When research excludes ND kids

Parent guilt. Parent shaming. It comes at you from so many different angles. Social media, parent groups, school, strangers, from your own immediate family, from yourself and possibly the worst – from peer reviewed studies.

Headline: 'Study Proves that Children Who Get More Than 2 Hours of Screen Time a Day Have Worse Outcomes Than Their Peers’

We have all seen a version of this – or about what our children eat, or how many sports they should play, or if they should have siblings, or what age they should be reading by, or, or, or…

But here is the critical thing to remember: that study was unlikely to include or account for neurodivergent children or other minorities.

Most studies use children from the middle of the bell curve. They represent an ‘average’ or ‘typical’ child within the studied population.

Guess what? Our ND kids don’t sit in the middle of the bell curve.

So when you see headlines that make you feel shame as a parent of an NDer, unless it was a study looking at neurodivergence or the specific flavour of neurospicy that your kid is, it is ok to ignore it.

Yep, I said it.

Instead, find relevant studies, talk to your trusted ‘Team Kid’ (OT, SP, paediatrician, teacher) about what your child needs, and remember that you know your child.

Or, better yet - conduct your own study! Click below to download your free 'Behaviour Tracker and Observation Chart'. This chart provides a guided two step process to help you gain insights into your child's behaviours and start creating tailored strategies to address them.