Many children and young people whoâve suffered traumatic life experiences are given the label of ADHD and/or ASD and sometimes medication without anyone ever asking what has happened to them in their life or hearing their story. The trouble is, there are many overlapping presenting symptoms between these two diagnoses and living with traumatic stress and a mind in torment. Being wrongly diagnosed then often results in yet more suffering for the traumatised child/young person as they are left with the fallout from their trauma, without appropriate intervention to help them heal.
In this webinar, Dr Sunderland will also explore how to differentiate the behavioural, relational and emotional manifestations of trauma from those of ADHD and Autism Spectrum. Additionally, moving case material illustrates what can happen when a misdiagnosis has taken place, focusing on prevention and intervention.
Dr Sunderland will also speak of the allure of âspotting the symptomâ and giving a psychiatric diagnosis when this often means not holding in mind the wider social context of childrenâsâ lives and the relational causes of their emotional distress. She will explore how it is all too easy to end up thinking about disorders rather than thinking about how children have been become very dysregulated by parental mental health problems or how life experiences have left them feeling deeply unsafe, betrayed, terrified or overwhelmed by the pain of loss.
This learning module is available to watch from 20 May 2026 until 1 December 2026.
Dr Margot Sunderland is Director of Education and Training at The Centre for Child Mental Health London, Co-Director Trauma Informed Schools UK, Founding Director, Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education (academic partner of University of East London), and Child and Adult Psychotherapist with over thirty years experience.
Thank you for our friends at Trauma Informed Schools UK for this training.
This module can also be found in the Neurodivergence and Trauma sections of the Learning Area.
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