Table of Contents

Introduction and Foreword by Phil Christie. I. The Early Years. 1. The Key Diagnostic Features of PDA. 2. The Early Warning Signs. 3. Nursery School Begins and Boom! II. The School Years. 4. Things Go from Bad to Worse. 5. A New School and A New Start. 6. An End to Formal Education. III. Understanding Mollie's PDA Behaviours. 7. Difficulties with Social Understanding and Verbal Communication. 8. Routine, Predictability, Fantasy and Obsessions. 9. Summing Up the Difficulties and Empathising with Mollie. IV. Breaking the PDA Cycle. 10. The Cycle of Demand, Control, Avoidance and Meltdown. 11. Strategies that Help Mollie Feel in Control. 12. Strategies for Other Areas of Difficulty – Sensory Issues, Sleep, Transitions, Obsessions, Sexualised Behaviour and More. 13. Getting Schooling Right. 14. PDA Plus. V. Learning to Interact in the Neurotypical World. 15. Mollie Dips Her Toes in the Outside World. 16. Strategies for Teaching the Social Laws and Customs Outside of the Family. VI. Entering the Adolescent Years and Looking to Adulthood. 17. Periods and Puberty. 18. Children with PDA Grow into Adults with PDA. VII. How PDA Has Affected Our Family. 19. Family Dynamics. 20. How Living with PDA Affected My Own Mental Health. 21. Supporting a Family Living with PDA. VIII. Diagnosis. 22. Why Recognition and Diagnosis is So Important. 23. Navigating the Bumpy and Winding Road to Diagnosis. IX. Final Thoughts. 24. The Funny and Endearing Side of PDA. 25. An Interview with Mollie. 26. Our Current Situation and My Hopes for the Future. Appendices. I. A Complete Profile of Mollie's Behaviours and Traits. II. Frequently Asked Questions. III. Useful Resources. References.

Promotional Information

An emotional, insightful account of raising a child with Pathological Demand Avoidance Syndrome (PDA)

About the Author

Jane Alison Sherwin began a successful career in the family business at the age of 19. When her daughter began displaying difficulties in school, eventually being diagnosed with Pathological Demand Avoidance Syndrome (PDA), Jane gave up work to concentrate on being her daughter's carer, teacher, advocate, psychologist, psychiatrist and her mum all rolled into one. The same drive that made her successful in the workplace was now concentrated on her family and a need to understand what drove their unique difficulties. Jane has no professional qualifications in the field of PDA; her knowledge has been self-taught through literature, media and life experience. She lives in Staffordshire, UK.

Reviews

Knowledge and understanding of PDA is still at an early stage, but there are exciting developments happening in diagnostic understanding, greater awareness of successful educational approaches and the perspective that is now being gained from further research...Jane Sherwin's book, the account of the mother of Mollie, a ten-year-old girl with PDA, will add to that knowledge by highlighting the perspective of a parent, as well as giving fascinating glimpses into how the world seems from Mollie's point of view.
*from the foreword and introduction by Phil Christie, Consultant Child Psychologist, The Elizabeth Newson Centre, UK*

My Daughter is Not Naughty charts the up and down journey of Jane and her daughter Mollie as they discover, and then begin learning to live with, Pathological Demand Avoidance syndrome. It is a down-to-earth read that tackles difficult issues with refreshing honesty, but is delivered with the warmth and sensitivity of a mother's touch. This may be Jane and Mollie's story, but the degree to which it will resonate with other "PDA parents," means it could easily be their story too.
*Neville Starnes, PDA parent and member of the PDA Society’s management committee, UK*

Sherwin comes to this subject as a parent as opposed to a professional and her knowledge is self-taught as she came to terms with her daughter's difficulties... (The author) outlines the strategies that she has developed to cope with Mollie's meltdowns and anxieties and her 'huge issues' with sleep... Sherwin writes frankly about how Mollie's PDA has affected her personally and her family and this book is a moving and informative guide.
*SEN Magazine*