The other day I talked to a mom whose daughter is in grade 5 and learned that on top of having dyslexia, dyspraxia and mild ADHD, she also has dyscalculia. The daughter was devastated. The mom was working with a tutor, an OT, the family doctor and now wants to hire a math tutor. Mom...
If I had a dollar for every child I work with who has more than one diagnoses, I would be rich. Rarely do I see a child who just has dyslexia with no other diagnoses or difficulties. Parents almost always come to see me because of one major concern. Usually that concern is either reading...
It’s easy to feel helpless and that nothing is working when you have paid the money and taken the time out to drive your child to tutoring, believing this will be ‘the fix’ and you see minimal results. Last summer, Lisa told me that her son Isaac must have been misdiagnosed. She explained that she...
Last summer, Amy sat across from me in my office wondering if there was really anything that can be done about her son’s learning difficulties. “It runs in the family,” she said. She told me that her brothers had learning disabilities and ADHD and so did her husband’s family. Amy herself was dyslexic and struggled...
Let’s be honest. The holidays are a food festival that lasts two weeks. It’s a vacation of gluttony. Anyone who tells you they didn’t indulge is likely lying or from another planet. Sweets, baked goods, food colouring and all that cheese, gravy and bread can spell disaster for kids with unique needs and have not-so-pleasant...
Advertisements and TV shows will tell you exactly what the perfect holiday should look like, but if you try to make your holiday season perfect, you certainly won’t make it happy or sane. Any experienced parent knows that as exciting as the holidays can be for children, it can also trigger behaviour and meltdowns –...
‘Dyslexia is genetic’ I can’t tell you how many times a week I hear that or read it. This prevalent declaration makes me a little bit crazy. … and it’s not because it’s incorrect. Dyslexia can definitely have a genetic component. But a ‘dyslexia gene’ is a deeply flawed understanding of genetics. … As well...
I wish I could tell you that it’s as simple as adding these three supplements and you have it covered- but it’s not. On the flip side – addressing dyslexia with nutrition is not the rocket science some people have made it out to be. It’s about nourishment. Every now and then a parent contacts...
By now almost all of us have heard about how food colouring, especially red dye, can be a nightmare for a child with ADHD. When a child gets the ADHD diagnosis, Moms often know that there are other solutions like nutrition, exercise and adequate sleep before trying medication. Yet when dyslexia is the diagnosis, somehow...
Dysgraphia is more than just bad hand writing. In my last article Smart Kids Who Hate to Write I described the main areas of breakdown with dysgraphia and what it looks like. Many people, including professionals think that the main issue with dysgraphia is poor fine motor control. Language-Based Dysgraphia Dysgraphia is more layered than...
Does your child hate to write? Have they been accused of being lazy and careless because their writing is sloppy? Moms are often crushed when their child finally gets a diagnosis and they learn their child has more than one diagnosis. ADHD and dyslexia. Dyslexia and SPD. ASD and OCD. Dyslexia and Dyspraxia. The combinations...
Let me tell you about Julie – a bright 14-year-old girl. She has always had a hard time with reading, but has always been able to get by with C’s – until grade 6. The more that she had to read in order to learn the worse her marks became. Julie can ‘read’ but she...
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