"What makes family easier" by Nora Imlau
Many people already know that Doc is a big fan of Nora Imlau. So it goes without saying that he was delighted with her new book "Was Familie leichter macht". It's also clear that he read it straight away.
To summarise: he is very, very, very satisfied. With just one small caveat.
What's great about the book and the way Nora Imlau writes her books? The ease with which she writes is admirable. It is very pleasant to read her books - which are very rich in content without ever being pretentious or pompous in terms of style and language. You can read the books smoothly and take a lot away with you.
It's also great how parents are reliably picked up by her at those points where worries traditionally arise, where you might worry too much. In this book, she once again succeeds very well in saying to parents: "Hey, think about what beliefs you carry around with you, where you have worries about the children that are perhaps not so appropriate." This is done in such a pleasant tone that it is simply very beneficial for the reader.
And what totally blew the doc away: The chapter on neurodivergence. It's one of the best things he's ever read on the subject - and he's read a lot about it and discussed it a lot. Nora Imlau has a very insightful view of the topic, good tips for dealing with it and, most importantly, makes a clear statement that neurodivergence and a medical diagnosis are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, it is perfectly okay for neurodivergent children to receive a clear diagnosis and this can also be helpful for the families. Ultimately, however, it all boils down to the same thing when dealing with the children.
A small caveat at the end: there is one point on which the doctor cannot fully agree, and that is the issue of mobile phones/media. Of course, we in the practice also try to relieve parents of stress on this subject and tell them that it is simply part of the world of children and young people and that we shouldn't be too strict about it. But we have to recognise that there are an incredible number of families where the issue is getting extremely out of hand and they are suffering greatly as a result. On this point, Doc sometimes finds the tone of the book a little too casual or, for his taste, it doesn't convey enough that this is an issue that can put a lot of strain on families and that a certain amount of restriction is perhaps a good parenting approach after all. But of course this is open to debate.
Bottom line: absolutely recommended reading.
Further interesting tips
War - how do I talk about it?
One topic that I would not have liked to have dealt with: talking to children about war. This is a topic, similar to death, where there is no one right way. Because everyone is different, deals with such topics differently and, of course, age also has a big influence. Nevertheless, there are a few basic aspects.
Adultism
Recently, the word "adultism" has been cropping up again and again in the education/school/nursery sector. So it's time to say something about it from a paediatrician's point of view.
Constraints
Where does compulsive behaviour begin - what are normal rituals? Doc spoke about this with Frank Köhnlein, a specialist in child and adolescent psychiatry and psychotherapy. Here are the most important points from the conversation.