Introducing Easy to Love but Hard to Raise

I’m always touched when a new reader leaves a comment on this blog saying that she’s glad she found it and that it helps to know she’s not alone in her attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADD/ADHD) parenting journey.

That’s what this blog is all about: parents offering each other comfort, strength, and hope by sharing what we have in common, in terms of the feelings, experiences, and stages we go through as we raise our neurologically diverse children.

As some of you may know, when I haven't been busy writing this blog and raising my daughter, Natalie, who has ADD/ADHD and other special needs, and my neurotypical son, Aaron, I've also spent the last two years coediting a book, Easy to Love but Hard to Raise, an anthology of intensely honest, personal stories written by parents of kids with ADD/ADHD, learning disabilities (LD), and other alphabet soup conditions about their parenting experiences.

Thirty-two parents contributed their stories to the book -- some you may have heard of: ADDitudeMag.com ADD/ADHD Dad Blogger Frank South; Jeanne Kraus, author of Cory Stories: A Kid’s Book About Living With ADD/ADHD and Annie’s Plan: Taking Charge of Schoolwork and Homework; and Laura Grace Weldon, author of Free Range Learning: How Homeschooling Changes Everything. Others you’ll feel honored to meet: Robin Rhodes, who struggles to manage her own bipolar disorder as she teaches her son, Lucais, to live with the disease; Laura Boss, who likens giving ADD/ADHD meds to her son, Nathan, to dancing with a devil; and Barbara Claypole White, who is thrilled when her son, Zach, calls her an asshole because she knows it is a sign that he’s beating back his obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Many experts also contributed to the book. Everyone’s favorite ADD/ADHD guru and a member of ADDitude’s scientific advisory board, Edward Hallowell, M.D., wrote the foreword. (My coeditor and I were brave enough, and naive enough, to start at the top when looking for someone to write the foreword. That turned out to be a good strategy!)  I cried when I first read it. For the dozens (hundreds) of people you'll encounter who do not get ADD/ADHD, it is great to have Dr. Hallowell on our side: The man really gets it. Patricia Quinn, M.D., also a member of ADDitude’s advisory board, shared her special expertise on ADD/ADHD in adolescent girls and on college prep for high schoolers with ADD/ADHD or LD. Twenty-three other well-known experts addressed themes that were prevalent in the parent-authors’ stories, ones you're likely to recognize, answering questions like: Why do these medicines suddenly stop working? How can I help my child make friends? How can I meet the needs of my challenging child’s neurotypical siblings?

I’m proud to announce that the book, Easy to Love but Hard to Raise: Real Parents, Challenging Kids, True Stories is now available for preorder! Although the book won’t be widely available until the official release in February 2012, the publisher, DRT Press, has planned a special limited release beginning in November. Preorder Easy to Love now through January 20, 2012, direct from the publisher (you’ll receive 30 percent off the cover price).

On behalf of my coeditor, Adrienne Ehlert Bashista, and all of Easy to Love’s contributors, thanks for letting me share my exciting news through this blog. (I promise not to plug the book too often as we move forward!)