Anne Ford

Stigma is one of the meanest and most difficult aspects of having a child with learning disabilities and related disorders. We may not be able to change the way society feels overnight, but we can help lessen the pain caused by stigma. The answer is Acceptance and Resilience. In their new book, The Stigmatized Child: "Mommy, am I stupid?" Helping Parents Overcome the Stigma Attached to Learning Disabilities, ADHD, and Lack of Social Skills, Anne Ford and John-Richard Thompson explore the different forms of stigma, such as the stigma faced by children from classmates and friends and from society. Parents, too can suffer the effects of stigma and often react by denying or trying to hide their child's disabilities. In The Stigmatized Child they share stories from other parents and their children, and offer advice from professionals on how to deal with the often painful and long-lasting effects of stigma.

An indispensable guide to the special challenges faced by parents of learning-disabled children as they enter adulthood, by the author of Laughing Allegra, a leading activist and parent of an adult child with LD. In 2003 Anne Ford (great-granddaughter of Henry Ford) published Laughing Allegra, about the struggles of raising her learning-disabled daughter, and received a flood of letters from parents of children with LD, ADD, and ADHD, many expressing concerns about what to do as their children age. On Their Own is an invaluable road map to ease these parents'' fears and answer their questions, especially the one that haunts them daily: Will or can their child be on their own, and how? In a candid, sympathetic style, laced with real-life stories, the book covers such topics as: Social skills and dating Staying healthy Sibling relationships Interaction with employers and co-workers Job hunting Finding the right college or trade school Estate planning Also included are a comprehensive resource guide and exclusive interviews with prominent professionals who have surmounted their learning disabilities: CEO''s Sir Richard Branson, John Chambers, David Neeleman, and Charles Schwab, and former governor Gaston Caperton.

Ford shares with other parents of disabled children the lessons she learned while coping with her daughter's severe learning disability, a challenge that neither money nor position could ease.