and in the context of a relationship with another, they are able to provide the same experience for their children.
For families in HFA, we provide safety by putting parents in control, always asking for permission, and protecting personal information. We respect families, including their culture and personal values, and help resolve any ongoing safety concerns parents have for themselves or their families.
For children, safety might look like having a deep trust in an adult figure, parent, etc., who is dependable and will stand up for them.
For families in HFA, we provide predictability by showing up when we say we will and following through on things we’ve promised parents. When parents and caregivers confide in us, and tell us vulnerable things, we hold it in confidence and are nonjudgmental.
For children, predictability might look like having similar routines throughout the day, consistency in the way an adult caregiver responds to their baby, and being responsive, fully present, and attuned.
Families in HFA can bring their fears, emotions, worries, concerns, and questions to their Family Support Specialist. Family Support Specialists are trained to listen and validate parents’ feelings, accepting them as they are and caring for them in that moment.
For young children, comfort might look like being able to bring all their fears and emotions to a parent, and being cared for, seen, and validated by that person. Comfort is experienced when needs are met even when not able to put words to those needs.
For families in HFA, we are always looking for and celebrating moments of joy between parents and their kids, and we want to bring joy to their lives too! We are encouraging, supportive, and the most fervent celebrators of family success.
For children, there’s nothing better than seeing their parent’s faces light up when they enter the room. Such joy!
Because we are driven by relational health instead of a set curriculum, families lead the way. We are flexible and adaptable to meet whatever parents bring forward as their most pressing interests and needs.
The relationships we build with our affiliate sites mirror the relationships we hope for between parents and kids.
One of the most important things HFA staff do with families is to observe and respond to the interactions between parents and children. All of those little moments add up over time and tell us about the quality of the relationship that is developing. HFA staff support families in building a nurturing relationship with their child – the kind of relationship that makes a child feel safe and comforted.
PhD, ABPP, IMH-E
We know that relationships are the protective buffer that immunizes young kids from the adversities in their environment and helps protect them – not only in the present, but as they grow and develop, and optimizes their developmental success.
