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Educating others about autism

Ask The Experts by April Ceno and Frank Pinkham

Q: My child is diagnosed with autism. It’s challenging to take him out in public as often-times people will stare or say rude things. How can I help educate people about autism?

A: Unfortunately, this is a common question from parents, and this sort of stigma may even make it difficult to go out in public with your child for fear of judgment by others. These social stigmas often lead parents become discouraged which can lead them to staying home instead of going out. The best way to combat stigma is with knowledge.

In order to begin educating others, it is important that you as a parent are educated about autism. There are several ways you can do this; spending some time with google looking up facts about autism, attend or review online webinars about autism, even going to your local library to find books on the diagnosis would be helpful. One of the best ways to educate yourself is to attend trainings where you can connect to other parents and community members.

Building a strong foundation in literacy

Ask the Experts by Angelina Spiteri

Q: My child appears to enjoy reading but seems stagnant in their development. What should I look out for to ensure my child or student is progressing in their fluency, and how can I help?

A: Reading and spelling is the end goal we all hope for, however, we may have to slow down a bit and make sure our children and students have built a strong foundation in their literacy. Continue to read books to your child that will promote a love a literature and help spark an interest in reading.

Q: What comprises a strong literacy foundation?

A: Strong phonological awareness skills are a pre-requisite to reading. Once these crucial pre-reading skills are strengthened, we know our children and students can hear and vocalize sounds to begin blending sounds into words in reading, and segmenting words into sounds in spelling.

When Should My Child Begin Speaking Correctly?

Ask the Experts by Sara Martin, M.A. CCC – SLP

Q: I understand my 4-year-old daughter well but others don’t. She uses sounds incorrectly. She becomes easily frustrated. My friends keep telling me not to worry. I’m not so sure. Should I be concerned?

A: The short answer is yes, you should be concerned. By age 3, the majority of a child’s speech should be intelligible to strangers.

The immediate concern is determining why your daughter is not well understood by others. Her ‘incorrect use of sounds’ likely indicates she has a speech-sound disorder. An assessment would be appropriate to determine the nature of the impairment: phonological, articulation, apraxia or another type of disorder. By 4 years old, most sounds in the speech-sound system should be developed, or emerging — meaning they are present in some positions of words but necessarily all positions. Read more: When Should My Child Begin Speaking Correctly?

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and their Effect on Health

Ask the Experts by Dr. Jennifer Kowalkowski

Q: I’ve recently heard about the link between something called Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and negative health outcomes. Given some different events in our lives, my children have at least two ACEs already. Is this something I should be concerned about?

A: ACEs are stressful or traumatic events that include abuse, neglect, and other household dysfunction such as witnessing domestic violence, family members with substance use disorders, or parental separation/divorce. Read more: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and their Effect on Health

Spread the Message of Suicide Prevention

Ask the Experts by Amelia Lehto

Q: With what seems to be a rise in teen suicide, both across the country and locally, what should we know as parents, friends, community members, to help change this frightening trend?

A: In the past year suicide has made headlines many times, for not only the losses of iconic rock stars but also the tragic losses of our friends, neighbors and loved ones. Suicide also made headlines as the focal point of rap artist, Logic’s, record-breaking hit “1-800-273-8255” featuring Khalid and Alessia Cara. What inspired a telephone number to be the title of a rap song, you may ask? It happens to be the 24/7 direct phone number to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.

Gardening Without Back Pain

Ask the Experts by David Gilboe

Q: Since spring is almost here, I’m wondering if you can provide some tips on how I can prevent my back from hurting when I get my garden and flower beds ready for planting?

A: Good body mechanics is the key to being able to garden without creating back pain. Here are several tips that will help you:

Recovery is about the family, not just the individual

Ask the Expert by Jeff & Debra Jay

Q: We have an addicted loved one and don’t know what to do as a family to intervene and help him. Are there things we can do as a unit to make a difference in his potential recovery?

A: For most families, the recovery process feels unmanageable, with too many things left to chance. The whole process of getting an addicted loved one into treatment, getting them into aftercare, and getting them into a stable recovery – even getting them to admit they have a problem in the first place, seems almost impossible. In the past, most of these things have been left to chance, and as a result, most people haven’t gotten better, and far too many have died. If alcoholism and drug addiction are real diseases (and they are), we can’t let the treatment and recovery process be subject to luck.

There are old myths that get in the way. “You have to let them hit bottom” and “they have to want to get better” are commonplace. But since addiction is characterized by denial, how long will we have to wait? And how many children will have to suffer in silence?

It’s all a Trap! Helping your Adolescent Identify the Thinking Traps that contribute to Anxiety and Depression

Ask the Experts by Amy E. Graham

Q: Depression and anxiety seems to run in our family. My older brother struggled with both anxiety and depression his entire life and had a lot of problems because of it. He did poorly in high school, drank a lot of alcohol, did not finish college, was never able to keep a job for an extended amount of time, and has pretty much excluded himself from family events. My 9th grade son was just diagnosed with both anxiety and depression. Are depression and anxiety just different words to describe a future of failures, substance use and misery?

A: Although depression and anxiety affect different people in different ways, they are both treatable conditions, and most definitely not a guarantee of future failures, substance use or misery. In fact, depression and/or anxiety may resolve with competent, informed care (psychotherapy, improved self-care, social supports, and in some cases medication).

Technology in the Classroom: Is it the Best Fit for Your Child?

Ask the Exerts by Tommy Adams

Q: My child has been telling me a lot about the devices they have been using in their classroom lately. I don’t understand what they are doing with the technology and how is it helping them learn? We hear so much about limiting screen time, so what is best?

A: All over the country, schools of all sizes and varieties embrace the use of technological devices in classrooms. One-to-one tablet programs, apps and virtual learning are now curricular hallmarks from pre-kindergarten through high school. Is this healthy for our children?

Those of us in education and administration are constantly concerned with finding the right balance while using technology to enhance learning. In an online survey of 2,462 advanced placement and writing teachers, the Pew Research Center found that 77% of teachers polled say that the internet Is a useful search tool that positively impacts student research, while 87% say that overuse of technology is creating an easily distracted generation with a short-term attention span.

Know the signs and symptoms of heart disease in women

Ask the Experts by Dr. Joan Crawford, DO

Q: I was surprised to learn that heart disease is the number one killer of women in the United States. How are the signs and symptoms different for women than men?

A: You’re not alone. According to an American Heart Association survey, only 45% of U.S. women know that cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 killer. About 400,000 women died from cardiovascular disease in 2016.

The signs and symptoms of coronary heart disease are different in women than in men. While the average man experiences extreme pain in the center of his chest when having a heart attack, 60% of women have vague symptoms that are often ignored or attributed to something else.