Trigger Dances & A Cookie Sheet
Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts
In-demand therapist Patti Swope describes how she became mom to one of her former patients, Mattie Baker (a former foster youth and one of our fan-favorite podcast guests).
Patti specializes in the power of secure attachments and she walks us through how she and Mattie overcame trigger cycles and skepticism from the foster care system to become family for each other.
Featured Guest
Patti (pictured at right) with her daughter, Mattie.
Patti with her daughter, Mattie, and her husband, Tim.
Dig Deeper: Foster Care Resources
Marriage and Family Counseling
Patti Swope is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and Certified Emotionally Focused Couples Therapist & Supervisor who provides confidential, safe, and supportive psychotherapy services to the greater community of Boulder, Colorado.
Patti helps couples and families create patterns of interaction that promote safe, and secure attachment. She helps individuals by utilizing their strengths, teaching skills, identifying solutions, and coming up with strategies to manage a variety of life's distressing problems.
As a therapist, Patti can help with depression, mood swings, stress and anxiety, trauma, loss and grief, physical or sexual abuse, interpersonal problems, chronic illness, parenting concerns, family conflict, and marital discord.
Learn more at PattiSwope.com.
Mattie’s Podcast Episode
Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts
Former foster kid and current social worker, Mattie Baker, gets raw with us about her time growing up in the system.
We learn how to truly welcome a foster kid into our lives by hearing from Mattie's story of what went wrong and what went right — coupled with her professional experience in mental health work and counseling.
Bonus: Former foster kid turned adoptive and foster mom, Brittaney Kate, tells her story about finding family.
Podcast Sponsors
Kids Crossing
We’re so thankful for our community of supporters that makes Just As Special possible including our Season 2 sponsor Kids Crossing, a private foster care agency started by foster parents for foster parents.
Arguably the most important decision to make when becoming a foster parent is what agency you’ll choose. Because as a foster parent, you will rely on your foster care agency for support.
Kids Crossing provides many no-cost services including:
Therapy services for the kids
Family therapy
Family preservation services
Foster parent support groups
Parenting coaches
Trauma-informed parenting training
And much more!
Kids Crossing is also committed to diversity and inclusion and has partnered with Just As Special to provide their foster parents with virtual, on-demand training.
This training is focused on helping foster parents practically apply lessons learned from diverse perspectives of foster care through powerful personal interviews with former foster youth; multi-cultural foster families; same-sex foster families; foster care professionals; and much more.
Kids Crossing foster parent Ben said, “Just As Special gives me insight from different people in foster care such as other foster parents or former foster kids. These perspectives have opened up my mind to different ways of thinking, which in turn helped me better understand my foster kiddo.”
Kids Crossing has four locations across Colorado in Denver, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, and La Junta.
Learn more at KidsCrossing.com and tell them Just As Special sent you.
Fabulous Homes Colorado
Homebuying can be stressful so it’s important to make sure you are in the right hands.
Christina has called Colorado home for nearly a decade and been running her own realty business for six years. What we’ve noticed most about Christina is that she truly cares about her community — and not just with lip service.
Fabulous Homes Colorado specializes in helping first-time homebuyers and veterans find the right fit for their families — from cute condos to luxury homes. They serve El Paso County, Woodland Park, and Pueblo in beautiful Colorado.
Fabulous Homes Colorado offers:
No pressure homebuying
Video tours so you can buy remotely
Education (help with down payment assistance and more)
If you want a realtor that truly values relationships over transactions, give Christina a call at 719.310.4347 and tell her Just As Special sent you.
Each office is independently owned and operated.
Podcast Library
We’re so thankful for our community of supporters that makes Just As Special possible, including Christina Whiteley, realtor with Fabulous Homes Colorado powered by Keller Williams Freedom.