Actually, You're Fine - by Katie S Davis (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Clinical neuropsychologist and learning disorder expert Dr. Katie Davis offers a new, illuminating approach to child development, helping you to support your child through their challenges--without leaping to a diagnosis.

As parents, we want nothing more than our child to thrive in each stage of development. Seeing them struggle in that process can be difficult, but sometimes, it's normal. After years of research, Dr. Davis suggests that a diagnosis isn't always the answer helping our kids keep up with the curve.

Actually, You're Fine is a compassionate guide to childhood development that reveals anxiety is natural when it comes to tracking your child's development. Our instinct, when we notice a child struggling, is often to search for a label--to assume that difficulty must signal a disorder. But the rush to pathologize can be harmful for both parents and kids for a range of reasons, from unnecessary medication to misallocation of resources. Rather than feeling capable and ready to take on life's challenges, children can feel that their challenges are unacceptable and taboo. Overdiagnosis can also stigmatize kids who are genuinely struggling.

With actionable insights, Dr. Davis empowers you to advocate for your children at school, and foster their development at home. You'll learn:

• How diagnoses are achieved--and what they actually mean
• Critical information about emergent diagnoses that aren't actually codified--and why this trend can do more harm than good
• The difference between symptoms and diagnoses
• Reasons why your child might be struggling in school, and interventions to help improve their functioning
• How to accurately identify when more support is necessary and navigate the institutions that can provide it
• The various interconnected challenges children can have--cognitive, social, and emotional
• An accessible, realistic approach to maximizing your child's potential in a world of overachievement

Actually, You're Fine offers clear-eyed and empathetic guidance to help parents, caregivers, and educators watch your kids succeed without pathologizing them--while still being able to recognize if a child does need an intervention.

Review Quotes

"Actually, you're going to be more fine if you aren't sure what, if anything, your child needs in terms of a diagnosis, therapy, accommodations, or just the understanding that they're a little different. Compassionate and authoritative, this book is a godsend for parents whipsawed by advice 'not to ignore' potential problems even as they're also advised 'not to make such a big deal' out of them either. Davis explains how we got here, what's going on when a child is evaluated, how flexible the boundaries of 'normal' are, and, most importantly, how to stay sane in a culture bent on driving parents crazy with worry."--Lenore Skenazy, president, Let Grow, author of Free-Range Kids

"This book is outstanding. Dr. Katie blends research, wisdom, and real-life insight into a resource that is both comforting and actionable. You'll walk away feeling more informed, more grounded, and a little kinder to yourself."--Eli Weinstein, LCSW, host of The Dude Therapist podcast, and author of From I Do to We Do

"Actually, You're Fine is Dr. Davis' case for slowing down. She helps readers take a breath and pause before assuming the worst, understanding what's actually normal in child development before reaching for a label that might follow a kid for life. Drawing on real patient stories and the kind of hard-won clinical perspective that only comes from years in the room with families, Davis gives parents something rarer than a diagnosis: context. This book is extremely practical, grounded and a breath of fresh air in a world full of labels and diagnoses."--Shelby Harris, PsyD, DBSM, Clinical Associate Professor of Neurology and Psychiatry, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, author, The Women's Guide to Overcoming Insomnia and The Essential Guide to Children's Sleep

"Dr. Davis puts into words what I've been saying in clinics and coaching sessions for years. Actually, You're Fine is a necessary correction to a culture that's too quick to label kids who are simply still developing. Every parent and educator needs this perspective."--Michael McLeod, MA, founder of GrowNOW ADHD, author of The Executive Function Playbook

"In a culture that pathologizes everything from shyness to Saturday-morning meltdowns, caregivers deserve better than a label. Actually, You're Fine cuts through the rush to diagnose and equips parents and caregivers with the science and the skepticism to tell real disorder from ordinary childhood struggle, and to advocate effectively for their kids either way. An essential read for anyone raising a young person today."--Yael Schonbrun, Brown University psychologist and author of Work, Parent, Thrive and Why Don't You Understand Me?

About the Author

Katie S. Davis, PsyD., is a clinical neuropsychologist who provides psychotherapy and cognitive remediation to children with learning disorders and related developmental disorders. She is an assistant professor in the Combined School-Clinical Child Psychology Psy.D. Program at Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Yeshiva University. She presents her research on neurodevelopmental disorders, learning disabilities, and child mental health regularly at national conferences and publishes frequently in peer-reviewed academic journals, including Cognitive Neurology, Developmental Science, Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, and Annals of Family Medicine. Dr. Davis has been featured as an expert in Inside Edition, New York Magazine, Psychology Today, and Reader's Digest. She lives in New York City with her family.