Abstract

From ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) to ZS (Zellweger Syndrome)-there seems to be an alphabet disorder for almost every behavior, from those caused by serious, rare genetic diseases to more common learning disabilities that hinder children's academic and social progress.

Alphabet Kids have disorders that are often concurrent, interconnected or mistaken for one another: for example, the frequent combination of ASD, OCD, SID and ADHD. If a doctor only diagnoses one condition, he or she may have missed others. As the rates of these disorders dramatically rise, Alphabet Kids explains it all. Robbie Woliver covers 70 childhood disorders, providing information on causes, cures, treatments and prognoses. Chapters include a comprehensive list of signs and symptoms, and the disorders are illustrated with often heartbreaking, but always inspirational true-life stories of a child with the particular disorder.

This comprehensive, easy-to-read go-to guide will help parents to sort through all the interconnected childhood developmental, neurobiological and psychological disorders and serve as a roadmap to help start the families' journey for correct diagnoses, effective treatment and better understanding of their Alphabet Kids.

Robbie Woliver is a New York Times bestselling author and an award-winning journalist and editor who was a columnist for Newsday, senior editor at Village Voice's suburban edition, and writer for The New York Times. He is currently the editor- in-chief of the Long Island Press, where he also helms the newspaper's award-winning series 'Our Children's Brains.' He has freelanced for such diverse publications and media outlets as the Village Voice, Rolling Stone, CBS Market Watch, Salon, BankRate, San Francisco Chronicle, American Demographics, New York Post and numerous others. He taught college-level English and writing and is also the author of several books: Wyoming & March, Bringing It All Back Home, Hoot! and If I Knew Then, which won the 2005 Independent Publisher Book Awards for 'Outstanding Book of the Year' and 'Most Inspirational to Youth.' He lives in New York with his wife, Marilyn, son, Cory, and daughter, Emma.
What a valuable resource to help parents find their way through the bewildering vocabulary of psychiatric labels. An easy-to-read, quick way in to what is known and how to get help. Books like Alphabet Kids are essential if we are to bridge the gap between professionals and families.
Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, Director, Autism Research Centre, Cambridge University
I wish Alphabet Kids were available 18 years ago when those nagging questions were keeping my wife and I up nights. It would have led us in the right direction and resulted in needed early interventions. Insightful, informative and understandable. A must read for any parents losing sleep.
Jeffrey Cohen, father of two children living with Fragile X Syndrome and Chair Public Policy, National Fragile X Foundation
Robbie Woliver provides us with an encyclopedic overview of children's developmental and mental conditions. Weaving extensive research with personal empathy, he provides parents and practitioners with an extremely useful resource, as we work to identify and improve the life of children with special needs.
Martin L. Kutscher, M.D., pediatric neurologist and author of Kids in the Syndrome Mix of ADHD, LD, Asperger's, Tourette's, Bipolar and More!, ADHD: Living without Brakes, and Children with Seizures
Medical diagnosis and treatment is complex and overwhelming for many families... Alphabet Kids does an excellent job of translating complex medical conditions and terminology into language that parents can understand.
Matthew Cohen, Adjunct Professor of Mental Health Law at Loyola University of Chicago School of Law, and author of A Guide to Special Education Advocacy
This is a glimpse into our 21st century parenting reality for millions of families. Alphabet Kids offers expert advice with a dose of compassion to empower parents and professionals with information aimed at helping children with special needs reach their highest potential.
Deirdre Imus, Founder and President of The Deirdre Imus Environmental Center for Pediatric Oncology® at Hackensack University Medical Center
Medical diagnosis and treatment is complex and overwhelming for many families. Robbie Woliver's book, Alphabet Kids, does an excellent job of translating complex medical conditions and terminology into language that parents can understand. Filled with helpful and accessible information about numerous disabilities, it also provides a wealth of useful information on signs and symptoms for parents to watch for, the diagnostic process, treatment options, and prognoses and links to other resources. This is a tremendous resource for families and others that work with kids with disabilities.
Matthew Cohen, Adjunct Professor of Mental Health Law at Loyola University of Chicago School of Law
I wish I'd had Robbie Woliver's book to guide me in the early days of my journey with my daughter ... Alphabet Kids should be in every household; it is an essential guide for all parents and should be required reading for all teachers.
Cathy Moriarty-Gentile, Academy award-nominated actress, child's health advocate, and parent of a daughter with special needs
Weaving extensive research with personal empathy, Robbie Woliver provides parents and practitioners with an extremely useful resource, as we work to identify and improve the life of children with special needs.
Martin L. Kutscher, M.D., pediatric neurologist and author of Kids in the Syndrome Mix of ADHD, LD, Asperger's, Tourette's, Bipolar and More!
When a child is struggling, parents worry. What's wrong? Whom do we see? Where do I find help? Thanks to Robbie Woliver, parents now have a comprehensive resource, Alphabet Kids, to help them help their child.
Larry B. Silver, M.D., Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Georgetown University Medical Center
This book is a wonderful tome o knowledge on neurobiological, developmental and genetic diseases which any parent or professional dealing with atypical children or indeed adults, should have at their fingertips. Many hours can be wasted on the internet trying to find a disorder that fits a particular person's unique set of problems and assets. Many parents have come up with countless possible diagnoses only to find that none fit exactly. This book highlights how many conditions can co-exist, one even masking another, and shows how interconnected many problems are. Knowledge is empowering as it enables one to seek help and interventions early, to adjust the environment and expectations toward a particular child. It can also help illuminate and understand one's own chequered history and struggles, freed from the guilt and presumption that it is self-inflicted or caused by poor parenting. There are few books that almost every household in the land own – a dictionary, a medical dictionary, an atlas, an encyclopaedia, and might I suggest one more – 'Alphabet Kids' – are all resource books that one returns to again and again... In reading it you cannot forget that we are all unique and that most problems have a cause and many can be cured, treated and if not treated, at least understood and accepted with knowledge, compassion and patience.
BFK Books
This book is a wonderful tome of knowledge on neurobiological , developmental and genetic diseases which any parent or professional dealing with atypical children or indeed adults, should have at their fingertips... This book enables parents to make sense of a range of symptoms and signposts them to a likely diagnosis... It is a book that should be on the bookshelf's of parents with children of difference, of all educators and clinicians... In reading it you cannot forget that we are all unique and that most problems have a cause and many can be cured, treated and if not treated, at least understood and accepted with knowledge, compassion and patience.
ASTeens
What a valuable resource to help parents find their way through the bewildering vocabulary of psychiatric labels. Books like Alphabet Kids are essential if we are to bridge the gap between professionals and families.
Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, Director, Autism Research Centre, Cambridge University
Alphabet Kids; From ADD to Zellweger Syndrome offers a fine guide to developmental and psychological disorders of kids, covering disorders in an A-Z "alphabet" encyclopedia which includes extensive details for each disorder. Alphabet Kids often have disorders that are interconnected or mistaken for each other: if a doctor only diagnoses one condition, he's missing others. This guide will help professionals and parents alike understand these connections and their differences.
The Midwest Book Review
Alphabet Kids will be very important because it describes a panoply of disorders ranging from physical to emotional, and hereditary, which have often been perceived as conduct disorders or conditions so unresolvable there is no help. This book will encourage both parents and professionals to use available tools and to make contributions that will further enhance the prognosis for so many.
Vivian Hanson Meehan, president and founder of ANAD (National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders)
I wish I'd had Robbie Woliver's book to guide me in the early days of my journey with my daughter ...it provides valuable practical information and advice from a wide array of impressive experts that can very well make the difference in the quality of your child's life. Alphabet Kids should be in every household; it is an essential guide for all parents and should be required reading for all teachers.
Cathy Moriarty-Gentile, Academy award-nominated actress, child's health advocate
This book does what it sets out to do - provide an easy reference guide for parents and professionals... Alphabet Kids will be useful for anyone needing an overview of common, and indeed less common, diagnosable disorders. Its strength lies in its accessibility and the ease with which disorders are explained and illustrated and the potential benefits this can bring to children and families.
British Psychological Society, Debate
Robbie Woliver's book states that 1 in 6 youth have an 'alphabet' diagnosis - disorders that are often concurrent, interconnected or mistaken for one another; that makes for many youth and families attempting to navigate unfamiliar and confusing territory. 'Alphabet Kids' can help illuminate the way. As a reader-friendly, clearly written guidebook to the maze of childhood disorders and their interconnectedness, Mr. Woliver's book reassures parents that they are not alone. Compelling and emotional case stories are included at the start of the description of each disorder, providing real life snapshots of how challenging the childhood conditions can be to detect, how they often intersect and overlap, and how cascading effects across all areas of development can result over time. 'Alphabet Kids' is a unique, easy to understand resource that is organized first alphabetically by disorder and then by sub-sections including 'did you know?', 'signs and symptoms', 'diagnosis' and 'treatment.' The section on Sources and Resources is particularly helpful as it provides readers with steps for where to find more information.
On the Spectrum
As a school nurse team leader, Alphabet Kids is certainly an easily accessible rescource to dip in and out of during the course of a busy day. The contents offer a succinct synopsis of each disorder, presented in an easily readable format, I shall certainly recommend it to the rest of the team, colleagues and parents alike.
British Journal of School Nursing
A necessity for every household! An invaluable reference tool for every pediatric specialist and educator. As our contemporary culture strives to increase knowledge, elevate awareness, and decreases the stigma of developmental, neurobiological, and psychological disorders, Robbie Woliver presents an incredibly comprehensive guide. Alphabet Kids impressively offers a range of relatable vignettes, relevant symptoms, and a wealth of helpful resources, providing clarity and answers...all in one, easy to read, positive and encouraging book!
Dr. Kimberly Williams, Psy.D., Neuropsychologist, Assistant Research Scientist, NYU Child Study Center
The book sets out 75 disorders commonly first diagnosed in childhood and describes the symptoms, treatment and prognosis of each one in clear and accessible terms. Case studies for each disorder are provided, helping to bring lists of complex symptoms to life.
The Psychologist