It has been estimated that only 5 percent of PAS children do not reconcile.

Others disagree. So the answer to the question is that I don't know; however, what I do know is that there are similarities among the cases of anecdotal stories of those rejected parents whose children have returned, some of their own free will and some with court intervention. Among these cases, the similarities suggest that three factors are important: One is ongoing contact of some kind with your child, especially around milestones like birthdays, graduations, or other important events. Cards, phone calls, or letters may be misinterpreted as harassment, but on the other hand, they may just be important reminders to your child that you exist and you care.

The second important factor is that you do not give up hope. Accept what is happening, choose to go on with your own life, but maintain hope. It is a thread that runs through stories of successful reconciliations. Figure out what it takes for you to stay hopeful, even without months or years of reciprocity or acknowledgement of your efforts. For some, a support group, church attendance, counseling, journal writing, Yoga, or meditation classes have helped. For others, writing a loving "final" letter of acceptance has helped and even started a reconciliation process. Whatever it is, find it, practice, it and do it.

Hope is closely connected to staying inspired. Read about other reunited cases and perhaps you will find ideas to help you. Remember what Dale Carnegie said," Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all."

The third important factor is community support. Closely akin to the idea that it takes a village to raise a child , it takes a community to intervene on behalf of PAS children. As Clawar and Rivlin point out in their landmark book Children Held Hostage, "the legal system in most states is not currently adequate to protect children from this form of abuse." Mental health professionals, teachers and coaches, attorneys, family members, friends and others who discover the brainwashing process "have an obligation to intervene on behalf of the child" just as they would for other forms of child abuse.

Intervention can take the form of bringing to light the themes of the alienator's belief system or program. One common theme called denial of existence sends the message to the child that the other parent is not significant. Children are not allowed to talk about the parent, express joy about the parent and are given a subtle, but clear message to refuse to acknowledge the parent at social functions. There are other themes that you can read about in  Children Held Hostage.

Extended family especially have an obligation to intervene to help children by bringing to light the brainwashing and offering  communications to correct the alienator's misrepresentation of reality. Children always lose when they don't feel free to love both parents.