Symptom Grid
Differentiating Bipolar Disorder, ADHD, and Asperger’s can be difficult because of the overlap of symptoms. In order to differentiate between the three disorders I developed the following symptom grid. The more Xs, the more prominent the symptom in that disorder. Of course many of these children will have a dual diagnoses. For example, it is likely that over 90% of children with a Bipolar Disorder will also have ADHD. In addition, there appears to be a subset of children with Asperger’s that also have Bipolar Disorder.
Symptom ADHD ASPERGER’S BIPOLAR CORE DEFICIT: Impairment in ability to inhibit and postpone a response to an event--to impose a delay between an event that we experience and our reaction to it XXXX X X CORE DEFICIT: Impairment in ability to initiate, sustain, and maintain social interactions X XXXX X CORE DEFICIT: Impairment in ability to regulate and modulate mood X X XXXX Executive functioning problems and learning differences X X X Irritable/depressed mood, mood lability, "walking on eggshells" X X XXXX Positive family history for learning disabilities, ADHD or mood disorder XXXX X XXXX Socialization and communication difficulties (not a language delay) X XXXX X Hypomanic Episodes XXXX
What play therapy strategies have play therapists found to be helpful with this population of children?
Very helpful and interesting grid. I recently came across this excellent article that outlines the trials and tribulations experienced by children and their families when dealing with Bipolar Disorder. Thought I'd share:
http://advancedcognitivepsychology.blogspot.com/2008/05/welcome-to-maxs-world-growing-up-with.html
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