Learn to Unwrap the Gifts of ADD

Beginning Wednesday, April 16, registration will open for a free teleseminar called "Unwrapping the Gift of ADD." The 8-part seminar takes place via conference calls at the end of April, each lasting about one hour.

"In an effort to bring parents of kids & teens with ADD/ADHD, and adults with ADD/ADHD the best ways to unwrap the gift of ADD, we've pulled together 8 top ADD/ADHD experts to share with you the best strategies and tactics to do this..."

Traits of ADD/ADHD like impulsivity and inattentiveness have positive aspects that few parents or kids ever hear about. Drs. Edward Hallowell and Kenny Handelman have developed this seminar based on their report "Find the Genius in ADD" as part of their ongoing efforts to eliminate the stigma associated with ADD and ADHD. Source: PR Web

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Special Needs Advocacy Resource Guide

Michelle Davis and Rich Weinfeld are co-founders of the ACB Weinfeld-Davis Advocacy Training Institute, which offers training and guidance to parents and professionals who work with special needs children. The institute has published a "Special Needs Advocacy Resource Guide" aimed at giving parents and professionals the educational information they need to ensure positive outcomes for their children.

"This book has a broad scope and addresses all sorts of special needs. It is an important educational tool not only for the parents and advocates of gifted children, but for those who seek to help any special needs child. The author's intention is to educate the people who act as advocates, whether they are paid consultants or concerned friends or parents."

The guide includes charts and lists, and will acquaint readers with potentially unfamiliar topics such as the Individuals with Disabilities Act. Source: BellaOnline.com.

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Getting Down to Basics

Dr. Martin Kutscher recommended a lot of books to parents of children with ADHD, but few parents had time to read 300-page books. So Dr. Kutscher read several of them himself and boiled them down to a simple, easy-to-ready book titled ADHD - Living Without Brakes.

"In ADHD - Living Without Brakes, Dr. Kutscher gives four basic rules: #1 Keep it Positive, #2 Keep it Calm, #3 Keep it Organized, #4 Keep it Going. These four rules will help both parents and professionals negotiate many of the difficulties associated with ADHD."

Called "realistic and optimistic," Dr. Kutscher's book draws on his 20 years of experience with neuropsychiatric disorders and helping both parents and patients understand the complexities of ADHD. Read more at HealthNewsDigest.com.

Help for Parents

Parents with children who have recently been diagnosed with ADHD have a lot of information to sort through. Some may not know where to start. The website Responsible Rx.org has posted a 14-page guide called the Parent Starter Kit that, as the name implies, may be a great place to start.

"You can download the guide and print it out to read. There is no cost. It is a free resource that helps parents work with their child's doctor to navigate the treatment process once a child has been diagnosed and medication has been prescribed."

The guide is straightforward and easy to understand and covers such topics as "communicating with your child's doctor" and "understanding medication guides." Read more at ADD.About.com.

Young Woman with Asperger's Syndrome Makes it to Finals of "America's Top Model"

A young woman with Asperger's Syndrome made it to the top five on the popular television reality show "America's Next Top Model."

Heather Kuzmich, a 20 year-old student from Valparaiso, Indiana, was eliminated from the competition after making the finals and being voted viewers' favorite for eight weeks in a row.

Ms. Kuzmich has a form of autism that is characterized by difficulties in communication, inability to read others' cues, and unusual social interactions. Some of her traits, such as her inability to hold eye contact and tendency to glance sideways, gave her modeling photos an edgy quality. However, when faced with the challenge of living with twelve other contestants, her disorder sometimes put her at a disadvantage. She often needed telephone support from her mother when the others made fun of her.

Ms. Kuzmich told the New York Times that the contest was a personal way to test her limits as a person with Asperger's Syndrome.

"It was a point in my life where I was thinking either Asperger's was going to define me or I was going to be able to work around it," she said.

Visit Your Little Professor to find schools and camps for children with Asperger's.

Young Woman with Asperger's Syndrome Makes it to Finals of "America's Top Model"

A young woman with Asperger's Syndrome made it to the top five on the popular television reality show "America's Next Top Model."

Heather Kuzmich, a 20 year-old student from Valparaiso, Indiana, was eliminated from the competition after making the finals and being voted viewers' favorite for eight weeks in a row.

Ms. Kuzmich has a form of autism that is characterized by difficulties in communication, inability to read others' cues, and unusual social interactions. Some of her traits, such as her inability to hold eye contact and tendency to glance sideways, gave her modeling photos an edgy quality. However, when faced with the challenge of living with twelve other contestants, her disorder sometimes put her at a disadvantage. She often needed telephone support from her mother when the others made fun of her.

Ms. Kuzmich told the New York Times that the contest was a personal way to test her limits as a person with Asperger's Syndrome.

"It was a point in my life where I was thinking either Asperger's was going to define me or I was going to be able to work around it," she said.

Visit Your Little Professor to find schools and camps for children with Asperger's.

The Pocket Parent Coach

Nationally-noted parent coach Tina Feigal, M.S., Ed., wanted to offer parents something more than theoretical information about parenting kids with ADHD. She wanted to offer something practical, so she put together a "pocket guide", with step-by-step instructions for improving the behavior of what she calls "intense" children.

"By learning specific methods for turning child behaviors around, parents gain new skills, new self-esteem and often-unimagined success. Feigal, founder of The Center for the Challenging Child, taps her experience as a school psychologist, a parent of three sons and a parent coach to bring a wealth of knowledge and intuition to her work."

The book is unique in that it enables parents to bring out the best in their kids, without having to rely on the "professionals" to do it for them.

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ADHD & Me

Blake Taylor, a freshman at the University of California, Berkeley, has just published a book about his experiences as someone with ADHD. His hope is that the book will encourage others, and help them view ADHD not as a curse, but as a gift.

"There are so many wonderful qualities that come along with ADHD: intelligence, high energy, the ability to accomplish a lot, creativity, passion for a cause, innovativeness, trustworthiness, etc. But the trick is: you have to learn how to live with it and harness it."

Blake offers many tips in his book, all based on his own life and learning to live with ADHD. He admits that living with ADHD isn't always easy, but he believes that the benefits outweigh the challenges.

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