Family Therapy for ADHD

Because much has already been written about the disorder, one reasonable question about any new book on the subject is whether it contributes anything new to the literature that may be helpful to clinicians. The short answer in this case is a definitive yes....Family Therapy for ADHD is thoughtful, readable, and clinician friendly. The clinical wisdom the authors have gleaned from many years of practice is evident in their good use of case studies to illustrate their creative ideas. The book has a strong how-to quality that is helpful to clinicians who are interested in incorporating the authors' ideas into practice....The family systems perspective presented in Family Therapy for ADHD enriches our current knowledge about assessment and treatment of ADHD. This very practical book is likely to be useful for mental health clinicians who work with individuals who are experiencing ADHD, particularly with children and adolescents.--Psychiatric Services

...a needed resource for clinicians that treat ADHD clients and their families. The book offers approaches for family assessment and intervention, especially in the area of parent-child interactions, sibling relationships, and even marital communication....This text would be most helpful for clinical family therapists and other health care providers who desire additional strategies and techniques to help families care for and understand their child with ADHD. The authors have provided valuable tools and guidelines to help therapists support the family as well as the child with ADHD, toward becoming a healthy, functioning family unit.--Journal of Pediatric Nursing

Highly readable and practical....One of [the book's] strengths lies in bringing a family systems approach to the ADHD literature. It is a long-needed perspective that will do much to influence a shift away from individualized approaches, in which the diagnosed family member is scapegoated, to one that involves the family unit working together supportively....Mental health professionals working with ADHD would be wise to add this title to their library.--Readings

At last, a terrific book about ADHD from the family systems perspective! The authors provide everything the clinician could want--compassionate and competent case examples; encyclopedic information about ADHD, including a multigenerational look at family patterns of the disorder; and detailed treatment planning guides. Wide-ranging yet focused, this book is a 'must read' for every practitioner with an interest in ADHD and families.--Augustus Y. Napier, PhD, Author of The Fragile Bond

Solidly grounded in research and practice, this eminently practical book provides the guidance clinicians need to detect and treat ADHD in the family context. The authors explain both the 'whats' and the 'hows' of interventions for this complex condition, offering guidelines for working with other professionals as well as with families. The book also serves as a succinct introduction to family systems theory and process. Its illustrations of the intergenerational transmission of symptomatology are especially strong.--William C. Nichols, EdD, ABPP, President, International Family Therapy Association

This book moves beyond focusing on individual symptoms to understanding and treating ADHD in a family context. Especially helpful are the session-by-session assessment and treatment models for children, adolescents, and adults, along with numerous case examples illustrating how therapists can mobilize family resources to enhance intervention effectiveness. This book is essential reading for anyone working with ADHD populations. I am strongly recommending it to staff, interns, and postdoctoral residents working in our ADHD clinic. It also will be useful as a supplementary text for graduate courses in family therapy and child assessment and therapy.--Natalie Rathvon, PhD, District of Columbia Commission on Mental Health Services; George Washington University
- Highly readable and practical....One of [the book's] strengths lies in bringing a family systems approach to the ADHD literature. It is a long-needed perspective that will do much to influence a shift away from individualized approaches, in which the diagnosed family member is scapegoated, to one that involves the family unit working together supportively....Mental health professionals working with ADHD would be wise to add this title to their library. --Readings, 7/18/2001