ABSTRACT
This chapter is about why and how children and young people are assessed and labelled with developmental disorders such as ADHD, ODD and ASC/D, as well as the meaning for young people of labels such as LAC. The author argues against pathologising ordinary emotion, such as sadness and anxiety, and instead illustrates ways of helping children and young people to recognise and make sense of their feelings. References to Winnicott highlight the significance of the mother/infant interaction, with particular emphasis on the holding function of the maternal gaze. For children and young people who have not experienced good-enough mothering, the therapeutic space can recreate the function of mirroring and containment in order to help children and young people to make sense of their emotional states
