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Sex trafficking is one of the most complex, under-investigated, and misunderstood issues today (Estes & Wiener, 2001). Not to be confused with willful prostitution, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act defines sex trafficking as "the recruitment, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act where such an act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age" (Kerry, 2013). [More]

Long thought to be a psychological disorder that occurred only in adults, depression now is diagnosed frequently in children under 10 years of age. As recently as 40 years ago, physicians doubted the existence of depression in children (Son & Kirchner, 2000). Now one study reported in American Family Physician (ibid) suggested 2% of children under the age of puberty can be diagnosed with some form of depression. [More]

When children are appropriately diagnosed and treated, they can lead healthy, active, normal, fulfilling lives. They learn about their diagnosis and that having a disorder does not define them, they learn ways to control their behavior, they learn skills to prevent trouble, they learn self-control, and most of all they learn resilience. [More]

There is no doubt that adoption is an emotional process for families, from the initial decision to pursue adoption all the way through negotiating childrearing and adulthood. Adoption is not a simple process, but a complex series of interactions that can be frustrating and daunting. Emotionally fulfilling and at the same time taxing, adoptive families almost universally agree that it is an overall enriching life experience that they wouldn’t change. What’s perhaps most unexpected for families is how their experience of the process is emotionally so similar to that experience that their adoptive child experiences. [More]

A recent article in Huffington Post outlined the devastating statistic that may shock a large amount of Americans: over half of America’s school-aged children live below the poverty line in the United States today, utilizing whether or not a family qualifies for free or reduced lunch as the standard measurement for poverty. [More]

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder has become a common diagnosis among U.S. children, especially boys. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2013) recently released the results of its National Survey of Children’s Health for 2011-2012. In it the CDCP reported an estimated 6.4 million children with a diagnosis of ADHD. This number represents approximately 11% of the children in the United States. [More]

When people think of discipline and children, the two things that instantly come to mind are spanking and timeouts. But the reality is that discipline can be much more than just these two options. There is a whole spectrum of ways to change the behavior of a child without only using punishment as a means to mold it. [More]

Bullying is something that has been in the news a lot more often as of late. With the internet, it has become much more difficult for us to figure out whether or not our child(ren) are getting bullied at school or on the internet. So what can we do in order to make sure that our children are kept safe? How can we help our children to learn that they are worthwhile so that they can live the lives that they deserve to have? [More]

Investigation into PANDAS has led to a newer line of thought regarding rapid-onset OCD symptoms (Mittelman, 2012). A broader category called PANS, Pediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Symptoms, is being investigated. This broader diagnosis has been suggested due to diagnostic difficulties with PANDAS. [More]

Divorce is one of those things that many of us don't like to talk about, but many of us have been touched by it in one way or another. Divorce is a difficult thing for everyone that is involved, but it affects children a lot. Children need security in their lives, especially if they are young, so if something rocks their world it becomes that much harder for them to deal with. So, in this blog post, we're going to explore how divorce specifically affects children and what you can do in order to help your child get through the divorce. [More]