What is this new diagnosis, Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder? In my new book, Managing the 5 Most Challenging Childhood Behavioral Health Conditions of our Day, there is a chapter on autism explaining the nature of this condition and treatment strategies. However, since DSM-V, a new diagnosis has come into play, Social Pragmatic Communication Disorder (SPCD) […]

I write about improving self-esteem and academics in my new book, Managing the 5 Most Challenging Childhood Behavioral Health Conditions of Our Day, and clearly we face a particularly difficult situation with our present-day pandemic and school-hybrid/lock-down situation. The impact of lock-down I am seeing more kids and teens struggling with their ‘down’ mood, lack […]

Written by Dr. John Carosso As a Christmas tradition, here is one of my favorite posts, and hopefully yours as well, highlighting the true gift of Christmas!! What I’m expected to do… As a psychologist, I’m expected to talk about traditional and clinically-relevant approaches to help kids, and parents, work through difficulties. This of course […]

The holiday season can be stressful, and we have lots of memories of lost loved ones that tend to surface more poignantly during this time of the year. Clearly, our mood can subsequently take a hit. However, in addition, how many of you can relate to the dismay of darkness settling-in as early as 5:00 […]

I’ve written extensively about how to effectively treat and manage dyslexia in my new book, Managing the 5 Most Challenging Childhood Behavioral Health Conditions of Our Day. For this post, I worked together with Mrs. Cynthia Postell, our wonderful Reading Specialist/Online Tutor at DyslexiaTreaters.com, to develop six important points about this common academic difficulty: 1. […]

Good Tidings… The Christmas and New Years Holiday is magical and fun; a wonderful time of year that spreads warm feelings and cheer in families and communities throughout the world. The celebration is well deserved, and we all tend to look forward to this very special time of year. But... Yeah, there is a ‘but’ […]

What is the usual scenario? You know the drill, you want to remove electronics as a punishment but, when you make the attempt, an emotional reaction ensues and your child or teen refuses to give-up his phone or video-game controller. If you push the matter, you end-up literally in a wrestling match, which you know […]

The options from our local school districts It seems that most parents are being provided the option of their child returning part-time in-the-classroom or full-time online. However, it seems that most of the elementary schools are more prone to offer full-time in-the-classroom while most high schools are offering part-time in-the-classroom and part-time online. It appears […]

Those statistics… As Mark Twain popularized, “there are three kinds of lies: lies, damn lies, and statistics.” I suppose there is some truth to that saying; statistics can be confounding, confusing, and twisted. However, by the same token, statistics can also add clarity and help to guide our decisions. So, with that in mind, today […]

Are more boys than girls diagnosed with autism? Yes, about 4x as many males than females are diagnosed on the spectrum. Let’s look at the two primary deficits pertaining to autism We know that children with autism struggle with language and social difficulties. In fact, along with: self-stimulatory behaviors obsessive tendencies and hyper or hypo-sensitivities […]