Dr. Luba Stein, Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine.

05/15/2025

Sounds painfully familiar, right? Everyone has ADHD. What contributes to it? What can be done?

Screen Time Contributes to Functional ADHD

In today’s digital world, screen time is nearly unavoidable—especially for children and teens. From educational apps to gaming, social media, and streaming, screens are deeply woven into our daily lives. While some screen time can be beneficial, an over-reliance on digital media—especially fast-paced, reward-heavy content—can condition the brain in powerful ways, shaping how we think, feel, and behave.

The connection between screen time and functional ADHD is a growing concern in clinical neuropsychology, especially as we observe more children and adolescents presenting with attention difficulties that mimic or exacerbate ADHD symptoms—without necessarily meeting criteria for a formal diagnosis. This phenomenon is sometimes referred to as “functional ADHD” or screen-induced attentional dysregulation.

1. Screens Condition the Brain to Expect Rapid, Frequent Rewards
Many digital platforms use variable-ratio reinforcement schedules, where rewards (likes, wins, notifications, etc.) come unpredictably. This pattern is extremely effective at activating the brain’s dopaminergic system, particularly the mesolimbic pathway.
Result: The brain becomes trained to seek fast gratification.
Functional ADHD effect: Difficulty engaging with slow-paced, effortful tasks like reading or sustained writing—because these tasks don’t offer the same quick dopamine “hits.”
Read the full blog here
https://www.jeltova.com/screen-time-lost-time

05/14/2025

It is impossible to make sense of ourselves, never mind our children, without a clear understanding of these three important constructs. Yet increasingly, these dynamics are becoming confused with each other, with both shyness and shame losing their distinctiveness and drifting into the dark shadow of social anxiety. The impact on children can be devastating, never mind on parenting, teaching and even treatment. Teasing these dynamics apart, and reclaiming the right language to support them, has never been more important.

Join Dr. Gordon Neufeld to explore these topics in this online lecture on June 5th. Tuition is $35. Register now: https://discover.neufeldinstitute.org/

Can't attend live? No problem! The event will be recorded, and all registered participants will receive access to the recording.

04/07/2025

Join Dr. Neufeld live in Vancouver on April 30, 2025, for a special event on how attachment can be the antidote to anxiety, frustration, and attention issues in children.

Following the presentation, meet Dr. Neufeld at an exclusive book signing:
Already own Hold On to Your Kids? Bring your copy!

All attendees receive Chapter 21 for free, his latest insights on post-pandemic peer orientation and mental health.

The 2024 edition, featuring Chapter 21, will be available for purchase.

Tickets & details: https://www.bellperformingartscentre.com/event/supporting-wellbeing-in-2025-i

The event takes place at

04/07/2025

"One of the most important things is simply to trust in that process; to know that rest will bear fruit. If we can actually bring a child to rest ... it's not always easy to get a child to rest, but if we can bring a child to rest, nature will do the rest. That is our fundamental challenge, our fundamental job."

- Dr. Gordon Neufeld in his Helping Children Grow Up course

04/05/2025

Kids need to move and have fun! That’s a perfect place to do all of the above!

New Tuesday Morning Class Schedule!
Introducing Super Beasts at 11:15!
New Beasts/Super Beasts time 10:25 (was 10:30)

03/25/2025

07/13/2024

"Hold On to Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More Than Peers" by Gordon Neufeld and Gabor Maté explores the dynamics of child development and the importance of maintaining strong, nurturing connections between parents and their children. The authors argue that in contemporary society, children are increasingly turning to their peers for guidance, approval, and a sense of belonging, often at the expense of parental influence.

Here are ten key lessons and insights from the book:

1. Parental Connection Is Crucial: The central thesis of the book is that children need to be deeply connected to their parents or primary caregivers to develop into secure, mature, and psychologically healthy adults. When this connection is weakened, children may seek inappropriate substitutes, like peer attachments.

2. The Role of Attachment in Development: Neufeld and Maté emphasize that a strong attachment to parents provides the foundation for all aspects of healthy emotional and psychological development. This includes the ability to handle stress, develop empathy, and form healthy relationships.

3. Detrimental Effects of Peer Orientation: The authors describe peer orientation as the phenomenon where children become more aligned with their peers than with their parents. This shift can lead to problems such as increased anxiety, aggression, and susceptibility to peer pressure.

4. Cultivating a Family-Centric Culture: To counteract the effects of peer orientation, Neufeld and Maté suggest fostering a strong, family-centric culture where children feel part of the family unit and are encouraged to look to their parents for support and guidance.

5. The Importance of Emotional Intimacy: Emotional intimacy between parent and child is fundamental. Parents are encouraged to be in tune with their children’s feelings and to cultivate a home environment where emotions can be openly discussed and managed.

6. Understanding Child Development: Knowledge of developmental stages is crucial for parents to provide appropriate support. Misunderstanding a child’s developmental needs can lead to conflicts and a weakening of the parent-child bond.

7. Discipline and Attachment: Effective discipline relies on a strong attachment bond. Rather than punitive measures, the authors advocate for discipline that teaches and corrects, which is built on understanding and connection.

8. Collecting the Child: This concept involves re-establishing a connection with a child before correcting or directing them. It might involve physical closeness, eye contact, and expressions of warmth to ensure the child is receptive to guidance.

9. Preserving the Ties That Empower: Parents are advised to actively work on maintaining and strengthening their relationship with their children throughout their development, recognizing that this relationship is essential for the child’s ability to mature and face the world confidently.

10. Countering the Culture of Peer Orientation: Neufeld and Maté call for a societal shift that recognizes the importance of parent-child connections over peer relationships in the upbringing of children. This includes educational systems and community structures that support parents in their role.

"Hold On to Your Kids" presents a compelling argument for reestablishing the natural hierarchy in relationships that places parents — not peers — as the primary influence in children's lives. Through a blend of developmental psychology, case studies, and practical advice, the book offers strategies for parents to reclaim their natural role. This work is especially relevant in the digital age, where children are often bombarded with influences that undermine parental authority and attachment.

06/19/2024

Dr. Ida Jeltova on neuropsychological testing.

“When Neuropsychological assessment is most helpful?

When we need to find breakdowns in processing that fuel emotional symptoms and want to formulate fine-tuned interventions for neuro-diverse learners.

Processing and Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression Among Neuro-Diverse Individuals

Mental health is often conterminous; it is rare for an individual to be affected by only one condition. For example, a person with depression often experiences anxiety. ADHD and dyslexia are familiar companions, and OCD and autism overlap in several ways. The lines are often blurred between one diagnosis and another, leaving people to wonder what is truly causing their symptoms.

Unfortunately, in addition to the symptoms created by their conditions, individuals with neurodiverse traits tend to experience depression and anxiety at higher rates than their neurotypical peers. ADHD, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), OCD, and learning disabilities like dyslexia are all examples of neurodiverse conditions associated with high depression and anxiety rates.
Because these individuals already struggle with executive functioning skills like problem-solving, social cues, impulse control, memory, and mental flexibility, they are more likely to experience teasing and bullying, resulting in lowered self-esteem. Additionally, a neurodiverse condition often limits a person’s ability to process primary information related to their senses, causing frustration, self-doubt, and learned helplessness.”

For more read here

Evidence-based therapy and psychological assessment and support services provided by highly trained clinicians.

03/21/2024

It's been 20 years since Hold On To Your Kids was first released; just before the emergence of Facebook and other social media. In retrospect, the book amply foreshadowed, but could not fully have pictured, the impact of the digital revolution that followed. The book was re-released in 2013 with additional chapters on raising children in a digital world.

Now it is being re-released once again, with an additional chapter on the roots of the current crisis of mental health in our children. The new edition was just released in the USA and will be released on April 9th in Canada.

This chapter was necessitated by the shocking revelation coming out of the pandemic that an alarming number of children are suffering from mental health issues. Without the insights provided by this book, experts were wrongly assuming that the problem was isolation from their peers, the opposite of what was the case. This chapter explores the roots of emotional well-being and confirms the paramount importance of the healthy child-adult relationships.

Written by Dr. Gordon Neufeld, with writing help from Dr. Gabor Maté, this book is about the pivotal importance of children’s relationships to those responsible for them and the devastating impact in today’s society of competing attachments with peers. However, it is much more than a book on peer orientation: it is about parenting with relationship in mind. This book restores parents to their natural intuition, confronting such relationship-devastating devices as time-outs and using what children care about against them.

Visit our website (https://neufeldinstitute.org/resources/hold-on-to-your-kids-book/) for more information or find it on the shelf at your favourite local bookstore (or wherever good books are sold).

03/18/2024

Let "Baby Whisperer" Patti Ideran, a pediatric occupational therapist, show you how to soothe your little one through infant massage! Register now for our free webinar and you'll also be signed up for a chance to win a copy of Ms. Ideran's book, "The CALM Baby Method." We will draw 10 lucky winners. Visit https://bit.ly/3uK1kPU today!