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

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

It's more effective to reward your child for being "good" (appropriate) than to punish him for being "bad" (inappropriate).

Children fare better when expectations on them are clear and firm.

Some hope their children will be like sponges soaking up the truth and wisdom imparted by their parents. However appealing this philosophy might be, it seldom seems to catch on with their children.

The teenage years require a delicate balance between the young person's need to gain independence, and the parent's need to retain authority.

Whining and crying are employed by kids for the purpose of getting something. If it works, then it was worth the effort and will be repeated.

When a child is disregulated - is the time parents need to be regulated.

"Moody" and "unpredictable" are adjectives parents will often use when referring to their teenagers.

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)

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Names of ADHD Through the Years

ADHD / ADD has been known by different names throughout its relatively short history. Below you will find some of them: fidgeties post encephalitic disorder defeat in moral character minimal cerebral dysfunction minimal brain injury hyperactivity hyperkenetic reactions in children hyperkenesis perceptual problems emotional problems undifferentiated attention disorder attention deficit disorder with / without hyperactivity executive dysfunction attention disregulation disorder There is no reason to suspect the name will not continue to change as research […]

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ADHD and the Brain

“The human brain is the best organized, most complex , highest functioning object in the universe.” (Kenneth Wesson) An adult brain weighs about 3 pounds and has over 1 trillion cells (100 billion of them are neurons) and the cell connections within the brain number  about 1 quadrillion. The brain stores bits of information and can accomplish processes of unfathomable complexity. Unlike a computer (which simply regurgitates information) the brain can initiate new thoughts and […]

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Meeting with Concerned Parents in Toronto

I recently had an invitation to visit a church community north of Toronto to share some ideas with a small group of parents who are concerned about choices their teenagers are making. I outlined the 5 conventional approaches to dealing with these kinds of issues (medical, biochemical. counselling, skills acquisition, behavioural) and explained the strengths and weaknesses of each. It is probable in each one of these families that the best approach would be to […]

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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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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

“We are foster parents who took in a 13 year old girl (going on 18!) and she ran us through the wringer. Rick helped us learn how to set limits that made the difference.”

(G.E. – Strathroy)