Children with chronic illness are faced with various behavioral problems due to the effect of medicines and disease. Is there any psychotherapy to reduce their behavior problems specially attention deficit and aggression?
Cognitive behaviour techniques can be useful. However the use of Neurofeedback or EEG biofeedback could facilitate the correction of the ADD and aggression symptoms by training children's brainwaves to normalization! The process is non-invasive and pleasant. Playing computer game while correcting the amplitudes of the brain waves or connectivity (that may be disturbed by the stress of a chronic illness or by certain meds) between some areas of the brain! Please check Neurofeedback and ADD.
Hi Aishvarya,
I spent ten years working in mother & child hospital and I did my PhD research in childhood chronic illness. Our private practice specializes in ADHD & ADD.
Would you mind to tell us a bit about the context in which you are working. Are you working in a hospital? Where are these kids treated? What kind of chronic illness do they suffer from?
I hope few comments and research papers I wanted to share will be helpful considering that I don't know much about your context.
In my experience working with children necessitates systemic approach which addresses behaviour and psychological symptoms within the context of family and interactions. The evidence supports the effectiveness of systemic interventions either alone or as part of multimodal programmes for sleep, feeding and attachment
problems in infancy as well as child abuse and neglect; childhood behavioural difficulties and ADHD ( Carr, 2009).
There is a number of research that explores family interactions in relation to childhood illness (Lord, Wastrel, & Angered, 2005; Penn, 1983; Reiss, Gonzales, & Kramer, 1986, McDaniel et al., 1992).
When dealing with childhood illness in the hospital context psychotherapeutic interventions should explore and address potentially complex interface between children, families and health care-providers (Marovic, S & Snyders, F, 2008).
Carr, A. (2009). The effectiveness of family therapy and systemic interventions for child-focused problems, Journal of Family Therapy (2009) 31: 3–45
Lord, B., Wastell, C., & Ungerer, J. (2005). Parent reactions to childhood phenylketonuria. Families, Systems & Health, 23, 204–219.
Marovic, S. & Snyders, F (2008). Addressing Complexities of Medical Noncompliance in Serious Childhood Illness: Collaborating at the Interface of Providers, Families, and Health Care Systems. Families, Systems, Vol. 26, No. 3, 237–249
McDaniel, S. H., Hepworth, J., & William, D. J. (1992). Medical family therapy: A biopsychosocial approach to families with health problems. New York: Basic Books.
Penn, P. (1983). Coalitions and binding interactions in families with chronic illness. Family Systems Medicine, 1, 16–25.
Reiss, D., Gonzales, S., & Kramer, N. (1986). Family process, chronic illness, and death. Archives of General Psychiatry, 43, 795–804.
See my first book: Kliman, G. 1968 Psychological Emergencies of Childhood. Grune and Stratton, NY. Chapter:"Working with a dying child". I have continued such work. Right now have a four year-old boy patient with one-sided congenitally absent hand and fingers.
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