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Parents are the external regulator for kids who cannot regulate themselves.

Children today are under enormous pressures rarely experienced by their parents or grandparents. Many of today's children are being enticed to grow up too quickly and are encountering challenges for which they are totally unprepared.

Being a parent of a teenager can cure a person of narcissism.

We should not medicate the boys so they fit the school; we should change the school to fit the boy. (Leonard Sax, M.D. Ph.D)

Children do not develop on their own - they only develop within relationships.

The challenge of adolescence is to balance the right of the parents to feel they are in charge with the need of the adolescent to gain independence.

If you (parents) tend to overreact to your child's misbehaviour - your child learns that he can't trust you. Mom, Dad, stay regulated!

A tantruming toddler is a little ball of writhing muscle and incredible strength. It's like trying to carry a greased pig past a slop bucket.

Relationships matter:  change comes through forming trusting relationships. People, not programs change people.

Removing a child from a traumatic environment does not remove the trauma from the child's memory.

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Ritalin – the good, the bad and the ugly

First the Good – the following is a list of commonly observed behavioural changes when a child with ADD/ADHD begins using a stimulant medication (eg. Ritalin, Concerta, Dexedrine, Adderall)

  • decreased motor activity
  • decreased aggression
  • decreased defiance
  • less impulsive
  • makes fewer careless mistakes
  • grades improve
  • more compliant
  • improved relationships
  • improved concentration
  • improved attitude

The “experts” really don’t understand exactly how stimulant medications work but it appears to alter the neurochemical functioning of the brain, especially the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin. It takes approximately 20 -30 minutes to take effect and positive results will last about 4 hours. Many children require a second dose at noon hour at school in order for them to remain productive and cooperative for the entire school day. One study that I am aware of reported that the compliance level of a group of children with ADHD before their Ritalin pill was 40% and 1/2 hour after their pill, the level increased to 90%.

Dr. Martin Boren M.D. states, “If a child has an attention or hyperactive disorder, then he has a chemical problem and needs Ritalin as much as a diabetic needs insulin.”

Stimulant medications are performance enhancers and the positive effects will be evident in anyone who takes this drug regardless of a diagnosis of ADD/ADHD.

What parents need most are ideas, because with ideas with ideas we get options. Rick Harper has been providing ideas to parents for over 40 years.

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Workshops

+ Behaviour Management (now available online)

This full day or 2 evening workshop will introduce you […]

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+ A Parent’s Guide to the Teenage Brain

  A teenager’s brain is not just an adult brain […]

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+ Reading Rescue

A program for children with reading problems

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+ A Guided Tour of ADHD (now available online)

This workshop will present the facts, myths, misconceptions, controversy and […]

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See more of our workshops


Contact

2720 Rath Street, Putnam, Ontario
NOL 2BO

Phone: (519) 485-4678
Fax: (519) 485-0281

Email: info@rickharper.ca

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Parents' Comments

“Our daughter was the joy of our life until she turned 13, then all hell broke loose. Rick helped us understand what was happening to her and we made some adjustments that helped us get through it. She’s now in University and doing well.”

(D.A. – St. Thomas)