Problematic Sexual Behavior
Creating a Family: Talk about Adoption, Foster & Kinship Care
03/11/26
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Do you worry about what is normal in your child’s sexual development? Join us to talk with Roy Van Tassell, a Licensed Professional Counselor in Oklahoma and Director of Trauma and Evidence-based Interventions for Centene Health. He co-chairs the National Child Traumatic Stress Networks’ subcommittee on children with problem sexual behaviors.
Warning: We will be using anatomically correct words and talking about sex, so if this offends you or triggers you, you may want to skip this podcast.
In this episode, we discuss:
- Typical Sexual Development / Play
- What is typical sexual development in children as they age?
- What type of sexual play is considered “normal?”
- How should parents manage a child’s natural sexual development?
- Problematic Sexual Behavior
- What are Problem Sexual Behaviors in Children?
- What causes kids and youth to act in socially unacceptable or destructive sexual ways? What factors influence the development of these behaviors?
- Child vulnerabilities
- Behavior problems
- Emotional difficulties
- Developmental delays
- Low impulse control
- Family vulnerabilities
- Poor supervision
- Single caregiver
- Modeling of coercion
- Harsh parenting practices
- Physical abuse
- Domestic violence
- Modeling of sexuality
- Sexual abuse
- Modeling/exposure
- Nudity or poor family boundaries
- How common are problematic sexual behaviors?
- Suggestions for professionals and parents and how to respond to behaviors.
- What should parents and caregivers do?
- Rules for younger kids
- How effective is therapy?
- How to find a therapist?
- What training have they had in this area?
- Child development expertise (including sexual development)
- Resources
- Taking Action booklets (two booklets) – for children with problematic sexual behaviors (age 12 and younger) and one for 13+
- Resources at the National Center on Sexual Behavior of Youth – really good resources for caregivers and parents.
- National Center for Exploited Children—for kids to understand safety—teaching them safety skills to protect their own body
- Amaze.org—videos for children
- National Child Traumatic Stress Network
- A.J.’s Story— A Book About Not OK Touches
Please leave us a rating or review. This podcast is produced by www.CreatingaFamily.org. We are a national non-profit with the mission to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them.
Creating a Family brings you the following trauma-informed, expert-based content:
- Weekly podcasts
- Weekly articles/blog posts
- Resource pages on all aspects of family building
Previous Episode
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Question: As a single mom, how do I find good role models for my kids?
Resources:
- Finding Male Role Models for Kids of Single Moms
- Creating a Support Network as a Single Adoptive Foster or Kinship Parent
- 1 Yes, 4 S's: How a Post-Adoption Support Group Changed My Life
Please leave us a rating or review. This podcast is produced by www.CreatingaFamily.org. We are a national non-profit with the mission to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them.
Creating a Family brings you the following trauma-informed, expert-based content:
- Weekly podcasts
- Weekly articles/blog posts
- Resource pages on all aspects of family building
Next Episode
Drop us some Fan Mail. Thanks!
Question: My husband and I finalized our adoption in December 2025, and we’re still waiting for our son’s birth certificate in the mail. Then we’ll need to take it to file for an SSN and wait for that to arrive. How can we file taxes, including our newborn baby, without a Social Security Number for him? (We didn’t know we could file for a temporary number with the IRS until it was too late - after his finalization hearing).
Resources:
- The 2025 Adoption Tax Credit (podcast)
- The Annual Adoption Tax Credit Guide: 2025 Edition
- IRS.gov: Adoption taxpayer identification number
Please leave us a rating or review. This podcast is produced by www.CreatingaFamily.org. We are a national non-profit with the mission to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them.
Creating a Family brings you the following trauma-informed, expert-based content:
- Weekly podcasts
- Weekly articles/blog posts
- Resource pages on all aspects of family building
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