Books : Misdiagnosis And Dual Diagnoses Of Gifted Children And Adults: ADHD, Bipolar, OCD, Asperger's, Depression, And Other Disorders
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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 618.9289075
EAN num: 9780910707671
ISBN number: 0910707677
Label: Great Potential Press
Manufacturer: Great Potential Press
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 265
Printing Date: January 01, 2005
Publishing house: Great Potential Press
Sale Popularity Level: 193827
Studio: Great Potential Press
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Brief Book Summary:
Our brightest, most creative children and adults are often being misdiagnosed with behavioral and emotional disorders such as ADHD, Oppositional-Defiant Disorder, Bipolar, OCD, or Asperger’s. Many receive unneeded medication and inappropriate counseling as a result.
Physicians, psychologist, and counselors are unaware of characteristics of gifted children and adults that mimic pathological diagnoses. Six nationally prominent health care professionals describe ways parents and professionals can distinguish between gifted behaviors and pathological behaviors.
Features include a Foreword by Ronald E. Fox, Psy.D., Ph.D., Past President of the American Psychological Association, and:
• Written for parents and professionals • Characteristics of gifted children and adults • Diagnoses most commonly given to gifted children and adults • Traits of diagnoses incorrectly given to gifted children and adults • Guidelines to avoid mislabeling gifted children • Parent-child relationship problems • Issues for gifted adults • Advice for selecting a counselour or health care professional
'Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses of Gifted Children and Adults' has been endorsed by three past presidents of the American Psychological Association, two neurologists, and two family practice physicians.
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Rated by buyers 
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I can see why a lot of parents are ready to embrace this book. It is very difficult to accept that your child is not perfect, especially when you can see how bright he or she is.
The problem with Asperger's, in particular, is that it is a wholly observation-based diagnosis at this point. If you have a child that exhibits signs of Asperger's but then you say "Yes, but gifted kids exhibit these signs, too, so my child must be gifted instead," you are picking one arbitrary label over another and possibly denying your child the help that he or she needs.
Many kids with Asperger's have superior functioning in the part of the brain that specializes in logic (usually producing excellence in science, rote memory, mathematics, or music); I would bet anything that the "gifted" children to which this book refers--the ones being confused with kids with Asperger's--are not often gifted in learning languages or gifted at reading comprehension and literary analysis. I would bet they are not amazing creative writers or athletes.
Asperger's is an autism-scale disorder; Tony Atwood explained it to me like this. Let's say that there are 100 elements of Asperger's, and a person must have 50 to be categorized as having the disorder. Not everyone will have the same 50, and some will have only 50 while others will have 60 or 70 or even 90.
Every parent wants to believe their children are exceptional and a label like ADHD or Asperger's contraindicates that for some people. My children have ADHD and Asperger's. And they ARE gifted and exceptional.
I just implore parents who are reading this book not to substitute their opinion based on this book for an expert evaluation. Some of the signs of Asperger's can be subtle; one of my children is an obvious case, for example--didn't make eye contact, has halting speech, flaps his hands, takes everything literally; the other you might have to be around for a week or two to pick up on it, but it is there.
Treatment for ADHD has helped my more obviously affected son tremendously, and if I had read this book before learning more about his diagnoses, I could have been tempted to dismiss his behaviors as evidence of his giftedness.
Rated by buyers 
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I just finished reading this book and I am AMAZED that so much of this information applies to my 6 year old son. I had been told that he has Aspberger's by one expert. Now, after being given this book to read by a different expert, I know that he doesn't. It might just be that he is gifted. We have not had him tested as yet, but reading this has taken a huge burden off of my shoulders and has given us a chance to understand why our son is angry and 'different'.
I hope that every parent of a child who has been or is about to be 'labeled' with ADHD or ODD or OCD or Aspberger's reads this book.
I am not a trained psychologist. I consider myself to be somewhat intelligent and I had no problem understanding this book. Give it a shot, even if you feel intimidated by the alphabet soup of doctors and experts on the cover.
Rated by buyers -
Looking at the behaviors of a very gifted child, you can see evidence of symptoms that are consistent with other diagnoses. Over the years, my own son has been told by school personnel that he has ADD, ADHD, is developmentally delayed, is suffering from depression, has Asperger's, etc. Many of these armchair psychologists were wrong. Some professionals have suggested a few diagnoses, some of which make sense and others which are not appropriate. This is the book that will help you evaluate any such diagnosis. It lists very clearly the symptoms, mannerisms, behaviors that are attributable to giftedness against those attributable to other diagnoses, allowing you to discuss the pros & cons with the experts to sort out what may be accurate and what may not be appropriate in evaluating a particular child. I particularly appreciated Ed Amend's section on Asperger's.
Rated by buyers -
This book is absolutely groundbreaking. I am a child clincial psychologist in private practice and am frequently faced with children who are bright but are not doing well in school. For fifteen plus years in the field, I paid no attention to whether a child of concern was gifted. Now, with this book my eyes have been opened. Many of the children who have been referred to me are gifted and need close attention and care. In the months since reading this book, I have dramatically helped a number of gifted children. I am so convinced that Dr. Webb and colleagues have written about a topic that is so insightful and needed. I sincerely thank them for their efforts. If you are concerned that your bright child has ADHD, Sensory Processing Disorder, or Asperger's Disorder, you should read this book before you read anything else.
Steve Curtis, Ph.D.
Understanding Your Child's Puzzling Behavior: A Guide for Parents of Children with Behavioral, Social, and Learning Challenges
Rated by buyers -
If you have ever thought or been told your gifted child has anything besides their giftedness and you are unsure buy this book it is GREAT!!! It spells out traits of giftedness vs that of different diagnoses very clearly to help you discern what is accurate and what is not.
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