(This is an excerpt from a talk I was asked to give to the parents at San Diego French American School March 19, 2014. The parents voted on which topics I would discuss in my presentation- and this was right at the top of their list!) We all want our children to have a strong [...]
Hello Dr Deb, I have been trying to toilet train my almost 3 year old daughter for 4.5 months. We gave it a break after no progress with doing a poo on the toilet. She seems anxious and can't let go even if she is desperate and has already started going. We are on our [...]
Question: I would love more information on raising a child with Aspergers. Thank you! Answer: I appreciate this question and while it is very general (and I could write books on the topic!) I thought I would start by giving families a little bit of a ‘what to expect’ when raising a child with [...]
Hi Dr Deb, I have been counseling the parents of an 8y/o girl. Her mother describes her issue with bedwetting as follows. " She was in pull/ups at night until she was 6.She is a really heavy sleeper. She started wetting the bed in September right when she started 3rd grade and 2 weeks after [...]
Question: "What is your opinion on "sensory processing delay"and OT therapy? Is this being overly diagnosed in your opinion and the new catch phrase? Thank you." -K Dear K: Thank you so much for submitting this question. I think there are many parents like yourselves who share the same concerns. To provide you the [...]
I know from talking to a lot of parents in my practice that the holidays can be exceptionally stressful for a child on the spectrum. And so here are my tips on how to successfully navigate the holidays with your special needs child!! (PLEASE NOTE - I have included some exceptional suggestions I have received from parents on what's [...]
As well all know the growing number of children and teens that are becoming victims of online predators are alarming. As discussed this morning on my interview with CBS news, I recommend using a internet safety contract with your child or teen to encourage safe and responsible internet use. Please feel free to comment with [...]
This post was written by my colleague Maria Bagby, from Therapeutic Literacy Center. (858) 668-8366 maria@therapeuticliteracycenter.com, www.therapeuticliteracycenter.com Why is learning to read, write and spell difficult for some of our children? The real question is why isn’t it? We are hard-wired for learning to sit, stand, walk and talk. But reading and writing have to be [...]
("Many thanks to my extremely knowledgeable and wonderful friend and colleague Nancy Cohen, M.A. for writing this very helpful and informative article. BTW, personally I LOVE #5 - so brilliant! You can find out more about Nancy Cohen, Child Development and Behavior Specialist at her website www.nancygcohen.com." - Dr. Deb) Let’s face it – siblings [...]
My Top 5 Classroom Strategies to Help your Child Focus and Pay Attention! There are dozens of strategies that are easy to implement in the classroom that help to improve attention and focus in young children. By parent request, here are my top 5 recommendations I make in my practice for children struggling with focus [...]
