Understanding Lying and Stealing in Foster Children: Moving from Survival Behaviors to Secure Attachment

**When foster children lie and steal, they're not being defiant—they're trying to survive.** If you're a foster parent dealing with lying and stealing behaviors, you're not alone, and you're not failing. These challenging behaviors are actually survival strategies that helped children navigate impossible situations before they came to your home. Drawing from more than a decade of fostering over 100 children, Juan Rodriguez Aceves offers a compassionate, trauma-informed approach that transforms how you understand and respond to these behaviors. Instead of seeing lying and stealing as problems to punish, you'll learn to recognize them as communication about what children need to feel safe and secure. This practical guide provides: Clear explanations of how trauma affects children's brains and behaviors Specific strategies for responding with understanding rather than punishment Step-by-step approaches to building trust and encouraging honesty Real stories of children who moved from survival behaviors to secure attachment Tools for creating safety that make lying and stealing unnecessary Written in an accessible, conversational style, this book speaks directly to foster parents who want to see past behaviors to the hurt underneath. You'll discover that with patience, consistency, and the right understanding, children can learn that survival mode is no longer necessary. **Healing is possible. Hope is real. And you are exactly the right person to help make it happen.**