The Adolescent Brain – A Kid’s Perspective

Last updated on March 2nd, 2018 at 12:40 pm

The adolescent brain: one of the most complex and confusing, yet, majestic things in existence. This article isn’t so much about the teenage mind itself but rather a book about the adolescent brain and the importance of keeping your child’s brain healthy. The Owner’s Manual for Driving your Adolescent Brain, written by JoAnn Deak, Ph.D. and Terrence Deak, Ph.D. is an insightful book that gives expert advice on how an adolescent’s brain works and how to nourish it to its full potential.

Throughout this article you may wonder how I came upon this book and why I took such an interest in it. Well, my mom also writes for this website and she is working on a master’s in public health so, naturally, my father and I are her outlets and guinea pigs for random health related information. She apparently thought it would be a good idea to get me a cliché “your changing body” book which turned out to be well written and interesting.

The book touches on three main points: nourishment, enrichment, and protection plus lots in between. There are pages on sleep, social interaction, stress, and puberty. It also offers a very technical aspect including information on what happens in your brain during adolescence and information on different lobes of the brain such as the amygdale and the process of myelination and certain hormones such as gonadotropin-releasing hormone.  This aspect is communicated through the use of clever analogies that maintain a relatively common theme and visual aids throughout. For instance, associating ear bud wires and the rubber that encases them with axons(wires) of neurons(ear buds) and myelin(rubber coating).

This book was definitely an eye opener for me. Many things that I do were either acknowledged as positive or negative actions for my body. For instance, I have learned that procrastination will only ever harm you, even if in the short term it seems like an acceptable alternative. Procrastination can affect sleep, stress, and incidentally, the development and long term healthiness of your brain. I was also surprised at how accurate the book’s description of the experiences a teen will have during puberty and adolescence was. The Owner’s Manual for Driving your Adolescent Brain talked about how an adolescent may try to find new experiences or expand their social circle. I was able to link several supporting examples to this from my life in the last year alone. For example, last year I became really good friends with several girls at school. I have to admit, these doctors really get me. I mean they would make ideal parents because you would be able to share your life with them and they could give legitimate feedback. The only downside is that they may publish your life experiences in a study.

As an adolescent I need to take the initiative to take care of my brain and body, and to parents I would suggest that you take the initiative to inform your child about some of this information. Purchasing The Owner’s Manual for Driving your Adolescent Brain may also be a good idea seeing as how it goes more in depth with these topics and others than I have now. You can obtain this book at many retailers and book stores as well as at amazon.com The Owner’s Manual for Driving your Adolescent Brain@Amazon.com. Much like a car owner’s manual, though, it helps to refer to this book several times and “fix things under the hood as necessary”.

Frederick the Paramedic: Helping Your Child Feel Safe with EMS

Last updated on August 31st, 2015 at 12:40 am

My wife Nicole and I have over 25 years of combined experience as paramedics, and we are now co-authors of the new children’s book Frederick the Paramedic.  Through the years, we have seen an increase in pediatric 911 emergency calls, and they all have one thing in common – the patient may be more scared of us that what is actually ailing them.  This can lead to several negative factors, such as increasing their anxiety level, which may lead to worsening their condition.  Typically, a child’s point of reference regarding medical care is that they are going to receive a shot or some other uncomfortable procedure.  This series is designed to alleviate some of those fears by putting them in control, and even prevent an incident from happening.

After the birth of our daughter Sophia in 2013, and many picture books later, we noticed that there are plenty of story books about safety, but almost none about what happens if you do get hurt.  We’ve also seen that much of the children’s literature regarding EMS is in the form of a pamphlet or flyer, which has no identifiable characters, and is easily tossed away.  Also, we noticed that the characters are often fantasized, which does not provide a true representation of what really happens – this is why the stethoscopes in our book don’t talk!  We want to provide as close to a real situation as possible, but in a fun cartoon form, so that there are no false expectations.  This is how Frederick the Paramedic came to be.

In our first book, we designed Frederick the Paramedic to promote safety, injury prevention, memory recall, decision making, and EMS awareness.  The reader will partner up with Frederick and go through a day in the life of a paramedic.  Together they will check out their ambulance, get dispatched to a call, arrive on scene, assess and treat their patient, then transport him to the hospital and give a report to the doctor.

Based on actual calls we have responded to, national paramedic protocols and real data from the leaders in childhood safety, we created the first story about 12 year old Tommie.  Tommie goes skateboarding with no safety gear, and sustains an injury to his arm.  When Frederick and your child arrive on scene, they are greeted by the police and fire departments, who give a brief report to Frederick about the scene and what happened.  Frederick assists his partner in assessing and treating Tommie’s injuries.  They then transport Tommie to the Emergency Room, where he is greeted by a Dr. who takes an x-ray.  Your reader is guided by Frederick to give a report to the Dr. about their findings and treatments.  Then Frederick recaps with the reader about the dangers of not wearing safety gear while skateboarding

By choosing common childhood activities, Frederick the Paramedic relates to what kids enjoy doing on a daily basis.  Some of these activities may have potential for injury.  Preventing injuries in the first place is one of the main goals of the book.  But when they do happen, and 911 is called, your reader will understand that we are there to help.  They will understand that we may need to touch their arm to make it feel better, and we aren’t there to make them feel worse.

The great part about this concept is how dynamic it is.  There can be a Frederick the Paramedic book about anything relating to childhood injury, sickness, or even witnessing a loved one being treated by a paramedic.  That is where we are planning to go with this.  Tackling issues such as food allergies and asthma, to grandparents with chest pains or signs of a stroke.  In today’s economy, grandparents are watching grandchildren more and more.  By educating the child to look for signs of a stroke and calling 911 early, can literally be a difference of life or death, as well as taking the child out of harms way.

In the couple of months that Frederick the Paramedic has been available, we have received emails from people stating how the book has helped their child.  One such example was from a school in Vermont where a 1^st grader was taken by ambulance.  The rest of the class was very upset and scared for their friend.  Frederick was donated to their school library about a month after the incident, and the librarian was very excited to have a relatable book that she could read to the children.  She realized that she had no other material that could explain what was happing until then.

A little biased here, but my 3 year old nephew was going with my sister to a Dr. appointment, and asked if he would see Tommie there.  It took my sister a minute to recall that it was Tommie from the book!  But we have received several emails and comments about how kids have been recalling the story at times where they may see a hospital, or an ambulance.  One mother stated her son asked if Frederick was on that ambulance.  The fears that have been instilled in children at such a young age regarding medical establishments are breaking down.

We hope you enjoy a copy with your little ones, and hope they never need an ambulance, but let them be prepared if they do!

HEATLHFUL HINTS

​If you ever think you need to call 911, call!

• Everyone has a different idea on what an emergency is. Calling 911 is a scary time for anyone. Paramedics will assess the situation and provide the best treatments possible, while trying to ease the anxieties that go along with the patients emergency.
• Teaching your children as early as possible can to call 911 is an important skill for them to learn. In a situation where a caregiver were to have an emergency, it may save a life as well as their own.

Study: Potential for Fracking Chemicals to Disrupt Hormones

Last updated on March 2nd, 2018 at 01:44 pm

Little Red Hoodie – An Internet Safety Fairytale for Kids

Last updated on August 31st, 2015 at 12:43 am

Internet predators are a pressing concern for parents. Kids are becoming increasingly more tech-savvy, and forms of online communication are growing at an alarming rate. All too often we hear tales of horrific tragedies involving social networking sites, and know that many of these could have been prevented with parental monitoring and discussions about internet safety.

Until recently, I thought that such monitoring and discussions were something that I did not need to worry about for quite some time since my child is still very young and I teach at an elementary school. My thinking drastically changed after overhearing a conversation among second grade girls at my school about an upcoming sleepover. When I think of young girls’ slumber parties, I picture snacks, games and movies, but instead, the girls were planning to log on to their sisters’ social networking sites. From this moment, I knew that I needed to take responsibility for educating this demographic about internet safety, and wanted to encourage others to do the same.

After this incident, I began researching young children and internet use and found some disturbing information. For example, in 2008 according to the Rochester Institute of Technology:

• Approximately 48% of students from kindergarten to first grade interact with others on the internet.
• Of these 48%, nearly half of the students had already been exposed to something online that made them feel uncomfortable.
• To make matters worse, one in four of these children did not report his or her experience to an adult.

Given these findings, I was more convinced than ever that children are never too young to be introduced to the concept of being safe on the internet.

After exploring countless books, videos and the like, I found that there were many products, websites, and resources that helped educate parents and older children. However, I found no such internet safety resources and materials that were specifically geared toward introducing the subject to younger children. Then it hit me: there is a parallel between the Big Bad Wolf in the Little Red Riding Hood story and internet predators, and this would be a perfect way to introduce the concept to this age group. Pulling from this idea and what I have learned about quality children’s literature from my years of experience as a teacher, I wrote Little Red Hoodie. This children’s picture book is a modernized version of the classic tale in which the Big Bad Wolf plays the role of an internet predator posing as Granny online in an attempt to lure Little Red into his trap. I spent countless hours working to make the book child-friendly and humorous, so that the topic could be introduced in a nonthreatening way. My hope is that the book will initiate a critical conversation among families and perhaps even help prevent future tragedies.

HEALTHFUL HINTS:

• Educate yourself and your children about internet safety. Local police departments often offer various materials and programs to the community. There is also a wide variety of organizations and website that provide such resources including the following:
  • http://enough.org
  • http://ncmec.org
• Be mindful of the growing number of ways that your child can utilize the internet to interact with others. For example, many video games now allow children to go online and interact with other users.
• If you choose to use Little Red Hoodie as a tool for teaching your family about internet safety, here are some suggestions:
  • Read the book at least once for enjoyment before using it to get into a serious discussion.
  • After reading the book, help lead an open-ended discussion by asking questions such as the following: “How did the Wolf trick Little Red Hoodie?”, “Why do you think that the Wolf used the computer to try to trick Little Red Hoodie?”, “How do you think that the story would have been different if Little Red Hoodie would have asked her mother before leaving the apartment?”, “What do you think Little Red Hoodie should have done?”
  • Post “Little Red Hoodie’s Rules to SAFE Internet Use” near your computer (found on the last page of the book).

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Editor’s Note: we first ran this post in January of 2010. Unfortunately, despite numerous technological advances, the internet has not become a safer place for our kids to play.  There are wolves lurking under the covers and in the dark places, and it is up to us to keep our little ones safe from these predators – a job made far more difficult as our children’s internet skills far surpass our own.  According to a recent headline “children as young as THREE now know how to access the web – and are teaching their parents how to use tablets and phones“.  Now more than ever we need a way to introduce our kids to the big bad internet wolf. We need something like Little Red Hoodie.

Treating ADD and ADHD: a Pediatrician’s Perspective – Part II

Last updated on March 12th, 2018 at 09:43 am

After the appropriate diagnosis is made and the correct testing and observation has been performed (see Diagnosing ADD or ADHD: a Pediatrician’s Perspective), a more secure diagnosis can now be entertained and we can move on to treatment.

At first, parents might very well take the stand of further observation as their children change classes and friends. This is not at all unreasonable, especially if medications are discussed, but medication for ADD or ADHD should be the last resort on the list of possible treatment options to help your child use all of his/her resources to reach the best goal. The first and the “easiest” intervention should be educational. Teachers should receive the results and suggestions deriving from those results that are directly related to the organizational aspects of the classroom. Many educational institutions are fully capable of employing the suggested techniques regarding the special nature of teaching children with such problems. Many schools are limited by space or funding for such programs but every effort should be made to involve the school first.

As I alluded to in part one of this series of posts, there are many conditions that mimic ADD or ADHD in presentation and actions. If any of these are found, the appropriate psychological help and input should be sought. Even in the absence of such specific emotional or psychological problems, I feel that counseling should be obtained for the entire family, as it can be a struggle for family members to deal with such a child. Counseling can help family members to handle certain situations in an appropriate and non- traumatic way to them and the children.

Finally, when all treatment options are brought to bear in an effort to ameliorate the issue and the problems still exist, medication should be discussed and considered. There are several ADD and ADHD medications available on the market right now. Generally they are broadly divided into stimulant and non-stimulant medications, and there are several medications within each division.

1. Of the stimulant medications there are derivatives of methylphenidate and amphetamines: different forms of these medications allow for various routes of administration, side effects and overall effects on the child. Side effects of all of these medications are very similar but are not very common. The most common of these side effects can be decreased appetite and even slow weight gain as a result. Others include poor sleeping, increased activity and heart rate and a period of downtime as the medications wear off. All of these are usually short lived and can be altered by changing the type and/or dosage of these medicines.
2. The second broad category of medicines are the non-stimulant variety. Although these are “non-stimulant” in chemical nature, the end effects of both types of medications can be the same, with the same side effects.

Having said all that, if the appropriate medications are used for the correct diagnosis in the proper dosage and form, the results can be astounding and lead to a much more stable and enjoyable family situation. There is much written about these medications (see recommendation below) and certainly no medicine should ever be used for an inappropriate reason.

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Dr. Joe Recommends:

• Running on Ritalin: A Physician Reflects on Children, Society, and Performance in a Pill by Lawrence Diller, M.D.

Editor’s Note:

• A terrific example of using a psychological approach to help manage some of the symptoms of ADHD can be seen in a post called ADHD and “Menditation” by pediatric psychologist Dr. Lynne Kenney.

 

My Body Belongs to Me

Last updated on August 31st, 2015 at 12:45 am

As a prosecutor of child abuse and sex crimes in New York City for more than a decade, I have often encountered children who were sexually abused for lengthy periods of time and suffered in silence. One case in particular had a profound impact on me and compelled me to write a children’s book called My Body Belongs to Me.

I prosecuted the case of a 9-year-old girl who had been raped by her stepfather since she was 6. She told no one. One day, the girl saw an episode of “The Oprah Winfrey Show” about children who were physically abused. The episode, “Tortured Children,” empowered the girl with this simple message: If you are being abused, tell your parents. If you can’t tell your parents, go to school and tell your teacher. The girl got the message and the very next day went to school and told her teacher. I prosecuted the case for the District Attorney’s office. The defendant was convicted and is now serving a lengthy prison sentence.

I have thought often of that very sweet, very brave 9-year-old girl. It occurred to me that after three painful years, all it took to end her nightmare was a TV program encouraging her to “tell a teacher.” I wrote My Body Belongs to Me to continue that message. It endeavors to teach children that they don’t have to endure sexual abuse in silence. Parents and educators can use it as a tool to facilitate an open dialogue with youngsters.

The story is a simple scenario involving a gender neutral child who is inappropriately touched by an uncle’s friend. The powerful message really comes through when the youngster tells on the offender and the parents praise the child’s bravery. The last page shows a proud, smiling child doing a “strong arm” pose. The text assures them that it wasn’t their fault and by speaking out the child will continue to grow big and strong. It is a compelling and uplifting message.

The “Suggestions for the Storyteller” section is an important, interactive feature that facilitates the discussion to follow. It will make any caregiver feel more comfortable talking about this important subject, thereby helping to PREVENT the unthinkable from happening to their child. Research tells us that child sexual abuse does not discriminate. It is a problem that affects everyone.

• In the United States, approx. 1 of 4 girls and 1 of 6 boys is sexually abused before the age of 18.
• 47% of child sexual abuse victims wait 5 years or more to speak up, if they ever do.
• 93% of child sexual abuse victims are abused by someone they already know.

It is my sincere hope that by educating girls and boys about this taboo subject, My Body Belongs to Me will prevent them from becoming victims in the first place.

HEALTHFUL HINTS:

• To keep your children safe:

1. No secrets. Period. Encourage your children to tell you about things that happen to them that make them feel scared, sad or uncomfortable. If children have an open line of communication, they will be more inclined to alert you to something suspicious before it becomes a problem. The way I effectuate this rule is as follows: If someone, even a grandparent, were to say something to my child such as “I’ll get you an ice cream later, but it will be our secret”, I firmly, but politely say “We don’t do secrets in our family.” Then I say to my child “Right? We don’t do secrets. We can tell each other everything.”
2. Teach your child the correct terms for their body parts. This will make them more at ease if they need to tell you about a touch that made them feel uncomfortable.
3. Teach your child to tell a safe person if someone touches them in an inappropriate way. Discuss with children the importance of telling a parent, teacher or other trusted adult right away.
4. Let children decide for themselves how they want to express affection. Children should not be forced to hug or kiss if they are uncomfortable. Even if they are your favorite aunt, uncle or cousin, your child should not be forced to be demonstrative in their affection. While this may displease you, by doing this, you will empower your child to say no to inappropriate touching.
• If you choose to use My Body Belongs to Me as a tool for teaching your family about body safety, here are some suggestions:
  1. Read the book at least once for enjoyment before using it to get into a serious discussion.
  2. After reading the book, help lead an open-ended discussion by asking questions such as the following: What are your parts that are private, Why did the child get scared, What did the uncle’s friend do, What did he tell the little child, If someone touches your private parts, should it be a secret, Why did the uncle’s friend put his finger up to his lips, What did the child do when he did that, Were the mom and dad happy when the child told them what had happened, What did they do, If the child did not tell the parents, who else could be told, How does the child feel in the picture at the end?
  3. Find teachable moments with your child to reinforce the lessons learned in the book.

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Editor’s Note: We first introduced you to Jill Starishevsky and “My Body Belongs to Me”  in February, 2010.  At the time, her book had been self-published and was only available for purchase on her website.  In May 2014, My Body Belongs to Me will be re-released and available for purchase on Amazon (congratulations Jill!).  And, since April is National  Child Abuse Prevention Month, we  thought it the perfect time to re-introduce this wonderful book to the Pediatric Safety community.  On a side note – if you decide you want a copy before the end of April, click on over to her site and tell her we sent you – she’ll take good care of you.

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