Scattered minds : the origins and healing of attention deficit disorder

Scattered Minds explodes the myth of attention deficit disorder as genetically based – and offers real hope and advice for children and adults who live with the condition. Gabor Maté is a revered physician who specializes in neurology, psychiatry and psychology – and himself has ADD. With wisdom gained through years of medical practice and research, Scattered Minds is a must-read for parents – and for anyone interested how experiences in infancy shape the biology and psychology of the human brain. Scattered Minds : - Demonstrates that ADD is not an inherited illness, but a reversible impairment and developmental delay - Explains that in ADD, circuits in the brain whose job is emotional self-regulation and attention control fail to develop in infancy – and why - Shows how ‘distractibility’ is the psychological product of life experience - Allows parents to understand what makes their ADD children tick, and adults with ADD to gain insights into their emotions and behaviours - Expresses optimism about neurological development even in adulthood - Presents a programme of how to promote this development in both children and adults Title Page Copyright Dedication Epigraph Contents Acknowledgments Author’s Note Introduction Part One: The Nature of Attention Deficit Disorder 1. So Much Soup and Garbage Can 2. Many Roads Not Traveled 3. We Could All Go Crazy 4. A Conflictual Marriage: ADD and the Family (I) 5. Forgetting to Remember the Future Part Two: How the Brain Develops and How the Circuits and Chemistry of ADD Arise 6. Different Worlds: Heredity and the Environments of Childhood 7. Emotional Allergies: ADD and Sensitivity 8. A Surrealistic Choreography 9. Attunement and Attachment 10. The Footprints of Infancy Part Three: The Roots of ADD in Family and Society 11. An Utter Stranger ADD and the Family (II) 12. Stories within Stories: ADD and the Family (III) 13. This Most Frenetic of Cultures: The Social Roots of ADD Part Four: The Meaning of ADD Traits 14. Severed Thoughts and Flibbertigibbets: Distractibility and Tuning Out 15. The Pendulum Swings: Hyperactivity, Lethargy and Shame Part Five: The ADD Child and Healing 16. It Ain’t Over Till It’s Over: Unconditional Positive Regard 17. Wooing the Child 18. Like Fish in the Sea 19. Just Looking for Attention 20. The Defiant Ones Oppositionality 21. Defusing Counterwill 22. My Marshmallow Caught Fire: Motivation and Autonomy 23. Trusting the Child, Trusting Oneself: ADD in the Classroom 24. Always on My Case Teenagers Part Six: The ADD Adult 25. Justifying One’s Existence: Self-Esteem 26. Memories Are Made of This 27. Remembering What Didn’t Happen: The ADD Relationship 28. Moses Saved by the Angel: Self-Parenting (I) 29. The Physical and Spiritual Environment: Self-Parenting (II) 30. In Place of Tears and Sorrow: Addictions and the ADD Brain Part Seven: Conclusion 31. I Never Saw the Trees: What Medications Can and Cannot Do 32. What It Means to Attend Notes Bibliography Scattered Minds explodes the myth of attention deficit disorder as a genetically based - and offers real hope and advice for children and adults who live with the condition. Gabor Mate is a revered physician who specializes in neurology, psychiatry and psychology - and himself has ADD. With wisdom gained through years of medical practice and research, Scattered Minds is a must-read for parents - and for anyone interested how experiences in infancy shape the biology and psychology of the human brain. Scattered Minds: - Demonstrates that ADD is not an inherited illness, but a reversible impairment and developmental delay - Explains that in ADD, circuits in the brain whose job is emotional self-regulation and attention control fail to develop in infancy - and why - Shows how `distractibility' is the psychological product of life experience - Allows parents to understand what makes their ADD children tick, and adults with ADD to gain insights into their emotions and behaviours - Expresses optimism about neurological development even in adulthood - Presents a programme of how to promote this development in both children and adults This book explodes the myth of attention deficit disorder as genetically based - and offers real hope and advice for children and adults who live with the condition. Gabor Maté is a revered physician who specializes in neurology, psychiatry and psychology - and himself has ADD. With wisdom gained through years of medical practice and research, Scattered minds is a must-read for parents - and for anyone interested how experiences in infancy shape the biology and psychology of the human brain. This book: Demonstrates that ADD is not an inherited illness, but a reversible impairment and developmental delay ; Explains that in ADD, circuits in the brain whose job is emotional self-regulation and attention control fail to develop in infancy - and why ; Shows how ̀distractibility' is the psychological product of life experience ; Allows parents to understand what makes their ADD children tick, and adults with ADD to gain insights into their emotions and behaviours ; Expresses optimism about neurological development even in adulthood ; Presents a programme of how to promote this development in both children and adults This book explodes the myth of attention deficit disorder as genetically based - and offers real hope and advice for children and adults who live with the condition. Gabor Mate is a revered physician who specializes in neurology, psychiatry and psychology - and himself has ADD. With wisdom gained through years of medical practice and research, Scattered Minds is a must-read for parents - and for anyone interested how experiences in infancy shape the biology and psychology of the human brain. This book: Demonstrates that ADD is not an inherited illness, but a reversible impairment and developmental delay ; Explains that in ADD, circuits in the brain whose job is emotional self-regulation and attention control fail to develop in infancy - and why ; Shows how ̀distractibility' is the psychological product of life experience ; Allows parents to understand what makes their ADD children tick, and adults with ADD to gain insights into their emotions and behaviours ; Expresses optimism about neurological development even in adulthood ; Presents a programme of how to promote this development in both children and adults Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) has quickly become a controversial topic in recent years. Whereas other books on the subject describe the condition as inherited, Dr. Gabor Mate believes that our social and emotional environments play a key role in both the cause of and cure for this condition. In Scattered, he describes the painful realities of ADD and its effect on children as well as on career and social paths in adults. While acknowledging that genetics may indeed play a part in predisposing a person toward ADD, Dr. Mate moves beyond that to focus on the things we can control: changes in environment, family dynamics, and parenting choices. He draws heavily on his own experience with the disorder, as both an ADD sufferer and the parent of three diagnosed children. Providing a thorough overview of ADD and its treatments, Scattered is essential and life-changing reading for the millions of ADD sufferers in North America today.