Olivier is a 10-year-old boy who is brought to see you by his mother. She tells you that while he is obviously bright and 'with it', he has never done well in school, as he is unable to adapt to the classroom routine, or get along with his peers.

His mother says that he is always irritable, moody and uncommunicative, but that his moods seem to wax and wane in intensity.

He is physically much smaller than his classmates and has failed to gain much weight in the last two years.

At the interview, Olivier says, tearfully, that he believes that there is definitely something wrong with his brain. He says he sometimes hears voices in his head. He says he can't help what's wrong with him, and that "it isn't my fault". He feels that nobody will ever love him the way he is.

Olivier's mother has bipolar disorder and says that during the depressive phases of her illness she was unable to care for Olivier properly.

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