NEWS photo fan Smith THE OMNIPOTENT Child was the topic of discussion by child psychiatrist Thomas Millar at North Vancouver City Library recently, and March 8 he will be speaking at Caulfeild Elemen- tary School Library, 4685 Keith Rd., West Van., at 7 p.m. Tickets are $2. Dr. Millar entertains and teaches with his humorous talk. | A.E.Lt PAGE 25th Anniversary 1959 — 1984 i The name friends REAL ESTATE SERVICES | TD + REALTOR recommend Janet Blue Bus: 985-9544 For successful marketing of your home... Please... Ceali sme at Caneace’s #1 Reali Estate Company. A.E. LePage North Shore Bantam Girls Basketball Champions — ENTRANCE EXAM (for Grade 8 applicants only) Thursday, March 8, 1984 (12 noon) Applications are being received for 8 9-12 Please contact the school SATIN THOMAS AQUINAS HIGH @C HOOT, S41 Weat Keith Road North Vancouver, BC SN eT Sa OA7 4438) for describing children, OMNIPOTENT seems to be a rather large. word . but then Dr. Thomas — Millar, a West Vancouver child psychiatrist, says “p —— | C hiatry is difficul that omnipotent children are a rather large pr sychiatry is difficult to problem. In his book The Omnipo- tent Child, Millar talks about egocentric children who see themselves as being unlimited in power, ability and authori- ty. They are children who have come out of what Millar describes as the ‘‘*me’’ generation. They are self- centred, impatient beings who have never been proper- ly disciplined. ‘*Discipline has had a bad press in the last couple of decades,’’ Millar says in his book. ‘‘For some, discipline has become a dirty word. It has come to miean the same as punishment. And even punishment has been mis- understood. DISCIPLINE DEFINED ‘““Webster defines discipline as training which corrects, moulds or perfects, and this is what the term means when it is used in this book.’’ To the parenting books that came out of the °50Qs, Millar attributes this over- sensitive attitude towards discipline. Parents were urg- ed to be easier with their children: give them more rein, don’t inhibit them in any way. Unfortunately, though, children who are indulged continue to be self-satisfying and wilful throughout life, and when reality steps in the way and the child cannot satisfy his needs, Millar ex- plains that he becomes frustrated and impatient, which also leads to low self- esteem. Allin all, not a pretty picture, but a common one. Minar believes through discipline a child learns that 985-9544 Sonat FISHER he cannot have everything he wants, and there are other needs in the world besides his own. Through this learning process, the child breaks his egocentricity and learns to socialize and respond to others. MAKE. IT CLEAR An important factor in child rearing, Millar stresses, is for the parent to make ex- pectations clear. ‘It is enforcing expecta- tions that promotes adaptive growth, not lowering the sights to accommodate the child,’ Millar emphasizes. This applies to both parents and teachers. Millar’s wealth of ex- perience comes from his 25 years of psychiatric practice, and from raising his four children. He says he couldn’t imagine a psychiatrist dealing with children if he didn’t have any of his own. When Millar first started his practice, his clients in- cluded adults, adolescents and children. He then limited YOU SAVE MORE IN ’84 OVER 68,000 PROFESSIONAL HAIRCUTS HE UNDER CUTTERS RETAIL Se CENTRES HOME OF a open 6 days a week MON. - WED. 8am - 6 pm THURS. & FRI. NIGHTS TILL 0 pr SAT. 8am - Spm 1864 MARINE DR., WEST VAN. WE CAN REALLY CUT IT! “MORE MARVELOUS © it to only adolescents and ~childrén and finally just children. ‘actise on adults,’’ Millar said in. an interview, *“because they’re usually not cured, This discouraged and bothered me. It’s much more rewarding with children, more effective. Kids say the most priceless. things; they’re very entertaining.”’ THEY COOPERATE Millar doesn’t mind deal- ing with difficult children, because he knows that after about five visits they'll start to cooperate. He smiles and recalls one child who said to him after several visits, ‘‘Do you remember when I used to be a brat?’’ Those are the rewar- ding times. Unfortunately, Millar says there are some children who abuse the children help-lines, and they report their parents as child beaters. ‘*Distortions creep into the system that are frightening. There a lot of cases that Human Resources’ should concentrate on. The children who abuse it need a good spanking,’’ he says. Millar’s overall! theory is that children need ‘‘parenting which not only nurtures the child, but disciplines him.’’ 00 |. FOR MARCH” CONTINUED ‘TIL MARCH 17TH THE UNDERCUTTERS PERM S “COLD WAVE” 99 B.C.'s LARGEST SELECTION OF IN-SALON PRODUCTS AT _ VERY AFFORDABLE PRICES REDKEN NUCLEIC ‘A’ DON SULLIVAN K.M.S. CLAIROL SCHWARTZKOPF JOICO APPLE PECTIN HELENE CURTIS