LORETTA MAASE, LPC ~ PARENT ALIENATION EXPERT
Why Healing Lost Hearts®
After nearly three decades working with families in conflict — in high-conflict co-parenting cases, foster care, protective services, elite private schools, church ministries, and family law — I have landed, again and again, on one truth: the battle is ultimately won on the battlefield of the child’s heart.
Regardless of court decisions, an alienating parent’s behavior, or the missteps of untrained professionals, a child’s heart can still be touched. Not through argument or evidence — but one moment of peace at a time. One soft word. One gentle touch. One look that says I see you.
My work is, at its core, about prevention — even though most of it plays out in the court system. What a child loses, in these situations, is the safety of knowing they are not a soldier in a war between their parents. That the parent they’ve been pulled away from can still be trusted simply to be there — with recognition, with love, with joy at the sight of them.
That child just wants to be a child again — carefree, loved, held — even while screaming I hate you. I never want to see you again. And in the secret places of their heart, this is not what they want. They still want to be your child, no matter their age.
That love doesn’t require contact to be real. It can be a card, a note, a single small gesture that says nothing more than: I’m still here. That alone may be all a child needs — a seed planted, waiting for the season it can finally grow.
A lost heart can be healed if a parent will focus on the love, and not the loss — even from a distance, even in the middle of rejection. This is what Healing Lost Hearts® is about: one brief expression of love that touches a child and lasts, even after they are pulled back into the war.
Note: This message is intended for situations in which no positive finding of child abuse has been made against the rejected parent.
Let’s Connect
Every family who reaches out deserves my full attention — not a rushed reply between calls. Given the volume of correspondence I receive, I’m not able to take phone calls or respond to emails directly. Here’s how to reach me instead:
If you’d like to talk through how I might help, schedule a 15-minute introductory call.
If you’re ready to go deeper into your situation, schedule a one-hour consultation ($250, payable on my website).
Please note: all communication is consultative and educational in nature, and is not intended to constitute legal advice, counseling, or therapy. I look forward to connecting with you.
Healing Lost Hearts® Educational and Consultation Programs based on PARENTING THE ALIENATED CHILD by Loretta Maase, LPC
Reconnecting with Lost Hearts
Parenting the Alienated Child is a practical, developmentally grounded guide for parents navigating rejection, defiance, and fractured parent–child relationships in high-conflict family systems. Drawing on decades of clinical and forensic experience, Loretta Maase, MA, LPC, teaches parents how to respond with calm authority, emotional containment, and clarity—without arguing, pleading, or withdrawing.
This book is not about blame. It is about how to parent effectively when the relationship is under strain, how to distinguish normal developmental behavior from alienation dynamics, and how to position yourself for long-term repair—whether reconciliation happens now or later.
Hour, Court-Ready Parent Educationourse
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TESTIMONIALS
“This new book, Parenting the Alienated Child by Loretta Maase, occupies an important niche in parental alienation scholarship—what to do and what to say when trying to nurture an angry, rejecting child. The book’s foundation is an understanding of normal child and adolescent development; perhaps the most obvious example is distinguishing a typical teenager’s occasional defiance and disrespect from an alienated youngster’s persistent animosity and rejection. Parenting the Alienated Child has dozens of sample conversations regarding many topics, for example, ways to tactfully challenge a child’s false beliefs. This book will be helpful not just for parents themselves, but also for the counselors, therapists, and coaches who provide guidance for parents who are struggling with alienation in their families.” William Bernet, M.D. Professor Emeritus Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Vanderbilt University School of MedicineNashville, Tennessee, USA
“Parenting your child while navigating alienation dynamics is akin to drinking from a firehose. Not only is the parent trapped in an emotional roller coaster of his or her own emotions, but the related enmeshed family dynamics of adultification, parentification, and infantilization that are often present in these cases makes it extremely difficult to parent the alienated child (or a child exposed to parental alienating behaviors).
It is not uncommon for parents who are caught in this maelstrom of family dynamics to have overwhelming feelings of frustration and despair: Damned if I do and damned if I don’t! Often, this frustration and despair results into the rejected parent lashing out at the child, or the favored parent, or against the “system,” on social media platforms and elsewhere. Such poor reaction is then confused and conflated with causation of the child’s rejection of the parent, creating further complexity.
Loretta Maase’s new book, Parenting the Alienated Child, is a shining beacon of hope. It not only offers parents helpful, practical suggestions on dealing with children’s rejection, hostility, defiance, and disrespect, but also provides valuable insight into the alienation dynamics. Ms. Maase’s book is a must read for every parent who is dealing with parental alienation, and every professional who is assisting or guiding such parent.”
Ashish Joshi Attorney specializing in cases involving Family Violence and author of Litigating Parental Alienation: Evaluating and Presenting an Effective Case in Court (ABA, 2021).
“This is a painful book to read as a parent who lost my children to alienation for over a year and, with Loretta’s help, not only won full custody but finally won back their hearts and minds. Reading it—especially chapter 21—was so hard and sad for me, a triggering reminder of where we were not so long ago with the kids being disrespectful and downright hateful to me. Chapter 22 was a terrifying glimpse into where we could have gone without your help. Yet this book is also a roadmap of hope, filled with practical, applicable, “tried and true” wisdom for the alienation journey and beyond. You have so much wisdom and have surprised me with your insights again and again—so practical, doable, and compassionate. The book is amazing and clear, and you perfectly embody the “nurturing authoritative” parent as you present loving understanding alongside cold hard (helpful) truths. Wow!!!!!!Parenting is intensely difficult in the most normal of situations, but parenting after being alienated takes extra patience, sensitivity, guidance and sometimes superhuman strength. I’m deeply saddened for any parents still experiencing this and for all the children suffering. Loretta and her book are literally a godsend and are sure to give answers and direction to anyone needing support in this often misunderstood area. May God bring peace and reunification to all his children soon.” Love and infinite gratitude, Rina
“I wish I would have had this book ten years ago. After a decade of dealing with my children being alienated and seeing the emotional and psychological toll it took on them with very little understanding in the beginning of what was happening Loretta’s book would have been invaluable. As I read it, I felt as though the behavior describing, both the alienator, myself, and my children during the process was taken directly from our lives. Having no idea what was happening much less how to respond to it at the time left me with a feeling of hopelessness and constant loss. Watching your children be emotionally and psychologically abused with no idea how to stop it and the family court system only making it worse is something I would not wish on my worst enemy. The advice and techniques for responding to alienated children are invaluable to anyone going through this hell.” Scott Sherrill
“Reunification therapy for parental alienation has been the subject of much controversy and misinformation. Loretta Maase is a therapist who is at the cutting edge of reunification therapy for families who have been afflicted by parental alienation. Her new book Parenting the Alienated Child: Reconnecting Lost Hearts is a major contribution toward shattering misinformation about reunification therapy. Throughout its pages, the reader can see the solid foundation of this therapy which is rooted in the science of family systems therapy. The reader will also see how a master therapist treats clients with sensitivity and realistic goals.
Reunification therapy for alienation is difficult work, and Maase prepares parents for the challenge both in the therapy and in helping them to understand the mindset and developmental stages of children who have been disconnected from their parents for many years. It is obvious from this book that Maase’s heart and soul is in the trenches with her clients as she feels their pain. This book will undoubtedly give the public, therapists and policymakers an enhanced understanding of the effectiveness, safety, and need for parental alienation reunification therapy.”
Yaakov Aichenbaum Parental alienation misinformation advocate.
“As an alienated parent, I’ve often been told I focus too much on the alienation. But when your child is slowly turned against you through secret, emotional abuse, how could you not focus on it? If your child were being physically beaten every night, no one would ask you to ‘move on’—but when the abuse is emotional, suddenly it’s dismissed or misunderstood. This book helped me see the importance of knowing what’s ‘normal’—so I can better understand, document, and share what’s not. It helped me realize that while not everything is alienation, recognizing what is (and what isn’t) is critical, especially when communicating with professionals and the courts. This message is too important to be brushed off as just another ‘Karen complaint.’ We don’t get many chances to be heard—so we have to make it count.”— An Alienated Mother
“There is no one-size-fits-all solution for alienated parents, but one common challenge we face is having to tread carefully when parenting an alienated child. Loretta Maase captures the feelings of many alienated parents and highlights what we often think but struggle to understand. How do I love a child that is just so awful to me? As a mother of an alienated son, I always wondered if he’d ever let me nurture and love him like before. I’ll never forget when he last described me as caring in front of the therapist. I knew deep down his authentic self was there, but would I always have to walk on eggshells? No one shows you how to pick up where you left off. Parenting the Alienated Child: Reconnecting with Lost Hearts provides insightful lessons on reassessing your alienated child’s cryptic cues, while remaining hopeful after letting go. Thank you, Loretta, for your incredible work and unwavering advocacy.” Claudia Ovalles