Labeling Kids!

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More than ever kids are being diagnosed with autism, ADD and ADHD. The numbers are staggering and schools don’t have the infrastructure and budgets to effectively cope with them.

5 million kids of ages 5-17 have ADD and ADHD and there’s been 78% more autism labeling in recent years and as with anything, there are advantages and disadvantages to a child being labelled.

The advantage is that for some parents labeling is a relief because they know the problem they are working with can get direction on what to do and have strategies to work with the child because it makes the child eligible for benefits and services. The disadvantage is the stigma the child suffers. Lower expectations are set and the child is cut so much slack. Some kids overly embrace it and don’t challenge their limitations.

However, it’s good for parents to get a second opinion about their child’s diagnosis because anxiety can be misdiagnosed and incorrectly labeled as ADD or ADHD. It’s also important to know that for 3-4 year old toddlers, their teacher may be the first to notice discrepancies in their development because they are in structured settings.