Category Archives: Controversies

Klout…What’s a Good Christian to Do?

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Dr. G

So here’s the dilemma…We have a fabulous team of speakers and trainers at Key Ministry and friends and colleagues in other ministries with wonderful ideas and strategies and resources that I want to get in front of as many pastors, church staff and volunteers as possible so that they can help connect families of kids with disabilities to churches. There are certain rules in place that guide who gets access to platforms of influence. I think we’re doing this for the right reason if we use resources like Klout, but…

I come back to the Scripture verses above, and many others like them. How do we serve the purposes of God without reflecting the character traits of God? The temptation for self-promotion through social media seems great. And we’re supposed to flee from temptation, right?

What’s a good Christian to do?
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Posted in Controversies, Key Ministry, Strategies | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Kids With Aggressive Behavior…Is it Ever OK for a Church to Say No?

Posted on January 8, 2012 by Dr. G

So when should kids at risk for severe aggression be asked to stay home? Schools have guidelines for parents about when they should keep children home to prevent other kids from getting sick. When are other kids, church staff and volunteers at risk of being harmed by kids prone to aggression?

If the parent(s) can’t manage the child’s behavior safely at home
When a foreseeable event has transpired at home (changes/lapses in medication used to control aggressive behavior, marked escalation of behavior while transitioning/preparing to leave for church) or at church (changes from the norm in environment/availability of appropriately trained staff or volunteers familiar to the child) increasing the child’s risk of aggressive behavior.
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Posted in Controversies, Spiritual Development | Tagged , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Should a Parent of a Child With Special Needs Run For President?

Posted on January 4, 2012 by Dr. G

I’m not expressing an opinion about Mr. Santorum’s candidacy one way or another. But he and his family deserve the respect to make decisions about how best to serve while raising a child with special needs. He also deserves to be judged by the voters on the basis of his leadership ability, character, judgment and ideas and not by uninformed perceptions of how a parent of a child with special needs should be spending their time.
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Posted in Controversies, Parents | Leave a comment

Foster Kids and Medication

Posted on December 4, 2011 by Dr. G

My purpose in writing this is to help parents and churches go into foster care ministry with their eyes open. Foster care ministry is an incredibly noble calling. Lots of kids are on way too much medication with way too many side effects with problems for which medication is likely to be of little benefit. Unfortunately, the implication of the 20/20 report that loving parents and the absence of medication will generally lead to happy endings for kids in foster care with problems that led to psychiatric referrals is at the very least incredibly naive, and at worst, a deliberate misrepresentation of reality. Continue reading →

Posted in Adoption, Controversies, Families | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Are Churches Blind to Mental Illness?

Posted on July 14, 2011 by Dr. G

The most obvious take-home points from the study seemed to be that families in which someone was struggling with a mental illness were very desirous of support from their local churches, but members not exposed to mental health issues were basically oblivious to their needs and the presence of mental illness appears to be an impediment to church attendance and regular prayer. Continue reading →

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When Christian parents should seek out a Christian mental health professional

Posted on July 5, 2011 by Dr. G

Another situation in which parents of Christian kids should appropriately seek out a therapist with a Christian background occurs when a significant faith component exists to emotions, thoughts or perceptions that are a focus of concern to the parents. Continue reading →

Posted in Controversies, Families | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Be Not Anxious…Is Medication Safe for Kids With Anxiety?

Posted on June 30, 2011 by Dr. G

One of the greatest ongoing controversies in the fields of child psychiatry and pediatrics is the question of how safe SSRIs are in children, teens and young adults. The safety issue of greatest concern involves reported risks of SSRIs increasing suicidal thoughts during the first 30-60 days of treatment in persons under the age of 25.
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Posted in Anxiety Disorders, Controversies | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Be Not Anxious…The Role of Medication for Kids With Anxiety

Posted on June 29, 2011 by Dr. G

Medication is appropriate for children who experience moderate to severe functional impairment from anxiety symptoms, fail to respond or respond incompletely to psychotherapy or experience one or more comorbid conditions that require concurrent treatment. Medication is also appropriate when anxiety symptoms interfere with the child’s ability to participate in or benefit from talk therapy, or situations when the family is unable to access therapy for geographic or financial reasons. Continue reading →

Posted in Anxiety Disorders, Controversies, Hidden Disabilities, Resources | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Are Parents of Kids With ADHD Stigmatized at Church?

Posted on May 22, 2011 by Dr. G

Earlier this week, Shannon Dingle had a wonderful post on her blog The Works of God Displayed (I’d highly encourage readers of this blog to subscribe to Shannon’s blog) on perceptions of folks in the church about the diagnosis of ADHD. I’d encourage you to read her post, because I’m challenged to express my opinions as eloquently as she did on her blog. I very much appreciate as well the comments on her blog from a pastor (Perry) who was willing to give voice to some of the thoughts and feelings Shannon was seeking to describe in her post.
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Posted in ADHD, Controversies, Families, Hidden Disabilities, Inclusion, Key Ministry | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

“Comorbidity”…When Kids Have More Than One Disorder

Posted on May 12, 2011 by Dr. G

The concept of comorbidity is important to understand because it helps to explain why kids who carry the same diagnosis may react very differently to environments or experiences at church, why we very much try to avoid the use of diagnostic labels when working with churches and why it is so important for ministry leaders and parents to view each child as a unique individual.
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Posted in ADHD, Controversies, Hidden Disabilities, Key Ministry, Resources | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments