The best Christmas present ever - When Hayley and Mike Jones adopted a beautiful baby boy in December 2001, they described it as "the best Christmas present ever".
But the proud-as-punch parents had no idea of the traumatic years ahead - as angelic-looking Jason, now nine, turned into a tiny terror.
He hit and bit his parents and other children and even attacked the family's pet cat.
But this is not a simple case of a child being naughty for the sake of it.
Experts believe little Jason misbehaves because he was not hugged or cradled in the first crucial hours after he was born.
This resulted in Jason having reactive attachment disorder and psychologists believe such "attachment issues" could affect thousands of children across the country.
Even a divorce or bereavement could be enough to trigger it.
"Due to Jason's condition, we have been told he is a ticking timebomb.
"I'm terrified he will be in prison in his teens if he doesn't get some help.
"But his behaviour is not his fault. His brain was wired up wrongly from the beginning and now, as his parents, we need to help re-wire it."
Hayley and factory worker Mike, 51, brought home nine-week-old Jason on December 17, 2001, after waiting two years on the adoption list. Hayley says: "Holding him in my arms for the first time took my breath away.
"He was such a beautiful baby. Having him was like winning the lottery a hundred times over for us - and we still firmly believe that."
But Jason had a traumatic start in life. His biological mother abandoned him in the hospital immediately after birth without even holding him.
Hayley explains: "Jason's first cries went unanswered. At one point he was put in a broom cupboard in the ward because they had nowhere to put him.
"For the first two days of his life - when bonding with mum is crucial - he wasn't even cuddled."
As Jason grew up, the couple, from Lincolnshire, feared this trauma had left a lasting mark on their son.
Hayley says: "He was a very naughty child. He would lash out and hit or bite us and other children.
"He spat and pulled great chunks of my hair out. But at the same time he was incredibly charming. Everyone on our street soon adored Jason.
"He'd hug complete strangers. He would walk up to people in the supermarket and say, 'Hello pretty lady' then cuddle them.
"And he's very funny and popular at school - he's got a great sense of humour.
"But he becomes angry very quickly - like someone has flicked a switch inside his head."
One day in 2006, when Jason was five, Hayley walked into their kitchen to find blood over the floor.
She recalls: "I couldn't work out where it had come from - then I saw our cat Molly.
"Jason had snipped at her ears with a pair of scissors from the drawer.
"I was horrified but he didn't seem to understand what he'd done wrong. He said, 'Will that hurt her, Mummy?' " The family sought help from their GP and local social services but no support was offered.
The youngster was also incredibly anxious and started suffering panic attacks from the age of seven.
Hayley explains: "We have never been able to take him to any after-school clubs as he wouldn't let us leave him. He became very distressed and said, 'If you leave now will you ever come back for me?'
"He doesn't trust anybody and is so worried all the time. The other day he said, 'Mummy, if I die before you, will you promise me you'll kill yourself because I don't want to go to heaven on my own'.
"And I promised him I would - I couldn't let him be abandoned again."
The couple fostered children for ten months when Jason was three, but when one was arrested after threatening them with a knife, they decided it was too disruptive for Jason.
Desperate for help, in May this year Hayley, Mike and Jason visited a specialist camp in Colorado run by American child psychologist Nancy Thomas. They enrolled in a treatment programme for families affected by reactive attachment disorder - at a cost nearly of £10,000.
Hayley explains: "They taught us that shouting at Jason was pointless. This just pushes him away further. Instead we have to help him understand the consequences of his actions.
"If he hurts someone, instead of making him say sorry, we ask him to do something nice for that person, to pay them back for hurting them."
In the summer, the couple were extremely upset to find Jason had wrapped an elastic band around the mouth of Molly the cat, who they have since given away.
But Hayley explains his behaviour is slowly improving.
A change of school has helped him but despite more desperate pleas to social services for counselling for Jason, the family were told the earliest officials can see him is next year.
Hayley says: "I'm petrified for his future. We are begging for help from social services but are being offered nothing. We can't afford private therapy as it would cost £8,000.
"We are immensely proud of Jason and love him with all our heart, but mentally we're on our knees.
"But he was placed in my arms for a reason. I'm his mother and I'm going to protect him. People say he's simply a naughty boy but that's not true - he's got a brain disorder."
Hayley believes they should have been warned of attachment disorders when they adopted Jason.
She says: "It's so important adoptive parents know this early on so that they can take steps to tackle it.
"We should have been told to have six hours a day of skin to skin contact with him as a baby, to always have him facing us in the buggy and carry him in a sling close to the body rather than a carry cot and not allow him to watch TV for the first two years of his life."
Hayley also believes there could be other children out there with this condition who have not been diagnosed.
She says: "I firmly believe this disorder is behind some of the worst crimes where children commit violence. It is also triggered by trauma such as a bereavement or a divorce.
"This is our next generation. We need to help them before they go on to have children of their own and this cycle continues." ( thesun.co.uk )
But the proud-as-punch parents had no idea of the traumatic years ahead - as angelic-looking Jason, now nine, turned into a tiny terror.
He hit and bit his parents and other children and even attacked the family's pet cat.
But this is not a simple case of a child being naughty for the sake of it.
Experts believe little Jason misbehaves because he was not hugged or cradled in the first crucial hours after he was born.
This resulted in Jason having reactive attachment disorder and psychologists believe such "attachment issues" could affect thousands of children across the country.
Even a divorce or bereavement could be enough to trigger it.
Full-time mum Hayley, 45, says: "Because our son was abandoned at birth by his mother, he can't bond with others.
"Due to Jason's condition, we have been told he is a ticking timebomb.
"I'm terrified he will be in prison in his teens if he doesn't get some help.
"But his behaviour is not his fault. His brain was wired up wrongly from the beginning and now, as his parents, we need to help re-wire it."
Hayley and factory worker Mike, 51, brought home nine-week-old Jason on December 17, 2001, after waiting two years on the adoption list. Hayley says: "Holding him in my arms for the first time took my breath away.
"He was such a beautiful baby. Having him was like winning the lottery a hundred times over for us - and we still firmly believe that."
But Jason had a traumatic start in life. His biological mother abandoned him in the hospital immediately after birth without even holding him.
Hayley explains: "Jason's first cries went unanswered. At one point he was put in a broom cupboard in the ward because they had nowhere to put him.
"For the first two days of his life - when bonding with mum is crucial - he wasn't even cuddled."
As Jason grew up, the couple, from Lincolnshire, feared this trauma had left a lasting mark on their son.
Hayley says: "He was a very naughty child. He would lash out and hit or bite us and other children.
"He spat and pulled great chunks of my hair out. But at the same time he was incredibly charming. Everyone on our street soon adored Jason.
"He'd hug complete strangers. He would walk up to people in the supermarket and say, 'Hello pretty lady' then cuddle them.
"And he's very funny and popular at school - he's got a great sense of humour.
"But he becomes angry very quickly - like someone has flicked a switch inside his head."
One day in 2006, when Jason was five, Hayley walked into their kitchen to find blood over the floor.
She recalls: "I couldn't work out where it had come from - then I saw our cat Molly.
"Jason had snipped at her ears with a pair of scissors from the drawer.
"I was horrified but he didn't seem to understand what he'd done wrong. He said, 'Will that hurt her, Mummy?' " The family sought help from their GP and local social services but no support was offered.
The youngster was also incredibly anxious and started suffering panic attacks from the age of seven.
Hayley explains: "We have never been able to take him to any after-school clubs as he wouldn't let us leave him. He became very distressed and said, 'If you leave now will you ever come back for me?'
"He doesn't trust anybody and is so worried all the time. The other day he said, 'Mummy, if I die before you, will you promise me you'll kill yourself because I don't want to go to heaven on my own'.
"And I promised him I would - I couldn't let him be abandoned again."
The couple fostered children for ten months when Jason was three, but when one was arrested after threatening them with a knife, they decided it was too disruptive for Jason.
Desperate for help, in May this year Hayley, Mike and Jason visited a specialist camp in Colorado run by American child psychologist Nancy Thomas. They enrolled in a treatment programme for families affected by reactive attachment disorder - at a cost nearly of £10,000.
Hayley explains: "They taught us that shouting at Jason was pointless. This just pushes him away further. Instead we have to help him understand the consequences of his actions.
"If he hurts someone, instead of making him say sorry, we ask him to do something nice for that person, to pay them back for hurting them."
In the summer, the couple were extremely upset to find Jason had wrapped an elastic band around the mouth of Molly the cat, who they have since given away.
But Hayley explains his behaviour is slowly improving.
A change of school has helped him but despite more desperate pleas to social services for counselling for Jason, the family were told the earliest officials can see him is next year.
Hayley says: "I'm petrified for his future. We are begging for help from social services but are being offered nothing. We can't afford private therapy as it would cost £8,000.
"We are immensely proud of Jason and love him with all our heart, but mentally we're on our knees.
"But he was placed in my arms for a reason. I'm his mother and I'm going to protect him. People say he's simply a naughty boy but that's not true - he's got a brain disorder."
Hayley believes they should have been warned of attachment disorders when they adopted Jason.
She says: "It's so important adoptive parents know this early on so that they can take steps to tackle it.
"We should have been told to have six hours a day of skin to skin contact with him as a baby, to always have him facing us in the buggy and carry him in a sling close to the body rather than a carry cot and not allow him to watch TV for the first two years of his life."
Hayley also believes there could be other children out there with this condition who have not been diagnosed.
She says: "I firmly believe this disorder is behind some of the worst crimes where children commit violence. It is also triggered by trauma such as a bereavement or a divorce.
"This is our next generation. We need to help them before they go on to have children of their own and this cycle continues." ( thesun.co.uk )
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