Transform the Way You Understand and Support Your Most Complex Clients & Their Families
Decrease failed placements.
Reduce crisis escalation.
Increase family stability.
The result is more supported caregivers, more confident professionals, stronger relationships, and better outcomes for children and families.
This saves time, resources, money — while restoring something equally important: hope.
It’s not about working harder. Your staff are already working hard enough.
It’s about approaching behavior through a Brain First lens.
THINK BRAIN FIRST
Think Brain First is intentionally designed for clinicians, agencies, and organizations supporting children and families impacted by neurobehavioral conditions.
The Expectation Gap
Think Brain First supports professionals working with children and teens across all developmental stages.
Our work places particular emphasis on two critical periods:
the early years
the tween and teen years
Why?
Because after working with hundreds of families, a clear pattern emerged:
During the early years, compassion and accommodations are often more available.
But as children enter the tween and teen years there’s a distinct shift. Expectations increase while accommodations and societal compassion often decrease.
This is the Expectation Gap.
And this is where the Think Brain First lens becomes the path forward.
Eileen Devine’s training was exceptional. She offers a clear, compassionate, and deeply knowledgeable approach to understanding brain-based differences, especially in children and teens with complex conditions... I left the training feeling more grounded, more informed, and better equipped to support the children and caregivers I serve.
- Crissa Harman, MA, LMHC
Organizations implementing
a Brain First lens often see improvements in:
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school attendance and engagement
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placement stability
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caregiver confidence and retention
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staff confidence and effectiveness
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reduced crisis escalation
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improved collaboration across systems
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stronger child-caregiver relationships
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more sustainable support environments
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decreased shame-based interactions
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better long-term outcomes for children and families
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National & International Partnerships
Scaled for Agencies, Corporations, Healthcare Systems & School Districts
Think Brain First
Training is Designed For:
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Teachers & Special Educators
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Mental Health Therapists
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Social Workers & Case Managers
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Parent Coaches
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Foster & Adoption Professionals
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Pediatricians & Healthcare Providers
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School & Agency Leaders
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Residential Treatment Facility Staff
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Juvenile Justice & Court Professionals
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Anyone who works with individuals impacted by brain-based differences
Think Brain First training will equip your staff to:
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Understand the root causes of behavior through a neuroscience-informed lens
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Respond to challenging behaviors with greater confidence, clarity, and compassion
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Develop meaningful and effective interventions when traditional approaches aren't working
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Work more effectively with complex children, youth, and families
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Recognize the difference between willful behavior and nervous system-based challenges
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Reduce escalation while strengthening safety, connection, and trust
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Apply practical, brain-informed strategies in everyday interactions and interventions
Meet Eileen
Founder and CEO of Brain First Parenting™
& Think Brain First Training & Consultation Program
Eileen Devine is a parent coach, speaker, consultant, and educator specializing in complex neurobehavioral conditions in children and teens impacted by adoption, foster care, trauma, prenatal exposure, autism, PDA, ADHD, FASD, seizure disorders, and nervous system dysregulation.
Through her Brain First framework, Eileen helps clinicians, agencies, educators, and frontline professionals move beyond compliance-based behavior models toward approaches grounded in neuroscience, regulation, relational safety, and practical implementation.
After working with hundreds of families and professionals nationally and internationally, Eileen identified a particularly important pattern: as children enter the tween and teen years, expectations increase while accommodations and societal compassion often decrease. She calls this the “Expectation Gap.”
While the Brain First framework is relevant across all developmental stages, Eileen’s work highlights how these challenges often intensify during the tween and teen years when brain and nervous system differences are more likely to be misunderstood through a compliance-based lens.
Her work equips professionals and organizations with practical, brain-informed tools rooted in neuroscience research that help reduce escalation, strengthen caregiver relationships, improve placement stability, support staff effectiveness, and create more sustainable outcomes for children and families.
Known for translating complex neurobehavioral concepts into accessible, real-world strategies, Eileen’s trainings help professionals better understand what’s happening beneath behavior so they can respond with greater effectiveness, compassion, and confidence.