From Chaos to Calm: Effective Parenting for Challenging Children with ADHD and Other Behavioral Problems

I have read so many books on this subject and this is the only one that tackles the day to day issues that many books do not. This book was loaded with practical suggestions and methods that restore calm, which is so important for children with ADHD and autistic spectrum disorders. One of the main reasons I loved this book is because it truly helps with discipline. We are so quick to dismiss certain behavior because we blame it on their condition, when in fact, they crave it probably more than a typical child. I was really surprised by the negative review, especially since every book may not mirror your child's predicament. Guess what, rules are important and there will be a day when we have to let our children into society and rules apply there too! As a parent with a child with special needs, I can tell you that we read so many things until it's hard to make sense of it all. This book was nothing short of inspirational and if you can take anything from it, it is that this a long hard journey for both parent and child, and we can certainly learn ways to diffuse situations and let them have the security and childhood that every child deserves. I highly recommend this book. It is practical, positive and reassuring for a stress-out parent. I paid full price and it was worth every penny!

This is one of the best parenting books I have read. Don't let the title dissuade you from thinking that this book is only for families with ADHD children. It provides many ideas for organizing and structuring family life to reduce stress and lower the amount of yelling. The ideas are constructive and positive while the roles of punishment and negative re-enforcement are minimalized. A few of the ideas Sharon Weiss, the second author, gave me helped with getting my children to do their chores and teaching them how to structure their time so homework, getting out of the house in the morning and bedtime are not so laborous and time intensive. The ideas presented are helpful for younger age children not yet able to read to teenager.

As an educational therapist and parent of two children, I found this book to be helpful both for my clients and my family. The ideas make sense and implementing them is straight-forward. I tried several of the ideas at home to see if they are easier than they sound...wow...instant changes in problem behaviors! For example, my four year old would not stay in bed at bedtime. Offering her an incentive (5 pennies if she stayed in bed), and a consequence (lose a penny for each time out of bed) stopped the behavior in one night. 90 minutes of arguing to zero on the first try. I highly recommend this book to parents of easy and not so easy kids.

This book is SO useful, and you certainly don't need to have an ADHD or unusually challenging child to benefit from its advice. Our family found that even with nickle-and-dime problems like young teenaged girls "borrowing" each other's stuff, this book helped us out of the unending cycle of the kids doing something wrong and then us punishing them with everyone being angry at each other. The advice in the book is very specific and while you do need to be disciplined about your follow-through, it doesn't take the practice and special training of the "How To Talk So Your Kids Will Listen" approach (although there's nothing in here that would contradict that method; you could certainly work on them together). This is not "holier than thou" book. The mother is very open about all the mistakes she has made and all the things that she will never be able to do perfectly. She's also honest about the times when she and her husband started to let things slide again and how they got themselves back on track. That was reassuring. The goal here is not to have a perfect family, but one that works better. It is also a moving book. The little boy has written some sections, and if you think you hate yelling at your kids, his parts will remind you that it is even worse to be yelled at. I'm sorry that all the links are to ADHD books because I really do think that any family can benefit from this book. What child isn't challenging?

Want THE ABCs of how to handle difficult children? This book is it. In addition to explaining WHY certain children act out in ways that can be frustrating to parents - it explains HOW to proactively handle such situations. The book begins with an eye-opening beginning: The voice of a 12 year old child who is a client of behavior expert Sharon Weiss. The child's mother and book's co-author, Janet Heininger, then personally relates her journey through difficult behavior with her son. Finally, the practitioner, Sharon Weiss provides a professional explanation of WHAT is happening between the parent and child, WHY, and specific 1., 2., 3., steps for HOW to handle such a situation. This incredibly illustrative style is repeated in each chapter and - by the end of the book - YOU feel like the expert. All descriptions and instructions are put forth in clear,non-clinical terms. A truly empowering book that I would recommend for any parent or professional.