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Category Archives: Controversies
May Series…Hot Topics in Children’s Mental Health
If kids and teens affected by mental illness and their families are to be successfully welcomed and fully included in our churches, the church will need to make great strides in its’ understanding of mental illness. That’s where I hope we can help.
May is designated as National Mental Health Month, and the week of May 6-12 is officially designated as Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week. In order to promote better understanding of common mental disorders in children and teens and the challenges faced their families, we’ll spend the month looking in depth at some of the more controversial topics in the field of child and adolescent mental health.
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The Great Chasm
Earlier this week, the Journal of Medical Ethics published a “thought-provoking” paper entitled “After-birth abortion: why should the baby live?” I’d encourage leaders in the disability ministry community to read the paper in its entirety. If we’re going to leverage influence in our society during a time of great upheaval, we have to fully understand the issues and conversations into which we must speak. Continue reading
What Christians (and the church) can learn from Planned Parenthood
Why can’t Christians be as bold and confident in advancing our cause as the Planned Parenthood folks and other “progressive” organizations are in advancing theirs? Continue reading
Posted in Controversies, Leadership
Tagged Christians, church, Key Ministry, Planned Parenthood, Stephen Grcevich MD, Susan G Komen Foundation
11 Comments
Asperger’s Disorder, Social Disabilities and Church
If we don’t look beyond our narrow definition of “special needs” we’ll miss serving a lot of kids and adults who desperately need to experience the love of Jesus but flounder in church environments that put a huge premium upon social intelligence.
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No Labels…Tying it All Together
Bottom line…We can minister effectively to kids with disabilities and their families without requiring knowledge of diagnoses that may or may not be accurate or by defining children and their adults by their disability as opposed to by who they are in God’s Kingdom. Continue reading
Ritalin Gone Wrong? What’s a Parent to Believe?
Kids with ADHD continue to struggle relative to their peers without ADHD over time. They need lots of ongoing help and support. They need access to cognitive therapy and behavioral therapy from competent and effective clinicians. They need schools with the flexibility to provide accommodations to help all kids maximize their potential. They need stable environments and supportive families. They don’t need stories in the news media unnecessarily fueling the fears of parents about the safety or effectiveness of medication they give to their kids struggling with a significant disability. You can’t use a study that wasn’t designed to demonstrate the long-term effectiveness of stimulant medication to claim that such medication is ineffective.
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Posted in ADHD, Controversies
Tagged ADHD, L. Alan Sroufe, medication in kids, MTA Study, New York Times, Ritalin, Ritalin Gone Wrong, stimulants
3 Comments
Communication Breakdown…Doing Ministry Together Without Diagnostic Labels
If we decide not to use a medical-based model as a common language around which to serve kids and families in churches, we need a common language for communication with one another that can be readily understood by every staff person and every volunteer at church. I’ll argue that it’s best to to use everyday language while guided by a set of communication principles. Continue reading
Do We Put People in Boxes?
Most people “get” what autism is about because of some fabulous public education initiatives. But way too many people think that ADHD is caused by poor discipline at home, anxiety is produced by a lack of faith and that depression persists because the person afflicted doesn’t pray enough. If we get hung up on diagnoses, the value judgments of too many people in our churches becomes an impediment to creating welcoming ministry environments for all kids and families.
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Posted in Controversies, Inclusion
Tagged churches, diagnosis, Inclusion, Key Ministry, No Labels, putting people into boxes, Stephen Grcevich MD
1 Comment
The Purpose of Diagnostic Criteria
Think about this…Diagnosis is ultimately used as a tool to facilitate the treatment of patients/clients with identifiable medical/psychiatric disorders.
Does the church treat kids with disabilities? Or do we disciple them? Continue reading
Posted in Autism, Controversies, Key Ministry
Tagged Autism, church, diagnosis, Dr. Fred Volkmar, dsm-5, Key Ministry, Stephen Grcevich MD
4 Comments
Church4EveryChild 