CONNECTING IN TIMES OF CRISIS

We’re all dealing with big challenges right now. Stress levels are high, and many of our support systems are disrupted - disconnecting us from family, friends and colleagues.

Nurture Science Program research has shown that when we don’t connect with others, our brains can’t develop optimally, or function well. That makes us more likely to have conflict, behavioral problems, anxiety and depression.

But there are things we can do to establish and maintain emotional connection during this difficult time. We are sharing tips and exercises to strengthen emotional connection, to help calm your body and mind.

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EMOTIONAL CONNECTION DURING CRISIS

We’re all dealing with big challenges right now. Stress levels are high, and many of our support systems are disrupted - disconnecting us from family, friends and colleagues.

Nurture Science Program research has shown that when we don’t connect with others, our brains can’t develop optimally, or function well. That makes us more likely to have conflict, behavioral problems, anxiety and depression.

But there are things we can do to establish and maintain emotional connection during this difficult time. We are sharing tips and exercises to strengthen emotional connection, to help calm your body and mind.

LEARN MORE

It Starts with Emotional Connection

The Nurture Science Program at Columbia University Medical Center is a unique research program rooted in a new, evidence-based understanding of the critical role emotional connection plays in healthy child development.

Our multidisciplinary team is committed to rigorous research, and continues to develop and test nurture-based therapies that support emotional connection to help children and families address, and even avoid, emotional, behavioral, and developmental challenges.

THEORY

Emotional connection and autonomic
co-regulation drive behavior and development.

RESEARCH

The power of nurture is evident from molecular biology to clinical research.

PRACTICE

Translating research findings to evidence-based care can help children and families everywhere.

What We Hope to Achieve

Millions of children suffer from emotional, behavioral, and developmental disorders that can be addressed or prevented. Current treatment strategies often are not effective. The Nurture Science Program’s work can help children and their families.

Over the past 10 years, the Nurture Science Program has amassed considerable evidence to support interventions that advance the child-family emotional connection that is critical to healthy child development. Imagine the possibilities when all children and families have this kind of support.

News & Latest Blogs

How COVID has Affected Breastfeeding

07/28/2021

Preliminary results from the COVID-19 Mother-Baby Outcomes (COMBO) Initiative at Columbia University show that one of the most affected aspects of the mother-baby relationship has been breastfeeding.

How COVID-19 is Affecting Parents and Babies during the Critical First Year of Life: New Multi-Disciplinary Study Shares its Findings.

07/22/2021

The COVID-19 Mother-Baby Outcomes (COMBO) Initiative in collaboration with NSP has responded in real time to the growing need for information about how this pandemic is affecting vulnerable populations, and to the even greater need to support at-risk families.

Is Your Kid Getting All the Benefits of Bath Time?

06/10/2021

When you approach bath time from a Nurture Science perspective, it can become a way to strengthen your emotional connection and improve your and your child’s health and mood.

The Unsung Benefits of Mealtime with Your Family

05/27/2021

A Nurture Science perspective on picky eating, dinnertime meltdowns, and how changing our approach to mealtime can have immediate and lasting benefits for the whole family.