Mikki's blog

Psychologist Elizabeth Thompson Gershoff, PhD, of the National Center for Children in Poverty at Columbia University, looked at both positive and negative behaviors in children that were associated with corporal punishment. After collecting 62 years of data her findings may change how you look on spanking as a way of discipline forever.

There are more parenting know it alls on the net than can be counted and all of them claiming to know the best way to discipline a child. In fact if you typed in the phrase ‘child discipline’ you couldn’t filter through all the results in less than a couple hours. With all this advice why do so many parents claim they are frustrated because they don’t think their discipline methods are working?

The claim that violent video games can have a harmful effect on our children is nothing new. For years parents and psychologists have stressed the need to censor games and limit how much time our children spend playing them. One question that many parents have is HOW games effect our children and to what extent.

With the rising number of children being diagnosed with ADD many parents are faced with a difficult decision. Should I medicate my child or not? Factors you may use are how well your child is performing in school and complying with rules. What if you were informed that ADD wasn't really a disease at all or for that matter not even proven to be something physical or biological? Would you still medicate for something that doesn't exist?

Testing That Proves Conclusively Whether or Not Your Child Will Respond Well to Medication?

One of the biggest debates within the ADHD community is whether or not to medicate. Parents sometimes feel pushed by teachers and administrators to medicate their child so that the child will be more manageable in the classroom. Teachers and administrators have an entire classroom to consider when recommending whether or not to medicate a particular student. And after all of the angst that goes into the decision to medicate, parents are often left second-guessing themselves and wondering if they made the right decision. It would be so much easier if a simple scientific test could give parents inside information on whether or not to medicate. While there is still much research to be done, a new study is shedding light on genetic markers that may predict whether or not a child will respond well to pharmacological treatment of ADHD.

For anyone who parents a child with a neurological disorder, knowing when and how to discipline is challenging. ADHD parents have an especially hard time since the symptoms of the disorder cause their children to be disorganized, hyperactive, and unfocused. This makes it especially hard to discern when to extend grace to the child, considering that his disorder is the cause of his behavior, and when to hold the child accountable.

Governments around the world are currently busy rescuing banks with eye-watering amounts of money, but who is there to help the hard-working family? Until similar plans are created to bail out the family, it looks as though we must take control of our finances ourselves. Fortunately, there are many creative and practical means of doing just that, including earning extra cash, possibly by working from home part-time, or by reducing outgoings through changing your spending habits.

As you lie in the hospital bed gleaming down at the peaceful sleeping baby in your arms you know instantly that every moment of your life has led up to this point. You know instantly that every moment yet to come will be devoted to the best interest of that child and you follow through, day after day. So what then do you do when the best interest of your child becomes challenged?

Recently, I had a conversation with the parent of a 9 year-old child who has ADHD. He expressed frustration over her inability to be organized, and fear over her future with this disorder. “What’s going to happen when she has a job and can’t remember things, or focus on a task? What happens then? She has to learn at some point how to do those things!” He exclaimed to me in frustration.

Information That Parents of ADHD Teens Should Have Before Handing Over the Keys