stomach that was bothering her a little. But she didn't really want to go in and get checked out because she didn't want it to be a problem and her friends told her of times ther stomach had bothered them but it went away and because her doctor hadn't always been right in the past with illnesses anyways. So she lived with it for a year or two. Periodically it bothered her more than other times, and over time it became more uncomfortable. Eventually she went in to see her primary care doc and a referral was made to a specialist. She declined going because she thought the referral was overkill because a specialist would just recommend doing something because that's what they do even if it was no big deal. So she didn't go. A year or two later she went to her primary care doc again and was told again to go to the specialist. But now her stomach was consistently in pain and she was having difficulty eating. So she finally went to the specialist and she was told it sounded like a stomach issue and blood work and imaging were ordered. But the woman did nothing because at this point she was afraid of what it might be and felt like it was better jus not knowing. A year later the specialist's office called the woman to follow up on the testing that had never been done and they learned from her husband that she had died 3 months earlier.

As someone who has been close to people with kids whose lives have been immeasurably improved though therapy, I'd suggest parents treat potential mental conditions with the same degree of seriousness as they treat physical conditions. Parents should doubt anyone who makes generalizations, including some of what Shrier says. Of course for some people discussing a "problem" makes it more of one via reinforcement. But for most the problem is legitimate and gets worse if it's not addressed.

The key isn't to simply hope that what might be a problem isn't really a problem, but to accurately diagnose if it's really a problem and go from there. Don't be the woman in the story. Get your kid help. Always better to go to therapy and then decide - after a good diagnosis and 2 or 3 opinions if needed - that it isn't of a benefit than it is to simply ignore it or pretend it isn't needed.