On Channel 4 this thursday at 9pm, the new series Born Naughty airs, in which Dr. Dawn Harper from Embarrassing Bodies and Dr Ravi Jayaram help children with behavioural problems and their families.
The inaugural episode follows Honey, a nine year old girl who during filming was diagnosed with PDA - Pathological Demand Avoidance - a form of autism. Prior to her diagnosis, Honey (and her family) had virtually no support which - of course - led to a breakdown in her behaviour. Both Honey and her family hope the programme will raise awareness of PDA which will not only help other struggling families recognise the symptoms of this form of autism, but help wider society be more aware that this is not "bad parenting syndrome" but the expression of a child who is greatly in need of support!
BBC Radio 4's Women's Hour this week included a section with Hone's mother and Dr. Dawn Harper in relation to this programme, which you can listen to on BBC iPlayer. The section starts at around 33 minutes in, but if you scroll down the page you can find a direct link to where the interview begins.
On a personal level, while I am glad for any form of raising awareness about Autism in the media, the title "Born Naughty?" still grates with me, even with the question mark attached! Though at least this is addressed during the radio interview...
What do you think? We welcome your comments, wither here (you can comment below the post) or on Sparkle's Facebook page. Let us know what you think about the programme, or your own experiences as the parent of a child with PDA!
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