“Quirky Kids” Co-Author Eileen Costello Talks with Families
and Staff at Thom Boston Metro 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Boston, February 2006 - Dr. Eileen Costello, Jamaica Plain pediatrician and co-author with colleague, Dr. Perri Klass, of Quirky Kids: Understanding & Helping Your Child Who Doesn’t Fit In - When to Worry and When Not to Worry, (Ballantine, 2004) spoke to a packed house of Thom staff and families on January 25th, 2006. Dr. Costello spoke about her book and drew from her experiences and understandings of how to work and live with children whose behavior may range from eccentric to down right challenging.

Dr. Costello shed light on the often confusing diagnoses that are frequently given to “quirky” children such as: Asperger’s syndrome, sensory integration dysfunction, learning disability, obsessive-compulsive disorder. She balanced anecdotes drawn from her own experience as a pediatrician and parent with helpful information and resources. Dr. Costello also discussed the benefits of early identification and intervention and a variety of therapeutic approaches, but first and foremost, Dr. Costello stressed that “children should never be reduced to their diagnoses”. As Dr. Costello says, her book was written to help families “navigate” and to help them to “do what they want most: know, recognize and appreciate their children and help them to grow and thrive.” This message came across again and again in Dr. Costello’s presentation and in the questions and answers that followed. Thom Boston Metro Early Intervention is incredibly fortunate to count Dr. Eileen Costello as a neighbor and community partner in our work with children and families in Boston.