E-Book Overview
Gifted children and adults are frequently misdiagnosed, particularly those who are twice-exceptional (2e). This much-anticipated second edition of a best-selling book is your guide to help prevent that. Some of our brightest, most creative children and adults are misdiagnosed as having behavioral or emotional disorders such as ADD/ADHD, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, or Asperger's Disorder. Many receive unneeded medications and/or inappropriate counseling. How can this happen? Physicians, psychologists, and counselors often are unaware of characteristics of gifted children and adults that mimic pathological diagnoses. James T. Webb, Edward R. Amend, Paul Beljan, Nadia E. Webb, Marianne Kuzujanakis, F. Richard Olenchak. and Jean Goerss guide parents and professionals to distinguish between behaviors that are pathological and those that are "normal" for gifted individuals. Topics include: The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) and ICD-10 Diagnoses most commonly given to gifted children and adults Learning disabilities and other 2e issues Allergies, asthma, and hypoglycemia Addictive disorders Issues for gifted adults Advice for selecting a counselor or healthcare professional
E-Book Content
Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses of Gifted Children and Adults: ADHD, Bipolar, OCD, Asperger’s, Depression, and Other Disorders by James T. Webb, Ph.D., ABPP-Cl Edward R. Amend, Psy.D. Nadia, E. Webb, Psy.D. Jean Goerss, M.D., M.P.H. Paul Beljan, Psy.D., ABPdN F. Richard Olenchak, Ph.D.
Great Potential Press © 2005; 2012. All rights reserved.
Table of Contents Foreword by Ronald E. Fox, Ph.D. Preface Introduction Chapter 1. Characteristics of Gifted Children and Adults Chapter 2. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Chapter 3. Anger Diagnoses Chapter 4. Ideational and Anxiety Disorders Chapter 5. Mood Disorders Chapter 6. Learning Disabilities Chapter 7. Sleep Disorders Chapter 8. Allergies, Asthma, and Reactive Hypoglycemia Chapter 9. Relationships Issues for Gifted Children and Adults Chapter 10. Differentiating Gifted Behaviors from Pathological Behaviors Chapter 11. How to Select a Health Care Professional or Counselor for a Gifted Child or Adult Chapter 12. Resources Appendix A. Suggested Readings Endnotes References Dedication Acknowledgments About the Authors About the Publisher Copyright
Try to see your child as a seed that came in a packet without a label. Your job is to provide the right environment and nutrients and to pull the weeds. You can’t decide what kind of flower you’ll get or in which season it will bloom. ~ A modern educator (cited in Mogel, 2001)1
Foreword In the Summer of 2004, while flying to the 25th reunion of the founding of the School of Professional Psychology at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, I struck up a conversation with a fellow passenger who turned out to be the wife of a university president. When she learned the purpose of my trip, she mentioned that she knew about Wright State University—specifically that the School of Professional Psychology happened to have a program called SENG (Supporting Emotional Needs of Gifted) that was dedicated to services for the gifted and their families and which was “a real national treasure.” Unaware that, as the founding Dean of the School, I was already familiar with the SENG program and its founder, Dr. James T. Webb, she proceeded to tell me all about it. I, of course, was more than willing to listen to her praise for my obvious good judgment in having agreed to give the program a home at Wright State, where I was Dean at the time. Her story was familiar and very much like others I had heard over the years. Her sister’s nine-year-old son, some years ago, was on the verge of being expelled from his school’s regular clas