Children – We were all children at one time, and in our Father’s eyes, we are still. The children we meet, know, and care for are not only lovingly placed in our hands to provide for and shepard, they are also our little brothers and sisters, and as such they deserve special respect and protection.

The seeds of greatness (of one form or another) are present in all children, and if cared for properly will grow into fruition. The world, however, is a harsh place and if a child’s abilities or behaviors don’t fit certain patterns they are often rejected, devalued, and treated poorly. In short, they are taught that they are not worthwhile. In their innocence, they can readily accept this as true. This often leads to their; giving up on themselves, losing the opportunity to achieve their actual potential, failure to love themselves, and becoming further the problems some people think they are. Perhaps the greatest tragedy in this is that in losing their own self-love, they lose the ability to truly love others, which is what we were sent here to do.

One situation, which causes this dilemma, is Attention Deficit Disorder. This is a much talked about disorder, with some controversy as to both approach and treatment. ADD is both under- and over-diagnosed. Under diagnosis is a problem in that it misses the well- mannered, inattentive child who is quietly underachieving. Over-diagnosis is a problem in that it neglects other potential causes of these symptoms, parenting and/or emotional issues, for example.

What is needed is an objective neurological determination to see if the disorder is truly present (EEG analysis is one method), and if possible treating the problem, in order to avoid the type of damage caused to the child we referred to previously. Needless to say as early treatment as possible will minimize these effects.

Another obstacle to avoiding this dilemma is the problem of medication. Many parents deny even the possibility of the disorder or reject treatment because the “labeling” of children on medication, possible side-effects (loss of appetite, mood and affect changes etc.), and the rigors of medication (life-long medicating) are frightening. There is also the serious issue of learning to depend on a substance, to be liked or to achieve.

There is, however, an alternative to this scenario. With accurate screening for the disorder (neurologically) and a non-medication treatment which allows the child to themselves retrain the underlying neurological imbalances, many of these pitfalls can be avoided. There is the added benefit that the child learns that they can help themselves, with a corresponding increase in self-worth, actually turning a negative (low self-image) into a positive (not to mention learning self-reliance versus dependency). Neurofeedback is one such method of screening and treatment. Once treatment is completed, no further sessions are necessary.

For this and other disorders, in order to protect our children, help them reach their potential, and preserve their sense of true God given self-worth, we need to know the “playing field”, and what we can do about it to act as the best shepard we can be.

To request information on the treatment of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD, ADHD), Mild to Moderate Autism Spectrum Disorders, Sleep Disorders, Chronic Depression, Chronic Anxiety, and Peak Performance Training contact:

Website: www.ocbiofeedback.com