This NCDB Practice Guide outlines the essential components and associated skills for building trusting relationships with children who are deaf-blind. Relationships grounded in trust and mutual respect increase opportunities for learning and communication. They create a sense of safety, minimize anxiety, and empower individuals to explore and engage with the world. They are the basis for educating children and youth. The skills involved in establishing a trusting relationship with children or youth who are deaf-blind involve slowing down and participating in a "deaf-blind world of touch and proximity" (Janssen et al., 2003, p. 201). This is especially true for those who are emerging communicators--for whom conversations do not involve words or signs--or who have additional disabilities or complex medical needs that create even more barriers to interactions.