If your child or teen has been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or you have been told by his/her teacher that your child is struggling to learn in school, I urge you to seek professional help to assess the situation. While I am not trained to do psychological or educational testing, I can help you discern if this is a necessary “next” step. Too many times I have met adults in my practice that altered their educational or career paths due to the lingering effects of negative school experiences or undetected learning difficulties.

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I know from experience that often parents have heard feedback from teachers (perhaps for a few years) and are fearful of their child being labeled and treated differently. Perhaps they chalked it up to a poor teacher or thought the child would grow out of it. Understandably, many parents are also extremely resistant to medication. It is important to note that some school adjustment problems can stem from emotional, social, physical, or psychological problems. In some instances, a child’s inattentiveness, distractibility, poor concentration, retention of information can be signs of depression or anxiety rather than ADHD. There can be many factors impacting your child’s school performance; stress in the family, parenting conflicts, marital problems, bullying, divorce, learning problems that are undetected, death of a parent, parental illness.  I realize parents are reluctant to share these situations with school personnel for fear of shame.  All too often I see that parents blame the school for not providing help to their child and likewise, schools blame parents for not supporting their child. As they say, “it takes a village…to raise a child.” 

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As a family therapist I take a holistic approach by looking comprehensively at all aspects of a child’s life.  I can assist your child with strategies for organization, time management, setting deadlines, listing priorities, managing stress, providing incentives, uncovering the fears and anxieties that inherently stem from ADHD, and most importantly build your child’s self-esteem and self-worth. As a parent, I can help you empower and support your child, set appropriate limits, and learn to appreciate their unique gifts.

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Let me help you navigate the waters…