We can be helpful with most families with a son or daughter who is not making the progress desired in areas of behavior, maturity, responsibility or education. This includes families with children with psychological or psychiatric problems.   It also includes families with children who are simply shy, immature, or just not quite as successful as parents believe is appropriate. 

The son or daughter in our client families tends to be between elementary school age and mid-twenties,  although we have gone older and younger. 

Most families tend to contact us when a son or daughter has not made adequate progress after some effort has been made to solve problems at home. Others contact us on advice of a clinician who either wants our input in finding an effective strategy to make changes or simply believes that local resources are not adequate.  Some contact us just because they are uncertain about making parenting decisions when there does not appear to be a serious problem.  Some just want their son or daughter to attend a better school. 

At the other extreme, we deal with both serious behavior problems and/or serious mental health issues.  Some of our clients have been under intensive mental health care. Some are behaviorally out of control.  Some are simply rigid in their behavior, or constantly  into computer games or drugs or pornography.  Very few are into criminal behavior, but we have dealt with that as well. 

But others are simply kids who fall short of expectation in ways that are far less profound or dramatic but local resources aren't resolving the problem. 

We would prefer otherwise, but some families contact us only when their son or daughter has become a threat to themselves or other family members.

We do not need a clinical diagnosis in order to become involved.  However, the following diagnostic categories and specific behaviors are very common in our experience:

• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (Including non-hyperactive variant)
• Oppositional and Defiant Disorder
• Depression (including Dysthymia)
• Bipolar disorder
• Anxiety disorder
• School phobia
• Reactive Attachment Disorder
• Adjustment issues related to adoption  
• Substance abuse, dependency and addiction
• Intermittent Explosive Disorder
• Borderline Personality Disorder
• Narcissistic Personality Disorder
• Eating disorders
• Sexual Reactivity
• Non-verbal Learning Disability
• Aspergers Syndrome
• Autism
• Pervasive Developmental Disorder
• Computer/TV addiction

We generally are not the best choice of consultant for a student solely on account of learning disabilities unless there is evidence of adjustment issues concurrently.

Last revised October 27,2009