The Social and Emotional Education of our Children
YES, our children need to learn certain academic material in order to be competitive in the work place and as they consider college. BUT, as American education focuses more and more on “Common Core” academic standards they are moving further and further away from teaching kids to be healthy, happy adults. NOT every child should […]
Special needs kids AND their families need our understanding
Though I think we have come a long way in our understanding and ability to be compassionate when it comes to kids with special needs, we still have a long way to go. In this article several moms share their personal experiences with intolerance. We all need to work together to educate and model tolerance, acceptance […]
Childhood Mental Health Hospitalizations
Sadly, nearly one in 10 hospitalized children have a primary diagnosis of a mental health condition. Until recently there was not much information about what mental health conditions where fueling this statistic. However, new research shows that depression, bipolar disorder and psychosis are the most common causes for costly hospitalizations. I think this ties in with […]
Tip of the Week 3/18/14
Remember, you don’t have to do anything. You can choose to do whatever you think is important enough to warrant your efforts. Don’t lament your responsibilities as burdensome and unavoidable. Think of the positive effects of your actions – the reasons you go to work, the reasons you keep the household running. We all have […]
Where do kids and teens learn ‘Emotional Resiliency’?
You can call them ‘coping skills’ or ‘self soothing strategies’. This is the ability to deal with touch, challenging and often uncomfortable issues and emotions in a healthy and productive manner. Sadly, this ability is lacking in many adults who turn to all kinds of self-harming behaviors to deal with the pain and stress of […]
When Tantrums are a Sign of More Serious Issues
Look, almost all kids at one time or another throw a earth-shaking, mind numbing tantrum. They are having a really bad day and that one last thing just tips them over the edge. Parents, teachers and casual bystanders are awestruck by the human tornado. Though at the time it is mortifying and alarming, for most […]
How to Handle Homework
For a lot of families homework can be a one of the biggest challenges of the day. This is especially true with special needs kids. A new survey talks about what how much is average for different grade levels, why homework is thought to be important and some tips on how to get it done. […]
How do we deal with Teen Suicide?
This is such an emotional subject. My guess is that most people know of a teen that has taken their life. It may not be a personal experience. It may just be a teen in your child’s school, but you know of someone who has suffered this tragedy. And what can we say? Nothing feels […]
2.17.14 Tip of the Week
Tiny things – the tone of your voice, the exact words you use as you go through otherwise ordinary events – communicate volumes. For many dealing with mental health issues the tiny things can become insurmountable. The hyper-vigilance of those with PTSD and other anxiety disorders may mean that they mis-read things and see unintentional […]
When the very young suffer from mental illness
Though it is the exception to the rule, very young children can have serious mental health issues. This CNN Health story share details of Cristini family and their son Gianni. Gianni was adopted at birth. Initially things seemed normal enough, but by the time he was 18 months old his mother began questioning his behaviors. Life has […]