DDP THERAPY OR DYADIC DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOTHERAPY

Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP) is a therapeutic approach designed to help children who have experienced  developmental trauma and disrupted attachments in their early childhood relationship experiences. Children who have experienced relational trauma and loss find it difficult to feel safe and secure within their own birth families and/or their new foster/adoptive families. These children may be experiencing what is often referred to as "developmental trauma". DDP therapy can help to build trust and openness and help children and young people to begin to allow themselves to experience "emotional connection" learning to building trusting and loving relationships.

• DDP is a specialist attachment and trauma informed therapeutic approach designed to help the child and parent/carer (Dyad - meaning two people) to begin to make sense of a child's early experiences of mistrust to develop a safe, secure and trusted relationship. 

• This therapy can help the child to build safe and trusting relationships which can help the child to heal from previous trauma's and support them so they can go on to thrive and develop more securely attached relationships as they grow and develop.

• DDP is often used with children and young people who have been adopted, fostered or who live in kinship/special guardianship care, recognising their early history of disrupted attachments, loss and trauma. 

• It aims to help children begin to begin to experience relational safety and security developing trust and emotionally connected relationships with their parents.

• DDP can also support children in their own birth families who have experienced "relationship trauma" as a result of traumatic and difficult life events such as domestic violence, post-natal depression, mental and/or physical health issues which can cause insecure relationship patterns to develop. 

• DDP specifically aims to help parents or caregivers and their child make deeper emotional connections with each other. 

• Parents who want to engage in DDP will need to have attended "therapeutic PACE informed parent sessions on an individual basis, group or course to enable them to use and embed their therapeutic parenting skills supported by the DDP therapist. (See PACE Therapeutic Parent Training)

DDP is also part of a wider systemic model that can help parents and everyone involved in supporting the child (e.g. teachers, social workers, extended family), teams and organisations – understand and discover what they can do to be most helpful for the child and their family. This therapy aims to work out whether and how your child’s development might have been affected and how you might be able to help your child’s development progress.