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May 23rd, 2019
The end of the school year can ban bring both fun and challenge for both parents and children. Some parents find it easy to transition their children to beloved and familiar settings such as local summer programs, day camp, or sleep-away camp. But others experience stress and scramble to find appropriate options for their children […]
May 5th, 2019
Every parent knows how difficult it can be to watch your child burst into tears. Your instinct is to do whatever you can to bring comfort and calm the child. But in my work as a child psychologist, I sometimes observe behavioral interventionists suggest a different reaction for the children they work with, including those […]
December 16th, 2016
It’s supposed to be a time of joyful excitement, but the truth is that the holiday season can be stressful for children and parents alike.
September 28th, 2016
Oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) should be viewed as a child’s response to stress. Viewing challenging behaviors on a continuum of stress and stress recovery reveals a whole new way to think about this stigmatizing disorder, as well as a new way to support children, informed by current neuroscience.
August 13th, 2016
We want to shift away from viewing developmental differences as something that needs to be quickly “fixed”. Rather, we need to soften the stance to view differences with patience and compassion; with reflection regarding what behaviors or capacities should be targeted for change, and why
July 1st, 2014
This has been a rough IEP season at my office. Not because money is still tight and funding sources are scarce for special education services, or because these meetings can go on for hours on end, but because it seems parents are often not considered experts of their own children with special needs. And when […]
June 6th, 2014
How many more deaths must occur before we take action to prevent future acts of violence in this country? While discussion around limiting gun access is important, as a mental health specialist I can speak to the need for early identification of potential perpetrators. Our current methods of identifying and treating persons with mental health […]
June 4th, 2014
As a parent, you might experience confusion about your role in your child’s services. You may feel that “pit in the stomach”, or “queasy feeling” when one of your child’s therapists makes a suggestion/comment that just doesn’t seem right. Because you have such a close relationship with your child, your weigh-in during these moments is […]
June 2nd, 2014
Last week, at Bessel van der Kolk’s Annual Trauma Conference, the number of references to autism intrigued me. While one would not necessarily expect to find those two words together in a conference, some of the underlying neurobiology found in trauma may be similar to children with autism, including weak or disconnected neural links […]
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