Category: Parential Alienation-Child Abuse

Child Psychological Abuse
There are four child abuse diagnoses in the DSM-5; Child Physical Abuse (V995.54), Child Sexual Abuse (V995.53), Child Neglect (V995.52), Child Psychological Abuse.  
I have personally worked with all four categories of child abuse as the Clinical Director for a three-university assessment and treatment center for children age zero-to-five in the foster care system.
All of these child abuse diagnoses in the DSM-5 are equal in the amount of damage done to the child, they differ only in the type of damage done, not in the severity of the damage done to the child. 
Psychological child abuse is devastating, it destroys the child from the inside out.
In the 1960s to 80s physical child abuse began to be recognized and addressed in our professional and cultural surround, but sexual abuse remained a hidden pathology.
In the 1980s to 2000s, child sexual abuse began to be recognized and addressed in our professional and cultural surround, but psychological child abuse remained a hidden pathology.
With the publication of the DSM-5 by the American Psychiatric Association in 2013, Child Psychological Abuse is recognized and is starting to be addressed in our professional and cultural surround.
As a clinical psychologist with trauma and attachment background, in addition to background in delusional and factitious disorders, including background in family systems therapy, personality disorder pathology, and court-involved family conflict pathology… it is my professional opinion that among the top-top current experts in child psychological abuse is Ms. Dorcy Pruter.
She can speak for herself regarding her experience and background, which is substantial, and she will likely deflect the focus from her to where it should rightly be, on the child. 
In the professional opinion of Dr. Childress as a clinical psychologist, Ms. Pruter is among the top professionals with expertise in identifying psychological child abuse, and in recovering the child from the effects of complex trauma and psychological child abuse by a parent.
Such is my professional esteem and respect for Ms. Pruter, I have twice co-presented with her at national conventions of high-level professional organizations.  First to the AFCC in 2017, where I presented on AB-PA and Ms. Pruter and I jointly presented on the High Road protocol. 
I explained the effectiveness of the High Road protocol from a psychological orientation, Ms. Pruter explained the effectiveness of the High Road workshop from a practical perspective.  The High Road workshop for recovery of children from complex trauma and child psychological abuse is effective.  That is a fact.
In 2019, Ms. Pruter and I co-presented a paper to the American Psychological Association, Division 24 Society for Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology.  Our paper was peer-reviewed by the head of Division 24 and she had entirely positive things to say.
In our joint paper to Division 24 of the APA, we presented the High Road single-case ABA clinical research data.  The High Road single case ABA data proves with directly applied clinical research methodology of the highest caliber, that the High Road workshop successfully recovers children from complex trauma and psychological child abuse in a matter of a days.
In my opinion as a clinical psychologist, having taught graduate-level courses in research methodology, and having worked on multiple large-scale research projects at UCLA, UCI, and Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles… the High Road workshop is evidenced-based practice in the recovery of children from complex trauma and child abuse.  There’s the evidence.
The High Road workshop is the B phase, the second A with all the numbers is the follow-up maintenance care period, the three scales are Affection, Cooperation, Social Involvement – from 1s and 2s at the start of the High Road workshop, to 5s and 6s at the end – a rocket rise to recovery.
The only methodology issue for a single case ABA design is replication.  Do it again please, Dorcy.  She does.  Over and over again.  Each time she collects data, and each time she recovers the child – consistently.  The High Road workshop protocol is gentle, the kids love it, and it is effective.  That is a fact.
Ms. Pruter is the CEO of the Conscious-Copareting Institute.  She is available to discuss research collaboration regarding the High Road protocol with any appropriate university affiliated researcher.  
Ms. Pruter is a professional family and parenting coach and a businesswoman, she is not a psychologist.  She has done her part in creating solutions more than substantially.  She has developed an incredibly – remarkably effective – workshop protocol, and she collects outcome data on its effectiveness every single time – she proves it over and over each time with data.
And she’s not a researcher – you are.  Ms. Pruter is a professional family and parenting coach of exceptional quality and skill, she is a trained professional family mediator, she is a businesswoman of success and accomplishment, and she is among the top-tier of professional expertise in the recovery of children from complex trauma and child psychological abuse.
Ms. Pruter and the Conscious Co-Parenting Institute are my first referral as a clinical psychologist for the prevention and recovery from child psychological abuse and complex trauma.
You know how critical I am of forensic psychologists for their failure in their ethical obligations to apply the established knowledge of professional psychology, as required by Standard 2.04 of the APA ethics code.  
Ms. Pruter is a professional coach and she is not bound by the requirements imposed on a psychologist. 
In my professional opinion as a clinical psychologist, Ms. Pruter meets the highest standards of practice relative to Standard 2.04 of the APA ethics code for professional competence.  She is not a psychologist – she is a family and parenting coach – and she absolutely knows this pathology with depth and accuracy of applied professional knowledge.
Talk to me, talk to her, you will hear exactly the same thing – we need to protect the child from the psychological abuse of the parent.  To do that we need a written treatment plan from the involved mental health people.  
To obtain a written treatment plan, we need a diagnosis. To obtain a diagnosis we need an assessment from the involved mental health professionals – a risk assessment for child psychological abuse by the allied parent toward a possible differential diagnosis of a shared persecutory delusion (ICD-10 F24).
Through the Conscious Co-Parenting Institute, Ms. Pruter can also provide attorneys, parents, and the court with professional consultation and expertise on child psychological abuse and solutions to complex trauma within the family.
Ms. Pruter and CCPI are my first referral as a clinical psychologist for prevention of, and recovery from complex trauma and child psychological abuse.
Craig Childress, Psy.D.Clinical Psychologist, PSY 18857