Some children and young people grow and develop, from an early age, with difficulties or issues that arise from the functioning of their brain.
The Paediatric Neurodevelopmental Team at CAMHS focuses on the assessment of these difficulties and it's likely that you will have heard of most of them:
A Neurodevelopmental Concern
You have arrived at this page on the CAMHS website because the concern you have relates to a possible neurodevelopmental difficulty.
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
- Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
- Intellectual Disability (ID), which used to be known as Learning Difficulties
- Tics and Tourettes
There are many reasons why a young person might behave or function in ways that seem different from their peers. It’s important to think about other things that might be impacting on how you’re feeling and how you are behaving before exploring the possibility of it being a neurodevelopmental disorder. Difficulties can arise because of recent changes or challenges or if you have had more difficulties to deal with in your life than peers your own age.
Talking to someone who knows you, like your parents, carers or teacher is a good place to start. You can also ask to talk with a school nurse, GP or perhaps a social worker if you have one.
Whoever you talk to will ask you to tell them about the kinds of problems or worries you are having so that they can think about the right kind of help for you. The 4 questions below might also help. If you answer yes to most or all of them, it might be that requesting an appointment for you with the Paediatric Neurodevelopmental team at CAMHS is the next step.
Talking to someone who knows you, like your parents, carers or teacher is a good place to start. You can also ask to talk with a school nurse, GP or perhaps a social worker if you have one.
Whoever you talk to will ask you to tell them about the kinds of problems or worries you are having so that they can think about the right kind of help for you. The 4 questions below might also help. If you answer yes to most or all of them, it might be that requesting an appointment for you with the Paediatric Neurodevelopmental team at CAMHS is the next step.
Do I need support from CAMHS?
- Are the difficulties you are having out of sync with your age and stage of development? Do you often feel you function differently to friends of the same age?
- It is having a negative impact on more than one area of your life (e.g. difficult for you at home and in school, or in the community).
- You’ve tried other things in the past but they haven’t helped.
- The difficulties you experience have been around for a long time and there hasn’t been a time you can remember where they haven’t been around?
Is there anything else I can do?
A good starting point would be our Common Concerns and Information pages, full of information and advice. The neurodevelopmental and mental health resources sections are also likely to be helpful for finding additional support and information.
