Reclaiming Our Children: A Healing
Plan For A Nation In Crisis by Peter
Breggin
What Kind Of Solution Do We Want?
Parents and other adults are the source of the problem with troubled
children--not the child monsters whose mug shots we see on the evening
news for school shootings, murders, and other tales of modern-day
juvenile delinquency. Thats the case made by Peter R. Breggin, a
Maryland-based psychiatrist who has written widely on the overuse of
psychoactive drug; in Reclaiming Our Children he takes aim at what he
considers the root of all the trouble: todays families. Overly permissive
parents, absentee fathers, working mothers, disconnected families--they all
take the blame in Breggins well-reasoned argument for renewing the
importance of children in our lives. The 1999 Columbine High School
shootings figure prominently in Breggins dissection of how society has
abandoned its kids. He calls a White House conference held after the
massacre a missed opportunity because politicians and health advisers
were quick to blame the student shooters actions on genetic and

biochemical conditions beyond our control. As Breggin has written in many
of his other books, he believes parents are too eager to turn to Prozac,
Ritalin, and other chemical solutions for problems that should be sorted out
with old-fashioned therapy. His accounts of treating young patients and
their parents are delightful passages, though his diagnoses at times seem
a bit simplistic. He offers self-help solutions near the end of the book, with
suggestions on how parents can avoid serious conflicts with their kids. His
views on child-rearing tactics sometimes go against the grain: hes not an
advocate of time-outs as a means of discipline, for example. And his child-
centered ideas may frustrate some parents in the throes of dealing with a
2-year-olds tantrums or a disrespectful teens defiance. But his plea for
making children a priority is a much-needed, logical voice that should
cause some parents to pause and rethink their hectic lives. --Jodi
Mailander Farrell
Personal Review: Reclaiming Our Children: A Healing Plan For
A Nation In Crisis by Peter Breggin
Dr. Peter Breggin continues to express his belief in the innate ability of
children to heal and move their lives in a positive direction. A key
ingredient is for adults to recognize the need for children to have a lifestyle
that allows them to be children. I don't believe Dr. Breggin blames parents
for their children's problems. I think he sees them as responsible for
creating a productive lifestyle for the child. In this day and age it is
common for very young children(kindergarten and younger) to spend an
eight to ten hour day away from parents and in school or childcare. While
this allows parents to increase their income it may produce anxiety and
distractiblity in the child. Dr. Breggin does an outstanding job of sorting
out how the child is the victim of biopsychiatry while the culture continues
to place materialism and income as a top priority. I was impressed by his
case studies and his courage in speaking out against the label and
medicate phenomena that places children at risk.I have worked as an
elementary counselor for the past twenty-three years. Currently I am in
private practice as a Licensed Professional Counselor. In my twenty plus
years of working with children and families I have found that strong
parents who create a realistic structure for their children overcome most
childhood problems. At the same time I have seen many families turn to
psychiatric labels and medication only to discover their child was caught in
a downward spiral of behavior and emotional problems.
For More 5 Star Customer Reviews and Lowest Price:
Reclaiming Our Children: A Healing Plan For A Nation In Crisis by Peter Breggin 5 Star
Customer Reviews and Lowest Price!