Co-Regulation with an Indigenous Lens

Facilitator: Danielle Larry

Indigenous teachings often view wellness as a balance between the emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of life. Through the lens of co-regulation, participants will explore how nurturing each of these areas can strengthen connection, support well-being, and build healthier family relationships.

👩🏻‍💻About Danielle

Danielle Larry is Mi’gmaq from Esgenoopetitj First Nation, a mother of two, and a kinship caregiver to her niece. With more than 15 years of experience working with young children and families, Danielle is New Brunswick’s first Early Learning Specialist for First Nation Curriculum. A Wabanaki B.Ed. graduate and former NBCC instructor, she brings her Wabanaki heritage, professional experience, and lived experience as a caregiver to her work with children and families. Danielle also serves on the Board of the New Brunswick Adoption Foundation.

When Connection Gets Hard: Attachment-Based Boundaries That Build Trust, Belonging & Permanency 

Facilitator: Patti Darling

The true test of attachment-based parenting isn't during the easy moments—it's during the hard ones. This interactive workshop is designed for parents/ caregivers who want practical strategies for responding to challenging behaviours while protecting the relationship. Through engaging case studies, experiential activities, and real-life examples, you'll learn how nurturing connection and clear boundaries work together to strengthen trust, increase felt safety, and support lasting permanency. You'll leave with renewed confidence and practical tools to help your child experience what every child needs most: "I'm safe, I belong, and you're not giving up on me."

👩🏻‍💻About Patti

Patti Darling is the founder of Ohana Counselling, a Counselling Therapist, and a Board Member with the New Brunswick Adoption Foundation. She specializes in supporting children, youth, and families impacted by trauma, attachment disruptions, foster care, adoption, and other significant life transitions through therapy, parent coaching, and professional education. As an adoptee in an interracial family, Patti brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work. She is committed to helping children and families build stronger relationships, foster resilience, and create lasting connections. 

Décoder les besoins sensoriels de nos enfants 

Facilitator: Patricia Estabrooks

Dans cet atelier interactif, nous découvrirons les huit systèmes sensoriels, dont la proprioception, l’intéroception et le système vestibulaire, et explorerons comment les besoins sensoriels peuvent influencer les comportements et la régulation et pourquoi certains enfants recherchent constamment le mouvement, tandis que d’autres fuient les bruits, les textures ou le toucher.  À partir d’exemples vécus, les participants seront invités à partager les sensibilités de leurs enfants ainsi que les stratégies qui fonctionnent pour eux. Ensemble, nous chercherons des pistes concrètes pour mieux accompagner les enfants qui recherchent certaines sensations comme ceux qui cherchent à les éviter.

👩🏻‍💻À propos de  Patricia

Patricia Estabrooks est mère adoptive et coordonnatrice des communications et du soutien à la Fondation du Nouveau-Brunswick pour l’adoption. Avec son conjoint, elle a adopté une fratrie et possède une expérience vécue de l’attachement et des traumatismes, de la neurodiversité, du traitement sensoriel ainsi que du maintien des liens avec les familles biologiques et d’accueil. Depuis 2017, Patricia accompagne les familles adoptives par l’entremise du Réseau de soutien à l’adoption, en s’appuyant à la fois sur son propre parcours et sur ses années d’expérience auprès des familles.

Navigating the school system

It’s not your grandma’s school system anymore!

Facilitator: Melanie Charlton

Join us for a practical look at today’s school system and how families can navigate it with greater confidence. Melanie will share strategies for communicating with schools, advocating for your child, understanding available supports, and building positive relationships with educators. Participants will leave with practical ideas they can use when working alongside their child’s school team.

👩🏻‍💻About Melanie

Melanie Charlton is an adoptive mom, an LGBTQI2S advocate, and a 19-year veteran of the public school system. Drawing on both her experience as a parent and her years working in education, Melanie brings a practical understanding of the challenges families can face when navigating the school system and advocating for their children.

Navigating Kinship: Holding More Than One Truth

Facilitator: Josée LeBlanc

Kinship caregiving comes with unique joys, challenges, grief, role changes, and family dynamics that can be hard to understand unless you've lived them. In this interactive workshop, Josée will draw on both lived experience and her background in psychology to explore changing family roles, complicated family dynamics, and grief and loss, along with practical, trauma-informed skills for understanding behaviour, navigating difficult moments, and strengthening relationships.

👩🏻‍💻About Josée

Josée LeBlanc is a kinship caregiver who has been navigating the complexities of kinship care for several years. With a professional background in psychology, Josée brings together professional knowledge and firsthand experience of the realities families can face when caring for a child within their extended family. Their perspective is grounded in both what they have learned professionally and what they have lived personally.

Comprendre les meltdowns et les shutdowns chez les enfants neurodivergents

Facilitator: Marie-Pier Leroux

Cet atelier explore les meltdowns et les shutdowns chez les enfants autistes en les abordant comme des réponses du système nerveux à la surcharge plutôt que comme des problèmes de comportement. Les participants découvriront comment reconnaître les signes précurseurs, comprendre les déclencheurs, soutenir la régulation émotionnelle et sensorielle, et intervenir avec une approche respectueuse, neuro-affirmative et sensible aux traumatismes. Des stratégies concrètes seront proposées pour mieux accompagner les enfants dans leur quotidien. 

👩🏻‍💻À propos de Marie-Pier

Marie-Pier Leroux est travailleuse sociale, thérapeute et personne autiste. Sa pratique est axée sur l’accompagnement des personnes neurodivergentes selon une approche neuroaffirmative, inclusive et sensible aux traumatismes. Elle offre également des formations et des ateliers visant à mieux faire comprendre l’autisme et à favoriser des interventions respectueuses et adaptées. Marie-Pier s’appuie sur son expérience professionnelle et son expérience vécue pour valoriser les forces individuelles, mieux faire comprendre les différences neurologiques et soutenir le bien-être des personnes neurodivergentes.

Healthy Parent/Child Relationships Through the Lens of Permanency 

Facilitator: Stu Kearney

Together in this workshop, let’s explore how shared experiences and unconditional belonging shape the quiet, everyday warmth of families created through adoption. Join us for an encouraging conversation on growing through connections and the ups and downs of family life.

👩🏻‍💻About Stu

Stu Kearney is a school counsellor and counselling therapist. He lives in Rothesay with his husband Dan, their 16-year-old daughter Lily, and their 2-year-old Labrador Retriever, Millie.

Next Chapter: Neurodivergent Youth Transition to Adulthood

Facilitator: Kaihla Winter-Smith

This workshop is designed for parents, guardians, and caregivers of neurodivergent youth who are preparing for the transition into adulthood. Participants will learn about valuable resources and supports, engage in hands-on planning activities, and collaborate with others to explore strategies and solutions that help youth build independence, achieve their goals, and thrive in their next chapter.

👩🏻‍💻About Kaihla

Kailha Winter-Smith is a policy analyst with the New Brunswick Office of Accessibility and has worked in the disability field for more than 20 years. As a person with disabilities and a mother of four, including three adopted children, two with disabilities, she brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work. Kailha is currently navigating the transition to adulthood alongside her 18-year-old son, who has autism and ADHD, giving her firsthand insight into the services, supports, and decisions families face during this important stage of life. 

Explorer les approches thérapeutiques pour votre enfant

Facilitator: Valerie Roy-Lang

Cet atelier propose une exploration accessible et concrète des principales approches thérapeutiques utilisées auprès des enfants adoptés ou placés en famille d’accueil. En tenant compte du vécu unique de ces enfants — ruptures, transitions, traumatismes et enjeux d’attachement — Valerie aidera les participants à mieux comprendre les différentes approches, leurs objectifs et les besoins auxquels elles peuvent répondre.

Les participants repartiront avec des repères concrets pour mieux comprendre les options thérapeutiques, poser les bonnes questions et trouver un accompagnement adapté aux besoins de leur enfant et de leur famille.

👩🏻‍💻À propos de Valerie

Valerie Roy-Lang est mère adoptive et travailleuse sociale de formation. Gestionnaire des services cliniques et du développement professionnel au Centre de prévention de la violence, elle offre également des services de thérapie en pratique privée. Son expérience professionnelle porte notamment sur l’adoption, les traumatismes, la violence et l’attachement. 

Valerie combine son expérience vécue comme mère adoptive à son expertise clinique afin d’offrir aux familles des stratégies concrètes, accessibles et sensibles aux réalités de l’adoption.