Perfectionism, or the tendency to want to do everything flawlessly, is often associated with increased stress and anxiety. Perfectionism combines excessively high personal standards (“I have to do my best at everything”), as well as feelings of failure if the person falls short of those benchmarks. Oftentimes, our need to be perfect stems from fear. […]
“Just like our fingerprints, people are all different. It’s no surprise that we learn differently too.” The above explanation is one that I often provide to young people when they are diagnosed as having learning disabilities. I also explain to them that most of the time, our schools teach the most common, and sometimes the […]
Helping a teen through the grief process is not a new concept, but one that is often overlooked. There are many wonderful books for grief targeted towards adults. However, adolescent grief is unique and important to learn about. I was 17 years old when my paternal grandmother passed away. She had been sick for many […]
This blog-post is addressing a serious and potentially controversial topic: spanking. It’s a tough thing to talk about, so thank you for being brave and reading this article. New research regarding spanking has been in the news recently, with two ground-breaking studies in the last month. As a result, as a Clinical Child and Adolescent […]
So, you and your child completed the very long process a Dyslexia evaluation and diagnosis. You take a deep breath, and then realize, “What do I do now?” If you or someone you love is in this situation, you are not alone. Not only is obtaining an accurate diagnosis a difficult one, but helping your […]
ADHD can mean a lot of different things for different people. Some may be more restless, hyperactive, fidgeting, and constantly on the move. Others may seem constantly one step behind, not seem to listen to what you’re saying, forget things, lose track of things, and always be off-task. Some may have a combination of these, […]
Ideally, preparation for the beginning of the school year should start a few weeks before that moment. A lot of things help a child prepare for that time, and as parents know, it’s not just about the school shopping.
Being a kid with social anxiety isn’t easy. As adults, many of us still have difficulty sitting down at a table and introducing ourselves to a group of strangers. In fact, many of us can say that if given the choice, we would likely choose not to be in that situation. Remember that your child […]
Parenting is hard. Children are joyful, energetic, and loving; they are also often challenging, frustrating, and overwhelming. Many of us think of time-outs as a way to help our children understand when they are acting in ways that are unhelpful, harmful, hurtful, or dangerous. When this is the case, we often recognize that our children […]
May is Mental Health Awareness month. There are so many great organizations out there that are championing this cause, and pressing for understanding, awareness, and treatment of mental health disorders, including www.breakthestigma.org and www.nami.org. Please consider visiting these sites, and sharing them widely. We at Hope Springs are passionate about bringing awareness and empathy to […]
…the CDC estimates that, in general, 50% of people are not compliant with medications. The findings are even more concerning for mental health. 80-90% of adults who are prescribed medication for ADHD do not take ADHD medication regularly, even though medications are prescribed daily on a long-term basis. Similarly, 50-75% of adults are non-compliant with antidepressant medications. The research by the CDC directly linked non-adherence to medication to 50% of treatment failure, and up to 125,000 deaths annually. That’s a life every 4 minutes. In summary, not taking medication as prescribed is a big deal and it’s dangerous.
We have known for a long time that there is a relationship between our thoughts, our feelings, and what we do. Cognitive behavioral therapists often refer to this as the cognitive triangle (pictured below). For example, if we tell ourselves, “This is going to be hard,” we often feel overwhelmed or scared, and our hearts […]
