What is a developmental neurobehavioral issue?

Children who are sometimes thought to be difficult, lazy or unmotivated often have an unrecognized neurobehavioral issue. These issues are identified by a specific pattern of cognitive, social, emotional, and/or behavioral difficulty. There are a variety of neurobehavioral issues including:

• Language-based learning disability
• Nonverbal learning disability
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
• Tourette’s Syndrome
• Autistic Spectrum Disorder
• Visual Spatial Learning Disorder
• Executive Function Disorder
• Asperger’s Syndrome

What resources are available to help my children, families, teachers or professionals?

Rush NeuroBehavioral Center (RNBC) offers multiple disciplines and coordinated services within a single clinical environment to address the needs of children, families, teachers, and other professionals.

In addition to the services we provide, many schools, hospitals, universities, and community organizations offer resources to a child with neurobehavioral disorders.

Will my child be okay?

Yes… your child IS okay. With the appropriate diagnosis, treatment, and support your child will be
able to achieve his or her full potential academ-ically, socially, and emotionally. As a child learns compensatory strategies through coaching, tutoring, and remediation, he or she learns to build on strengths.

In fact, many famous and successful people in business, sports, entertainment, and academia, have had neurobehavioral issues and went on to achieve great things. Actors such as Dustin Hoffman, John Travolta, Henry Winkler, Whoopi Goldberg, Cher, and James Earl Jones; entre-preneurs Paul Orfalea (Kinko’s) and Charles Schwab; athletes Bruce Jenner, Jackie Stewart, Dexter Manley and Magic Johnson; writers Stephen J. Cannell and Marc Flanagan as well as Isaac Mizrahi and Bill Waterston have neurobehavioral challenges.

What sorts of professionals should I go to for help?

If you suspect your child has a neurobehavioral issue, call us at Rush NeuroBehavioral Center and set up an appointment for an initial visit.

We will be able to make a diagnosis, based on the work and assessment of one or more of our professional disciplines, depending on the needs of the child.

Your child may be evaluated by a neuropsychologist, pediatric neurologist, psychiatrist, psycho-educational diagnostician, or a learning disability specialist.

What are the various treatments?

At Rush NeuroBehavioral Center, we believe in a multidisciplinary approach for diagnosis and treatment of children with neurobehavioral disorders. Professionals analyze data, make a diagnosis, and determine appropriate treatments for the child.

A child with academic difficulties often benefits from executive function tutoring. Depending on the diagnosis, medication may be prescribed and monitored by a physician on our staff. A child with social-emotional difficulties might participate in individual or group social skill training. A variety of other treatments and interventions are available.

Treatments are selected to match not only the diagnosis, but also the specific characteristics of the child. Treatment is coordinated by the diagnostician and the treatment provider on an ongoing basis.