About the Book
From ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) to ZS (Zellweger Syndrome)-there seems to be an alphabet disorder for almost every behavior, from those caused by serious, rare genetic diseases to more common learning disabilities that hinder children's academic and social progress.
Alphabet Kids have disorders that are often concurrent, interconnected or mistaken for one another: for example, the frequent combination of ASD, OCD, SID and ADHD. If a doctor only diagnoses one condition, he or she may have missed others. As the rates of these disorders dramatically rise, Alphabet Kids explains it all. Robbie Woliver covers 70 childhood disorders, providing information on causes, cures, treatments and prognoses. Chapters include a comprehensive list of signs and symptoms, and the disorders are illustrated with often heartbreaking, but always inspirational true-life stories of a child with the particular disorder.
This comprehensive, easy-to-read go-to guide will help parents to sort through all the interconnected childhood developmental, neurobiological and psychological disorders and serve as a roadmap to help start the families' journey for correct diagnoses, effective treatment and better understanding of their Alphabet Kids.
Table of Contents:
Introduction. What You Need To Know. Warning. A. AAS: Aarskog Syndrome. ADHD: Attention-Deficit/Hyperacivity Disorder. AN: Anorexia Nervosa. APD: Auditory Processing Disorder. AS: Aarskog Syndrome. AS: Angelman Syndrome. AS: Asperger Syndrome. ASD: Autism Spectrum Disorder. B. Binge-Eating Disorder. Bulimia Nervosa. C. CA: Childhood Agoraphobia. CAD: Childhood Adjustment Disorder. CAS: Childhood Apraxia of Speech. CBPD: Childhood Bipolar Disorder. CSS: Clumsy Child Syndrome. CD: Childhood Depression. CD: Conduct Disorder. CDCS: Cri Du Chat Syndrome. CDD: Childhood Disintegrative Disorder. CdLS: Cornelia De Lange Syndrome. CLS: Coffin-Lowry Syndrome. CMT: Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease. COS: Childhood Onset Schizophrenia. CS: Cockayne Syndrome. DGS: Developmental Gerstmann's Syndrome. DPD: Dependent Personality Disorder. DS: Down Syndrome. Dyscalculia. Dysgraphia. Dyslexia. Dystonia. E. ED: Eating Disorder. EDS: Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. ERLD: Expressive-Receptive Language Disorder. F. FXS: Fragile X Syndrome. G. GAD: General Anxiety Disorder. H. HPD: Histrionic Personality Disorder. HS: Hyperlexia Syndrome. HTD: Hypothyroidism Disorder. L. LD: Learning Disability. LKS: Landau-Kleffner Syndrome. LNS: Lesch-Nyhan Syndrome. M. MCSS: Multiple Chemical Sensitivities Syndrome. MD: Muscular Dystrophy. MR: Mental Retardation. MSDD: Multisystem Developmental Disorder. N. NLD: Nonverbal Learning Disability. O. OCD: Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. ODD: Oppositional Defiance Disorder. P. PAPD: Passive-Aggressive Personality Disorder. PD: Panic Disorder. PD: Personality Disorder. PDD: Pervasive Developmental Disorder. PDD-NOS: Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified. Phobias. Pica. PKU: Phenylketonuria. PPD: Paranoid Personality Disorder. PWS: Prader-Willi Syndrome. R. RAD: Reactive Attachment Disorder. RS: Rett's Syndrome. S. SAD: Seasonal Affective Disorder. SAD: Separation Anxiety Disorder. SID: Sensory Integration Disorder. SLD: Speech-Language Disorder. SLOS: Smith-Lemli-Opitz Syndrome. SM: Selective Mutism. SMS: Smith-Magenis Syndrome. SPD: Schizoid Personality Disorder. SPLD: Semantic Pragmatic Language Disorder. STPD: Schizotypal Personality Disorder. T. TS: Tourette Syndrome. W. WD: Wilson's Disease. WS: Williams Syndrome. X. XXYS: Xxy Syndrome. Z. ZS: Zellweger Syndrome. Resources: General Resources. Autism Resources. Eating Disorder Resources. Learning Disability Resources. Index.
About the Author :
Robbie Woliver is a New York Times bestselling author and an award-winning journalist and editor who was a columnist for Newsday, senior editor at Village Voice's suburban edition, writer for The New York Times and editor-in-chief of the Long Island Press, where he also helmed the newspaper's award-winning series "Our Children's Brains." He is the author of several books: Wyoming & March, Bringing It All Back Home, Hoot!, Creation and If I Knew Then, which won the 2005 Independent Publisher Book Awards for "Outstanding Book of the Year" and "Most Inspirational to Youth." In 2009, he was the recipient of the Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism, and Alphabet Kids garnered him another Independent Publisher Book Award. He lives in New York with his wife, Marilyn, son, Cory, and daughter, Emma.
Review :
"What a valuable resource to help parents find their way through the bewildering vocabulary of psychiatric labels. An easy-to-read, quick way in to what is known and how to get help. Books like Alphabet Kids are essential if we are to bridge the gap between professionals and families." -Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, Director, Autism Research Centre, Cambridge UniversityA"I wish I'd had Robbie Woliver's book to guide me in the early days of my journey with my daughter - it provides valuable practical information and advice from a wide array of impressive experts that can very well make the difference in the quality of your child's life. Alphabet Kids should be in every household; it is an essential guide for all parents and should be required reading for all teachers.A"-Cathy Moriarty-Gentile, Academy award-nominated actress, child's health advocate, and parent of a daughter with special needsA"Alphabet Kids will be very important because it describes a panoply of disorders ranging from physical to emotional, and hereditary, which have often been perceived as conduct disorders or conditions so unresolvable there is no help. This book will encourage both parents and professionals to use available tools and to make contributions that will further enhance the prognosis for so many.A"-Vivian Hanson Meehan, president and founder of ANAD (National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders)"I wish Alphabet Kids were available 18 years ago when those nagging questions were keeping my wife and I up nights. It would have led us in the right direction and resulted in needed early interventions. Insightful, informative and understandable. A must read for any parents losing sleep."-Jeffrey Cohen, father of two children living with Fragile X Syndrome and Chair Public Policy, National Fragile X Foundation"Medical diagnosis and treatment is complex and overwhelming for many families. Robbie Woliver's book, Alphabet Kids, does an excellent job of translating complex medical conditions and terminology into language that parents can understand. Filled with helpful and accessible information about numerous disabilities, it also provides a wealth of useful information on signs and symptoms for parents to watch for, the diagnostic process, treatment options, and prognoses and links to other resources. This is a tremendous resource for families and others that work with kids with disabilities."-Matthew Cohen, Adjunct Professor of Mental Health Law at Loyola University of Chicago School of Law, and author of A Guide to Special Education AdvocA"A necessity for every household! An invaluable reference tool for every pediatric specialist and educator. As our contemporary culture strives to increase knowledge, elevate awareness, and decreases the stigma of developmental, neurobiological, and psychological disorders, Robbie Woliver presents an incredibly comprehensive guide. Alphabet Kids impressively offers a range of relatable vignettes, relevant symptoms, and a wealth of helpful resources, providing clarity and answers - all in one, easy to read, positive and encouraging book!A"-Dr. Kimberly Williams, Psy.D., Neuropsychologist, Assistant Research Scientist, NYU Child Study CenterA"When a child is struggling, parents worry. What's wrong? Whom do we see? Where do I find help? Thanks to Robbie Woliver, parents now have a comprehensive resource, Alphabet Kids, to help them help their child."-Larry B. Silver, M.D., Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Georgetown University Medical Center; former acting director and deputy director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH); and author of The Misunderstood Child: A Guide For Parents of Children With Learning Disabilities, Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Clinical Guide to Diagnosis and Treatment for Health and Mental Health Professionals, and The Assessment of Learning Disabilities: Preschool to Adulthood A"Robbie Woliver provides us with an encyclopedic overview of children's developmental and mental conditions. Weaving extensive research with personal empathy, he provides parents and practitioners with an extremely useful resource, as we work to identify and improve the life of children with special needs.A"-Martin L. Kutscher, MD, pediatric neurologist and author of Kids in the Syndrome Mix of ADHD, LD, Asperger's, Tourette's, Bipolar and More!, ADHD: Living without Brakes, and Children with Seizures
