Helping Challenging Children

Did you know that in the US one child or teen is injured by gunfire every 32 minutes? Did you know that one child or teen is killed by gunfire every 2 hours and 36 minutes? This podcast is not about abolishing guns. It is about a major shift in safe storage and limited access to guns by children and teens. We need to do this to halt the rising death rate of our children and teens due to the easy availability of gun access.

Each year the number of children in foster care would be the same number as the population of Wyoming. While there are children leaving the system each year, at least as many are entering during the same time.

Foster care in the US was formalized after WWII to care for children who needed a safe place to stay while their parents dealt with issues that made living together impossible for a time.

While foster care has been helpful for some, there are many who have left the system with lifelong scars, physically and emotionally.

This podcast will look at where foster care has been, where it is now, and where it needs to go for the future of these children.

Resilience has been defined as an ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change. It has also been described as the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties, and toughness. According to the 2020 Cigna Resilience Index, 45% of children are high in resilience. That means that they have a combination of internal assets, family support, and community support to handle the stressors which they may encounter each day. But that means that over ½ of children are struggling. If we are to be a strong society, we need to understand the factors involved in resilience and how to provide the necessary supports for the majority of our children, which will also be supporting those who are higher in resilience. This podcast will look at what resilience entails and how we can be there for all of our children.

Why are kids called oppositional, but adults are called assertive? It all comes down to perspectives on who is holding their ground and what the issues are. Of course, not all children called oppositional or defiant are lucky enough to be seen as assertive as adults. Many are punished, ridiculed, and labeled in negative terms, including mental health terms such as ODD – Oppositional Defiant Disorder. They are at increased risks of developing anxiety, depression, conduct disorder, and as adults’ substance use disorders and antisocial behaviors. This week my podcast will look at the factors which lead to the different outcomes. I will also ask you to consider how you approach these children and what resources are available for them and their families. We need to understand all the factors that lead to a stubborn, oppositional, and defiant child so we can help them become more resilient and adaptable.

One child in six lives in poverty. Most have experienced adverse childhood experiences. Together, these risk factors increase the likelihood of children developing obesity and then type 2 diabetes. This then leads to more chronic diseases and earlier death. In this podcast, I will discuss what needs to be done to help.

Over 3/4 of prisoners have literacy problems. 2/3 of children who are struggling with reading in 4th grade will end up in jail or on welfare when they grow up. Listen and see what can be done to correct this travesty.

Did you know that over 1/3 of our states still allow corporal punishment in public schools? Or that police as resource officers have been in our schools since the 1940s? But, as can be seen, these are not making a positive difference. Listen to find out what has happened over the centuries and what we need to do to change how our students are handled.

"Spare the rod and spoil the child" is a phrase that I have heard to justify the physical punishment of children. The reality is that physical punishment and verbal abuse don't create long-term improvements in the behavior of children. It is more likely to create long-term problems, including the development of extremists and dictators.

Neither of these groups understands how to show respect to others, only control over them. There is a significant amount of research, which I share in this podcast, that points to the need to change how we raise children and how we treat each other.

Please let me know what you think.

Parents say that they want their children to get along with others. They want them to share. But there is a growing resistance to schools providing education on social and emotional skills to students. Why is there resistance and how do we get these individuals and groups to understand what is important in teaching these skills? Check out this podcast to learn more about SEL or social & emotional learning.

Before COVID, school refusal occurred in 2-5% of all K-12 students. It has increased due to the anxiety triggered by the pandemic. Unfortunately, school refusal is often seen as a form of truancy, when in reality it is a problem of anxiety. Learn about the behaviors and symptoms of school refusal and how you can help these students.