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If we look at a “disorder” and call it “normal”, then we fail to support a child’s true need for support and assistance, if truly needed. However, if we look at behavior which is actually normal for a child and call it a “disorder”, then we instill in the child (many times from a very early age) a belief that there is something “wrong” with her; there is something wrong that cannot be “fixed”, or that must be fixed with drugs.
Is there an alternative to labeling a young child with a mental disorder? Is it possible that “Attention Deficit Disorder” [2] is not a “disorder”, but rather something more natural, a remnant of necessary skills that brings not only challenges, but a skills set that may be seen as helpful in certain circumstances?
Read the rest...(this is the only thing that we were graded on and I got an "A")
Dawn
Very interesting and well written. I agree, labels are used too much. I don't think these things are new. I suspect had I put my kids in school the boy might have been labelled ADHD and the girl ADD. On the other hand, they may have performed as expected and the inability to concentrate missed.