Psychiatry

I am the proud mother of a gorgeous, funny, helpful and talented little boy who has a disability. During one of our visits to his Developmental Specialist, it was mentioned that he may benefit from attending the UCLA Intervention Program. I was amazed that [...]

We adopted two toddlers from Russia in 2009. Our son was diagnosed with fetal alcohol syndrome within 10 days of coming home. He was later also diagnosed with autism. His sister was also diagnosed many years later with FASD, but she is another story. Regional Center provided in-home services as [...]

When Dr. Shafali Jeste first started seeing children through UCLA’s Developmental Neurogenetics Clinic, she expected most visits to focus on the medical management of epilepsy, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, or behavioral challenges. Jeste, a behavioral child neurologist, specializes in children with rare genetic variants and syndromes associated with [...]

It's taken me a long time to accept myself. Twenty years ago, when I finally began the process, it was almost impossible to get insurance companies to pay for trans related care of any kind. Around 2002, I intuitively and stubbornly began to do whatever I could to confirm what [...]

How can parents support a child who may be transgender or gender-nonconforming? Research shows that LGTBQ youth have higher rates of depression, substance abuse and suicide attempts; so if you suspect your child may be thinking about these issues, you probably want to help – or at least not make [...]

During the Cuban missile crisis, in 1962, schoolchildren (like myself) were taught to hide under our desks in the event of a nuclear attack. Some “lucky” kid’s parents were building bomb shelters. I didn’t know the ins-and-outs—that the U.S.S.R had begun shipping [...]

Fake news or fact? In today’s world, the difference may be in the eye of the beholder, says Emanuel Maidenberg,  a clinical professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and the director of the UCLA Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Clinic. In a recent [...]