Arizona Family Institute

Welcome to the Exciting World of Attachment

We have gathered some of the best resources and information from the field of attachment in order to educate parents and professional working with children, families and couples on the importance of developing secure attachments in our lives.  Even though much of the information on attachment is directed toward parents and children, many adults also have insecure attachment styles that affect their relationships with others.  Therapy that focuses on developing health attachments can dramatically improve the quality of life and of relationships of couples and families.  Shiloh Lundahl, LCSW provides attachment therapy to improve relationships within the family while Dan Oakes, LPC helps adult couples repair their relationship through developing healthy attachment with each other.

The following video clips featuring Bruce Perry, M.D, Dan Siegel, M.D, and B. Brian Post, Ph.D, explain how trauma can negatively effect brain development in children and how parents can become healing to their children by creating a loving environment and safe base for their children to heal and attach.

The still Face Experiment

Pay attention to the way this baby reacts when her mother does not respond to her.  Now imagine the distress a child feels when a mother is not emotionally available for an extended period of time due to depression, anxiety, substance abuse, or other mental health impairments that disrupts a mothers ability to respond to her child.

The Strange Situation Developed by Mary Ainsworth

Four Types of Attachment

 Circle of Security

 Self Regulation in Children

Healing Stress and Trauma by Regalena Melrose

Attachment Therapist From Arizona Family Institute

Dan Oakes, MEd, LPC

Dan Oakes is a well respected therapist in the Phoenix Valley.  He has over 15 years of experience working with children, teens, and their families as a clinician and as the admissions director for A New Leaf.  He has developed programing focused on helping children and teens who act out sexually.  He uses a family systems approach when working with children and includes the family as much as possible.  Dan uses a lot of attachment therapy principles when providing couples counseling and marriage therapy. (Click to See Full Profile).

Shiloh Lundahl, LCSW

Shiloh Lundahl, is a bilingual therapist (Spanish) who specializes in doing attachment therapy with children and their families.  Shiloh provides in-home therapy and has found it to be a very effective – especially when working with children and families.  Shiloh has specialized training in working with children ages birth through six-years-old and their families.  (Click to See Full Profile).

Attachment Resource Books for Parents: