Dimensions of Creativity

Beth Alison Maloney

Saving Sammy: A Mother's Fight to Cure Her Son's Ocd

The story of one mother's fight against the medical establishment to prove the link between infection-triggered PANDAS and her son's sudden-onset OCD and Tourette syndrome. The summer before entering sixth grade, Sammy, a bright and charming boy who lived on the coast of Maine, suddenly began to exhibit disturbing behavior. He walked and ate with his eyes shut, refused to bathe, burst into fits of rage, slithered against walls, and used his limbs instead of his hands to touch light switches, doorknobs, and faucets. Sammy's mother, Beth, already coping with the overwhelming responsibility of raising three sons alone, watched helplessly as her middle child descended into madness. Sammy was soon diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and later with Tourette syndrome. Unwilling to accept the doctors' prognoses for lifelong mental illness and repeated hospitalizations, Beth fought to uncover what was causing this decline. Beth's quest took her to the center of the medical community's raging debate about whether OCD and Tourette syndrome can be caused by PANDAS (Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infections). With the battle lines ...

Anne Sheffield

Depression Fallout: The Impact of Depression on Couples and What You Can Do to Preserve the Bond

Using the vivid, poignant and personal stories of the members of a website support group she founded (www.depressionfallout.com), Anne Sheffield, the author of two highly acclaimed books on depression, provides an honest record of what happens to a love relationship once depression enters the picture, and offers solid advice on what the non-depressed partner can do to improve his or her own life and the relationship. Of the millions of people who suffer from a depressive illness, few suffer in solitude. They draw the people they love - spouses, parents, children, lovers, friends - into their illness. In her first book, H ow You Can Survive When They're Depressed , Anne Sheffield coined the phrase 'depression fallout' to describe the emotional toll on the depressive's family and close friends who are unaware of their own stressful reactions and needs. She outlined the five stages of depression fallout (confusion, self-doubt, demoralisation, anger, and the need to escape) and explained that these reactions are a natural result of living with a depressed person.

William R. Jenson, Elaine Clark, Julie M. Bowen

School-Based Interventions for Students with Behavior Problems

School-Based Interventions for Students with Behavior Problems is a book about helping children and adolescents who engage in severe behaviors to positively succeed in the school setting. The emphasis of this book is on the prevention of behavior problems through structuring the instructional environment and teaching appropriate skills-and intervention to reduce problems with practical, proven, and positive procedures. This book is designed for educators faced with the daily challenge of instructing students with behavior problems, social skill deficits, and academic delays. It is designed for teachers as well as those who work with teachers and students; school administrators, counselors, special educators, and school psychologists. In searching for effective behavioral, social skill, and academic strategies, the authors have reviewed hundreds of research-validated studies to select techniques applicable to varied instructional settings within the school. The orientation and contents of this book represent the authors' experience and professional training in teaching, clinical work, and research involving students with behavior problems over the last 25 years. ...