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Courage

Courage By Michael H. LeBlond, PhD, MBA Licensed Psychologist How often have you heard “just feel the fear and do it anyway.” This actually is not far from the definition of courage. What courage is not is the absence of fear. When most people think of courage they think of it in one […]

Find Your Way to Flourishing

If you’ve ever paused to wonder whether you’re getting the most out of life, you’ll probably want to know more about Martin Seligman’s quest for understanding what it takes to “flourish.” A research scientist who has studied happiness, motivation and character, he argues that happiness alone isn’t really what gives live meaning. It’s more complicated […]

Gratitude Quotes

What are your favorite gratitude quotes? We’ve all heard that “an attitude of gratitude” can be a powerful de-stressor, especially on those days (or weeks or months) where it seems like the whole world is against you and you need comfort more than anything else. That’s where gratitude quotes come in. What if you need […]

Learning to manage your life more effectively

Learning to manage your life more effectively Meeting life’s challenges with resilience Some people call it having thick skin. For others, it’s “resilience.” No matter what term you use, developing the ability to overcome life’s setbacks, problems, stress, hassles and challenges can clearly enrich your life. More than 50 years of research shows that resilience […]

Mindfulness and Six Key Elements of Psychological Well-being

What does it mean to be a psychologically healthy person? Many people assume that good mental health means feeling happy most of the time. Indeed, studies show that positive emotions have many benefits. They increase resilience to stress and encourage us to learn, grow, and bond with others. However, there’s much more to good mental […]

Behavior Management Survey

Parent’s Name: ____________________ Date: _________ Child’s Name: ____________________ Date of Birth: ________ Age: ____ 1. Which of the following skills does your child need help with? (check all that apply) a. Social Skills: ___ increasing eye contact ___ playing near other children ___ playing with other children ___ sharing/turn-taking ___ waiting ___ remaining […]

Temperament in Children with Developmental Disabilities

Temperament refers to a child’s behavioral style, or tendency to act in a certain way in a specific situation. Researchers define dimensions of temperament in many different ways, but most writers discuss emotionality (i.e., how intense is the child’s emotional reaction), adaptability (i.e., how well does the child adjust his/her behavior to changes in the […]

Techniques for Reducing Problem Behaviors

I. GENERAL INTERVENTION GUIDELINES 1. Always try these techniques at home first, where you have greater control over your environment. 2. Be prepared for your child’s behavior to get worse before it gets better. 3. These techniques become more effective over repeated, consistent use. 4. The best way to judge whether the intervention is working […]

Go Ahead and Ask: Food Obsessions

Question: My daughter with autism is 14 and non-verbal. Over the past few years, her obsessive-compulsive behaviors have become more of a problem— particularly around issues of food, hoarding, over-eating, etc. We have tried locking the food in cabinets and in the refrigerator. Unfortunately, it has been hard for us to be consistent in locking up […]

Helping Less Verbal Youth with ASD Manage Strong Emotions

Learning Objectives: Participants will recognize how the biological features of ASD make coping (or self-regulation) very challenging, especially when a person doesn’t have easy access to language. Participants will increase awareness of the behavioral signs of escalating anxiety in youth with ASD. Participants will learn about a variety of strategies and resources that can be […]

Steps for Summarizing ED ID Data

Now that you have all of the information collected about the child’s current and past functioning, take yourself through these steps: Make a list or complete a summary table (like the one below) that provides a structure for your observations of behaviors that you saw, heard about, or read about in other reports or […]

Adapting the Environment

Our model of behavior change stresses using two approaches simultaneously: prevention and intervention. Adapting the environment to meet the needs of the child is one way of preventing negative behaviors from occurring. These ideas have been presented to us by other parents of young children. We offer them for your consideration. To ensure safety: Fence-in […]