Parent Resources

I have a young son who is being verbally bullied by his peers. He is a sensitive child— thin, wears glasses, athletic and intelligent. I suspect the problem may be related to anti-Semitism. I feel like telling him that he needs to fight the bullies with his fists. His mother advises him to ignore the bullies and to concentrate on his studies. What would you advise?

I recently became the foster parent of a 10-year-old girl. She is on a cocktail of several medications prescribed to treat behavioral problems, according to her social worker. They don't really seem to help her. What are the considerations involved with withdrawing her from the meds, and what power do I have to influence this decision?

My eight-year-old daughter has diagnoses of ADHD, depression, anxiety, and ODD. She is taking four prescribed drugs, but she is still suffering and her behavior hasn’t changed much. Her doctor is suggesting adding yet another med. I’m wondering how many drugs are enough? I am starting to think she should go off some of them. I want to trust the psychiatrist, but I’m just not sure anymore.

28 teen artists share the power of their creativity in this collection of profoundly moving, courageous, and beautiful artwork.

My son was diagnosed with schizophrenia five years ago and now lives in a residential facility with a holistic treatment approach. However, his father has repeatedly and aggressively tried to coerce him to get off medication. My son and his provider have repeatedly asked him to stop, and the stress of his father’s pressure is setting him back. What should we do?

Sandra Escher, who helped create a foundation for the Hearing Voices movement, recently passed away. She was the first researcher in the field of children who hear voices.

Acknowledging the role of trauma inflicted by a given individual’s mother is not the same as laying all blame for “mental illness” at the feet of motherhood. Meanwhile, a mountain of evidence has accumulated linking schizophrenia to sexual, physical, and emotional abuse and many other categories of adverse childhood experiences.

Since many psych patients become forced consumers, their advocates have a duty to be educated and concerned with adverse reactions.

In his book 12 Rules for Life, supposedly based on "cutting-edge research," Jordan Peterson attempts to justify the hitting of children as a form of discipline. But Peterson does so without citing a single study to support his view. In fact, this entire section of the book is bereft of any reference to any research supporting the effectiveness of corporal punishment.

Dr. Rucklidge talks about the emerging field of Nutritional Psychiatry, which looks at the relationship between nutrition and brain health and how it may affect children’s moods and behavior.

Adam joins us to discuss what we do and don’t know about the effects of antidepressants on babies and mothers and the importance of counselling in order to aid families in making important decisions about pharmaceutical drug use.

When comparing kids with the same symptoms who were either diagnosed with ADHD or not, those who received the diagnosis had worse outcomes.

Medical researchers present evidence that ADHD is overdiagnosed in children and teens, which can lead to significant harm.

According to researchers, children are being increasingly prescribed multiple different psychiatric medications.

Author Tanya Frank discusses her book 'Zig-Zag Boy A Memoir of Madness and Motherhood', which chronicles the experiences of her son Zach who experienced psychosis as a 19-year-old.

Bias and financial conflicts in antidepressant trials “contribute to systematic underestimation of risk in the published literature.”

I’ll never forget standing beside my sister Lucy as she was strapped to a gurney during a midnight admission to an E.R. in Cambridge, Mass.

This is the story of Chandra and her daughter Sophia (not their real names), who has been in the mental health system since the age of 10.

Researchers discuss the evidence that antipsychotic medications may cause brain atrophy in children, whose brains are still developing.

Founder and Executive Director Stefanie Lyn Kaufman-Mthimkhulu talks about the organization's work to support struggling students and end discrimination against them.

Two National Empowerment Center leaders discuss eCPR, a process for helping youth—or anyone—through an emotional crisis using three simple steps.

After a failed suicide attempt following my son's death, New York State incarcerated me in a mental institution for 21 days. The environment was degrading, stultifying, and downright depressing.

In my experience, episodes of anxiety and depression dwindle in the face of hope and empowerment, while broken-brain narratives lead to deeper despair.

The prescribing of stimulants to preschoolers diagnosed with ADHD is on the rise, which is said to be an "evidence-based" practice. A review of that "evidence base" reveals that claims that ADHD is characterized by genetic and brain abnormalities are belied by the data, and that the NIMH trial of methylphenidate in this age group told of long-term harm.

The child psychiatrist talks about the importance of seeing the big picture and why parents shouldn't "be afraid if their kid is in distress."