Thomas Harms will present a keynote that explores how early relational experiences between parents and infants shape the foundations of emotional regulation, trauma integration, and embodied attachment.
Drawing on more than 30 years of clinical work, Thomas Harms highlights what parent–baby therapy reveals about the roots of co-regulation and early resilience. His presentation focuses on the subtle yet powerful processes through which caregivers help babies calm themselves and regain balance. As Thomas Harms emphasizes, “supporting parents in strengthening their own capacity for self-attachment and emotional regulation can help babies integrate stressful or overwhelming experiences more quickly and safely.”
The keynote also connects these early dynamics to therapeutic work with adults who carry preverbal trauma. He demonstrates how insights from infancy can inform a gentle, relational, and body oriented psychotherapeutic approach; one that sheds light on the origins of early physical armoring and defense systems.

When birth takes an unexpected turn, parents can find themselves overwhelmed, frightened, and suddenly facing situations they never imagined.
This panel explores how early, compassionate support can help families navigate these particularly vulnerable moments. Drawing on pioneering work bringing Emotional First Aid into birth clinics and neonatal units, we will explore how immediate, body-based support can help parents and babies regain stability, strengthen connection, and find their footing after a difficult or traumatic beginning.
The panelists will consider how early intervention can support healing, resilience, and the relationship between parents and their babies.