Shield: A New E-book

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To become a foster parent in our state one has to attend thirty hours of classes.  The purpose of the classes is to equip the parents with the tools needed for foster care and adoption.  Many of these hours are spent going over legalities, learning how to fill out all the necessary paperwork, and being certified in administering First Aid.  Quite a bit of time was spent in role play situations to help us understand the child's perspective.  This was helpful.

However, once we received our children, I felt poorly equipped.  My husband and I made it a point to go out every other week by ourselves.  We wanted to protect our marriage during this time of high stress.  But I didn't know how to take care of myself.  I didn't even know I needed to take care of myself.  I learned a lot by trial and error.

Good news!  There is an e-book out that is extremely helpful.  I recommend it as a must read for any foster or adoptive family.  It is entitled Shield:  A Framework of Self-Care for Foster and Adoptive Families by Sharla Kostelyk.


The book details the steps to take in preparing for your children.  It stresses the importance of having a support network.  Then Sharla tells how to handle the initial weeks when you welcome your child home.  She gives twelve steps of triage to take when things seem out of control.  Then there was the chapter God knew I needed to hear about ongoing self-care.  I wish I had such a book when we adopted five years ago.  If you plan to adopt, this is six dollars you won't regret spending.

Go to Adoption Magazine to order your e-book today.

Comments

  1. UnknownDecember 2, 2011 at 8:23 AM

    I think the chapter you needed is the same one I need :) The support system is so important - we haven't had one at all until this past year!! But God has been faithful -

    ReplyDelete
  2. SharlaDecember 2, 2011 at 11:05 AM

    Thank you so much for writing about this. I am really glad that it helped you and hope that others will be blessed by it as well.

    ReplyDelete
  3. thesleepyknitterDecember 2, 2011 at 7:17 PM

    I want to read this book! Sounds perfect for our situation right now. But I haven't been able to find it at Adoption Magazine. I've looked under what seems to me like all the "obvious" categories, and it isn't under any of them. Any suggestions?

    ReplyDelete
  4. NatashaDecember 2, 2011 at 9:31 PM

    Sleepyknitter,
    Did you go to Adoption Magazine through my link? I click on the words Adoption Magazine at the end of my post and it takes me directly to the post at Adoption Magazine telling about the book.

    ReplyDelete
  5. SharlaDecember 3, 2011 at 12:39 PM

    This link will take you directly to the right page: http://www.sharlakostelyk.com/shield-self-care-e-book/ Hope that helps!

    ReplyDelete
  6. thesleepyknitterDecember 5, 2011 at 3:48 PM

    Thank you, Natasha and Sharla! I didn't realize the words "Adoption Magazine" were a live link, and I was attempting (very unsuccessfully) to find the book through the Adoption Magazine website. Blessings! --Sleepy

    ReplyDelete

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