A common myth we want to retire: 'They'll grow out of it.' Separation Anxiety Disorder doesn't always resolve on its own — and untreated, it often becomes panic disorder, school refusal, or social anxiety in later years. Look for: clinginess past developmental expectations, nightmares about being ap

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When a child cries every morning before school — or vomits, or 'can't breathe,' or hides — please know: this is rarely manipulation. It's School Refusal Anxiety, and it's one of the most treatable childhood anxiety presentations IF addressed early. Graduated exposure, CBT, and tight coordination bet

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Parents — if your teen has been 'not themselves' for more than two weeks, please don't dismiss it as a phase. Adolescent Major Depression often shows up as irritability, withdrawal, sleep changes, or sudden academic decline. It is treatable. CBT, IPT-A, and (when a licensed clinician determines it's

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Quick question for educators: when you picture an ADHD student, do you picture the kid bouncing in their chair? You might be missing half of them. Pediatric ADHD — Inattentive Type rarely looks 'hyper.' It looks like daydreaming through math, half-finished worksheets, and lost homework. Without diag

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Childhood Generalized Anxiety Disorder is often missed because anxious kids tend to be 'the good ones' — quiet, compliant, hyper-prepared. But look closer: morning stomachaches, perfectionism that paralyzes, sleep that won't settle. Research shows CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) is first-line tre

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Friday evening education — Adolescent Substance Use Disorder (SUD) is a serious medical condition, not 'experimentation gone wrong.' The DSM-5 criteria are the same as adults: 2+ of 11 signs over 12 months — using more or longer than intended, unsuccessful attempts to cut back, time spent on substan

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Midday education — Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRBs) are a category of conditions that includes Trichotillomania (hair-pulling disorder) and Excoriation Disorder (skin-picking disorder). Both involve recurrent body-focused behaviors that result in damage (hair loss, skin lesions), despite re

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Friday morning education for parents, educators, and pediatricians — Non-Suicidal Self-Injury (NSSI) is intentional self-inflicted injury without suicidal intent. The DSM-5 lists NSSI as a 'condition for further study': self-injury on 5+ days in the past year, with at least one of the goals being re

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Thursday evening education — Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) is a framework from the landmark CDC-Kaiser study. The 10 ACE categories include: physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, physical neglect, emotional neglect, parental divorce/separation, parental mental illness, parental subst

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Midday education — Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD) was added to the DSM-5 in 2013 specifically to address the over-diagnosis of pediatric bipolar disorder in chronically irritable kids. Clinically, DMDD is severe, recurrent temper outbursts (verbal AND/OR behavioral, grossly disproport

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