Customer Reviews

Understanding the Mind of Your Bipolar Child: The Complete Guide to the Development, Treatment, and Parenting of Children with Bipolar Disorder

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This book provides an outstanding, fully diagnostic view on what the bipolar child experiences during said childhood. It also provides parents, various interested peoples, family friends and so on, what signs of bipolar disorder to look for in your child (provided you/ those otherwise concerned) are concerned that there IS something that differentiates your child from the rest. This text provides the most up to date information regarding bipolar disorder in children, including a glossary of mood vs. personality disorders, as well as listing the current, most well-regarded medications, their side effects -and especially notably, their side effects in children vs. adults, and what the main goal the medication aims to assist.

Dr. Lombardo weaves interesting vignettes about patients he has encountered along his course as a psychiatrist. These vignettes are quite helpful to the lay person who might still struggle to understand bipolar disorder, as they are all true stories of real patients and their experience as a person who suffers from bipolar disorder. They are clearly written. Entirely to the point. And, most importantly, they bring the "ball" of bipolar disorder together.

Compared to its counterpart, the Bipolar Child, this text is only the second book on the market to truly focus on bipolar disorder in children. I believe it to be the best text on bipolar disorder in children because you do not need to be a doctor to read this, yet any professional in the medical community and those who are not versed at all in mood, or more broadly, mental disorders, will benefit GREATLY from reading this book. I found it to be quite profound, thoughtful and, especially, descriptive of this mental disorder.

Dr. Lombardo clearly understands the disorder and he has an especially unique ability to observe children, bringing out the strings that eventually knot into the ball called bipolar disorder, and put it on paper to share humanity. If you have any sense that your child behaves differently from other children, pick up this text, read the first few pages, and you'll know if you're in the right territory.

:) :) :)

I do lot of family therapy, and I supervise others who do family therapy, and the information here has proved very helpful in organizing my thinking about the problems children present, and how parents can best deal with them. The book is written well, and is accessible to professionals and parents. I have recommended this book to parents with bipolar children, and they tell me that it is very useful to them, as well. Dr. Lombardo describes the many confusing and related symptom pictures, which make treating these children and their families so challenging. He reviews developmental changes, parental strategies, uses of therapy, and the difficult pharmacological questions that arise.
Overall, this is a job very well done. Charles Raps, Ph.D.

I am a psychotherapist with some 20 years of experience, but I do not deal directly with children. I was drawn to this book in an effort to learn more about a field that is outside my own. I found it to be an amazing work. In the first place,it makes a major contribution to the problems raised in understanding and parenting a bipolar child. It presents the very latest knowledge in the field,in clear and lucid language, beautifully organized and wholly understandable to the lay person. I found it particulary useful because it also deals with the positive aspects of this illness, such as the extraordinary sensitivity and creativity that many of these children manifest. Its coverage is complete, extending from infancy into adolescence. But beyond that, it successfully places those problems in the much broader context of human psychological and personality development in general. For example, the chapter dealing with saying "No" to young children contains a brilliant analysis applicable to all children or even,for that matter, to adults. At the end of the book there is a thorough discussion of the many different types of treatment available, together with a reference guide to the latest medications. I can recommend it without hesitation both to parents and professionals. Indeed, I will be recommending this book to those of my own patients who have problems with their children, even though they may not necessarily be diagnosed as bipolar.

I?m a parent that tackles family problems with books, support groups, therapy, whatever it takes. I read Dr. Lombardo?s book only 6 months or so into the diagnosis of bipolar disorder for my 13 year old son, after the nightmarish depressions, poor and nasty psychiatrists, after reading 4 books -- The Bipolar Child (twice), Acquainted with the Night, Jamison?s book (can?t remember the name), and some other book on alternative therapies for bipolar disorder and other mental illnesses, and after spending countless hours talking to parents online and learning about meds, side effects, behavioral issues.

As a single parent, with an MA and a PhD in fields of psychology and education, I can honestly tell you that I learned quite a bit from Dr. Lombardo?s book. Here?s what I found?.

The perspective Dr. Lombardo has on child development as a teacher, psychiatrist, and one who has suffered from bipolar disorder greatly enhances, and lends credibility to his ability to differentially diagnose typical and atypical behaviors in children. Furthermore, the information on the differential diagnosis of ADHD versus BP from the neurological and behavioral perspective was very clearly presented, highly informative, and points to the need for expert care for children with these disorders.

The overall developmental approach is extremely valuable because, behaviors and life issues change through development, and is helpful to look ahead to see what might be coming along. Additionallly, some of the more subtle behavioral and cognitive issues that children with BP face is discussed and NOT COVERED in the other books I?ve read ? including a discussion of the concomitant disorders that some kids face along with bipolar disorder.

The review of the meds was excellent, partitioned clearly, and will be a helpful resource guide. As for the structure, I overall liked the format, where some of the critical issues are set out from the rest of the text. Only boring part for me was some of the case studies ? written more for a psychiatric textbook than for a parent.

All in all, I found the book to be an excellent companion to the Bipolar Child and highly recommend it ?. For the novice parent and the ?experienced parent?. I also think this book should be required reading for school psychologists and social workers! At least one of these 2 books, please.

Thank you Dr. Lombardo for writing a book which is user friendly for both professionals and laypersons to understand the development of the mind, brain, and behavior of persons diagnosed with bipolar disorder. This book fills a gap in the literature on how to diagnosis,treat and live with live with bipolar persons. By following some of Dr. Lombardo's practcal advice professionals and parents can enhance the self esteem and probability of success of the bipolar person and of the bipolar family. Dr. Lombardo truly understands what it means to be bipolar, to live with a bipolar relative and to be the therapist of a bipolar personality.His empathy is felt between the lines, his words reflect compassion and competency.As a professional psychologist with over 30 years of experience I would rate this book number 1 in its category. I recommend it to anyone who wants to understand what it is to be diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Barbara L. Blum, Ph.D.

I am a child and adolescent psychiatrist and just recently sat down to read the book cover to cover. Dr. Lombardo is a gifted teacher who presents ideas and concepts in such a fashion that the recommendations he gives to parents make sense. I especially was glad that he acknowledges that parents need to be good enough, not perfect. As Dr. Lombardo phrased it: "perfect is the enemy of good" (pg 62). I think this is very validating to parents of bipolar children who all too often get unspoken messages from others that defective parenting skills are the cause of the bipolar's child's behaviors. As if in a "hats off" to parents of bipolar children, Dr. Lombardo states: "It takes courage to acknowledge the presence of bipolar disorder, in ourselves and in our children....Courage is not the absence of fear, but the ability to do the right thing in the presence of fear" (pg 276).

This book provides a thorough, very understandable exploration of the many aspects of bipolar disorder. The use of case studies is very effective, and the coverage of common medications used to treat bipolar disorder appears to be quite thorough. While aimed at parents who have children with bipolar disease, this book would be valuable for others involved with a bipolar child including teachers, counselors, doctors and therapists. It is also useful for anyone who wants a better understanding of his or her own life.

I'm a parent that tackles family problems with books, support groups, therapy, whatever it takes. I read Dr. Lombardo's book only 6 months or so into the diagnosis of bipolar disorder for my 13 year old son, after the nightmarish depressions, poor and nasty psychiatrists, after reading 4 books -- The Bipolar Child (twice), Acquainted with the Night, Jamison's book (can't remember the name), and some other book on alternative therapies for bipolar disorder and other mental illnesses, and after spending countless hours talking to parents online and learning about meds, side effects, behavioral issues.

As a single parent, with an MA and a PhD in fields of psychology and education, I can honestly tell you that I learned quite a bit from Dr. Lombardo's book. Here's what I found....

The perspective Dr. Lombardo has on child development as a teacher, psychiatrist, and one who has suffered from bipolar disorder greatly enhances, and lends credibility to his ability to differentially diagnose typical and atypical behaviors in children. Furthermore, the information on the differential diagnosis of ADHD versus BP from the neurological and behavioral perspective was very clearly presented, highly informative, and points to the need for expert care for children with these disorders.

The overall developmental approach is extremely valuable because, behaviors and life issues change through development, and is helpful to look ahead to see what might be coming along. Additionallly, some of the more subtle behavioral and cognitive issues that children with BP face is discussed and NOT COVERED in the other books I've read - including a discussion of the concomitant disorders that some kids face along with bipolar disorder.

The review of the meds was excellent, partitioned clearly, and will be a helpful resource guide. As for the structure, I overall liked the format, where some of the critical issues are set out from the rest of the text. Only boring part for me was some of the case studies - written more for a psychiatric textbook than for a parent.

All in all, I found the book to be an excellent companion to the Bipolar Child and highly recommend it .... For the novice parent and the "experienced parent". I also think this book should be required reading for school psychologists and social workers! At least one of these 2 books, please.

D. Slonim, MA, PhD, New York

I am a psychologist who works with bipolar adolescents and adults and I think this book is the best I have read on this topic.
This is a kind and gentle book that shows great understanding of the problems and strengths of the bipolar child. This is a wonderfully written book without jargon, which accurately describes the good, the hard and the complicated of being a child or raising a child with this disease. This book also deals with the secondary problems children face such as drug and alcohol use and other risk taking behaviors.
The author describes in detail how such children function from preschool through young adulthood. There is an important section of the difference between bipolar disorder and ADD. And, there are clear recommendations as to how to deal with the difficulties bipolar children have in ways that don't punish the child or the parent.
Actually, his suggestions are great for parents with children who are not bipolar.
What comes across is this is a caring book written by a caring doctor.

This book helps both the parent of a bipolar child as well as the trained professional. It is an insight into the illness written in a way that is easy to follow, yet full of extremely valuable information. I have purchased many copies of this book in order to pass this information on to those parents I know who are struggling with their bipolar children. The idea of being a "good enough" parent has really helped me with my own daughter. I would highly recommend this book to anyone in search of information, or purely curiosity. It is an excellent read.