Attention Deficit

Attention Deficit Disorder/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD) versus Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)

Parents severely struggling with their young child’s attitude often turn to their family practitioners for a diagnosis that can be treatable with a lifetime subscription to mood altering medications. This is due, in part, to the similarities of ADD (or even ADHD) and ODD.

Children displaying ADHD symptoms in the classroom often leave teachers exhausted and frustrated as they attempt to properly educate every student in their classroom. Teachers that genuinely feel a student may be displaying ADHD symptoms will refer those students out for further evaluation in an effort to best assist that student and maintain coherence in the classroom.

Motivating Your ADHD Child to Control Himself

As we’ve discussed before on this site, the purpose of teaching discipline is so that your child will eventually learn how to govern his own actions. For the ADHD child and his parents, this can be a daunting task. It takes persistence and consistency. You have to be committed to your child and the methods you choose, but it can be done, and it can be done without medication. There are a few things that you must understand before you get started.

Testing That Proves Conclusively Whether or Not Your Child Will Respond Well to Medication?

One of the biggest debates within the ADHD community is whether or not to medicate. Parents sometimes feel pushed by teachers and administrators to medicate their child so that the child will be more manageable in the classroom. Teachers and administrators have an entire classroom to consider when recommending whether or not to medicate a particular student. And after all of the angst that goes into the decision to medicate, parents are often left second-guessing themselves and wondering if they made the right decision. It would be so much easier if a simple scientific test could give parents inside information on whether or not to medicate. While there is still much research to be done, a new study is shedding light on genetic markers that may predict whether or not a child will respond well to pharmacological treatment of ADHD.

Teachers are given specific guidelines to follow with ADD/ADHD learners. If you have a child with the disorder, you should make yourself aware of the techniques that the teacher in your child’s room is using to educate your child. This will help you work with the teacher, and you may have better suggestions for her to follow, since no one child is the same and you know your child better than anyone. Every parent should partner with his child’s teacher in order to provide his child with the best education possible.

For anyone who parents a child with a neurological disorder, knowing when and how to discipline is challenging. ADHD parents have an especially hard time since the symptoms of the disorder cause their children to be disorganized, hyperactive, and unfocused. This makes it especially hard to discern when to extend grace to the child, considering that his disorder is the cause of his behavior, and when to hold the child accountable.

Those who feel that holistic medicine practices are more successful than typical Western medicine practices now have new scientific research to back their claims. A recent study shows that there may be a direct link between spinal health and the function of the brain. ADHD, which causes an inability to focus, stay organized, and causes excess hyperactivity in those who have the disorder, is one of the most common neurological conditions in the U.S.

The occurrence of ADHD in children and adolescents has grown exponentially during recent years. The use of medication to treat ADHD has more than tripled, leading to an estimated 1 in 25 children and teens in the U.S who are medicated. The three main symptoms of the disorder are inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. Because these symptoms can impact school, socialization skills, and organization, parents often choose to medicate their children without exploring other options, such as new disciplinary techniques, first.

Recently, I had a conversation with the parent of a 9 year-old child who has ADHD. He expressed frustration over her inability to be organized, and fear over her future with this disorder. “What’s going to happen when she has a job and can’t remember things, or focus on a task? What happens then? She has to learn at some point how to do those things!” He exclaimed to me in frustration.

Information That Parents of ADHD Teens Should Have Before Handing Over the Keys