Author: Chien Liu

The question of whether to medicatea child with ADHD is one of themost significant and most personaldecisions a parent can face. Manyparents — for a range of entirelylegitimate reasons — want to explorewhat can be done to support theirchild’s school functioning withoutmedication, or alongside medication,or before making a medication decision. The research on non-medication approachesto…

School is one of the most challengingenvironments for children with ADHD —and one of the places where the rightsupport makes the most significantdifference. The demands of the classroom —sustained attention, impulse control,sitting still, following multi-stepinstructions, managing transitions —are precisely the demands that ADHDmakes most difficult. Understandingwhat research shows about supportingchildren with ADHD in school isessential…

Seven-year-old defiance has a particularquality that parents often find surprising —because the seven-year-old is no longerthe impulsive toddler whose defiancefelt developmentally understandable,and not yet the adolescent whosepush for independence feels expected.The seven-year-old who argues, refuses,backtracks, and pushes limits withwhat feels like deliberate calculationcan leave parents uncertain aboutwhat is developmentally normal andwhat warrants concern. The research…

Separation anxiety in toddlers isone of the most universal — and mostdistressing — experiences of earlyparenthood. The toddler who clingsdesperately at daycare drop-off, whoscreams when the parent leaves theroom, who cannot be comforted byanyone but their primary caregiver —is showing a response that is deeplyrooted in normal developmental biologyand attachment neuroscience. Understanding what separation anxietyactually…

Anxiety is the most common mentalhealth condition in adolescence —and one of the most commonly missed,minimized, or misattributed to typicalteenage moodiness. The teenager whois chronically worried, who avoidssocial situations, who cannot sleep,who complains of physical symptomsbefore school, who seems paralyzedby decisions — may be experiencinggenuine anxiety that deserves understandingand effective support. This article covers what…

Social anxiety is one of the mostcommon anxiety conditions in childhood —and one of the most commonly mistakenfor shyness, introversion, or simplya quiet personality. The distinctionmatters: shyness is a temperamentaltrait that does not necessarily impairfunctioning. Social anxiety is acondition that significantly affectsa child’s ability to engage withthe social world — and that respondswell to early,…

Anxiety in children under five isboth more common and more commonlymissed than most parents realize.It is missed because very young childrencannot say “I feel anxious” — theysay their tummy hurts, they cling,they cry, they refuse, they meltdown. And it is missed because manyanxiety presentations in this agegroup look like typical toddler behavior —and distinguishing between…

Permissive parenting in the teenageyears is a particularly consequentialcombination — because the developmentaldemands of adolescence make structureand consistent limits more importantthan ever, precisely at the stagewhen many parents find limit-holdingmost difficult. The teenager who pushesback harder, argues more persuasively,and has more capacity to make theirown choices can make permissive respondingfeel not only easier but more…

Parents looking for natural approachesto childhood anxiety are asking exactlythe right question — because the researchon anxiety treatment consistently findsthat behavioral, lifestyle, and relationship-basedapproaches are not only natural butamong the most effective interventionsavailable. The most evidence-basedtreatment for childhood anxiety —cognitive behavioral therapy — isentirely natural. And the lifestylefactors that research finds mostpowerfully protective against anxiety…

Panic attacks in seven-year-olds aremore common than most parents realize —and more commonly missed, becausethe symptoms look different fromwhat adults expect panic to looklike. A seven-year-old having a panicattack rarely says “I’m having apanic attack.” They say their heartis beating too fast, that they can’tbreathe, that their tummy feels wrong,that they feel like something terribleis…