As of right now, we have no “official” diagnosis for our oldest son. He seems to be hovering over the abyss, a chasm between diagnoses that have so many symptoms in common that it can be virtually impossible to say which one he has. Asperger’s? ADHD? Bipolar Disorder? His giftedness blurs the lines even more, because his high intellect can mask symptoms. I just want to help him. I want to help him see how beautiful, amazing, funny, brilliant, charming…how everything he is. He is perfectly imperfect. I want to understand what he feels when he may not have the words or understanding to explain it for me. And I realize that, because of some of the topics on this blog, you may have come here, simply following a tag in search of your own answers. I cannot give you those. What I can do is share the information I find. I am just entering this world. I am by no means an expert. I am but a heartbroken mother seeking answers and explanations myself.
But we parents have to stick together, and so this is what I have found.
Resources on Dual Diagnosis and Twice-Exceptional Children
Bright Not Broken Kennedy and Banks, with Temple Grandin
Twice-Exceptional Chilldren A short article on this with tips to help the child in the classroom from Education(dot) com.
Twice-Exceptional (Gifted with Special Needs), an article from the National Association of Gifted Children
Pharmacotherapy and Psychoactive Drugs in Children
Here is what the National Institute for Mental Health has to say about SSRI’s in children, including information on the reason for the Black-Box Warning.
Generation Rx, a documentary on the prescribing of psychotropic medications in children and the possible implications and risks.
Frontline: The Medicated Child , Another documentary on the use of pharmacotherapy for young children diagnosed with mental illness.
**I will update this page as I discover new resources. I have just begun to dig.**
Best Wishes,
Bitchypants
bitchypants 