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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.

Don't wait for him to turn 10 before you reveal that you are not in fact the hired help whose job it is to clean up after him.

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

It is what we say and do when we're angry that creates the very model our children will follow when dealing with their own frustrations.

If there is no relationship - nothing else matters !

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

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.

Children mimic well. They catch what they see better than they follow what they hear.

There has been an explosion in the prescribing of medication for very young children, particularly preschool and kindergarten boys (Juli Zito , Univ. of Maryland)

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.

Learn more.

Suicide – Warning Signs

WARNING SIGNS
 
– depression
– previous suicide attempts
– suicide of someone close
– talking of suicide
– preoccupation with death
– giving away possessions
– saying “Good bye” to family & friends
– cryptic statements “You won’t have to worry about me  anymore”
– listening to sad music
– drawing morbid pictures
– statements indicating feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, worthlessness
– statements about being a burden to others
– loss of interest in activities
– risky behaviour (eg. driving, alcohol, drugs)
– sudden distinct improvement in mood ( the decision to kill self may relieve the burden)
– the association between substance abuse and suicide is strong
 
 
 
But the warning signs can create a false impression of probability
 
Even the experts are unreliable for even the next 24 hours
 
Trust your instincts
 
Be extra cautious if:
                              – a peer is suicidal
                              – child gives away possessions
                              – a close relationship is lost
 
What is the best way to determine if someone is suicidal ? (answer – ask them!)

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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

“Implementing Rick’s techniques and adhering to them is exhausting, but it is a healthy exhaustion rather than the detrimental exhaustion I used to experience.”

(B.F. – Woodstock)