Posted on 09/30/2012 11:37:29 AM PDT by goodwithagun
I'm interested in how your child's ADHD diagnosis came about and how it affects your lives. I'm particularly interested in those using non-medical approaches to ADHD treatment such as vitamin/mineral supplementation and diet.
get your kid involved in sports, the more energy burned off before school, during school and after school, the better. Try everything you can before drugging. Mostly adhd is a war on boys, and comes from the commie take over of school and equal outcomes. I would get out of traditional schooling and find a charter that can handle it. Diet can also be a factor. Get ride of sucrose, find a low glycimic diet. But mostly, the more activity, physical, the better concentration you’ll see. Lastly if your kids is smart, boredom is an extreme exacerbation.
Reading these replies I wonder if one can’t tell if it’s really ADHD until the child becomes an adult?
I don’t agree that it is a made up illness but I believe it is over-diagnosed. The neighbor kid was a constant motion and talking machine. She would be constantly into something and always tormenting the siblings for not being equally active (she called them lazy, stupid etc.). When told not to put a magnet next to a mechanical wrist watch, she looked at the adult who gave that instruction and immediately stuck the magnet to the watch. When chastised she became over wrought and demanded to know what she did wrong. And then she was in motion again, asking to bake a cake and then begging and eventually crying because she wasn’t allowed to bake a cake and there’s “nothing to do” and she’s bored. She stomped out of the room to go torment her siblings for being lazy and stupid.
She found the youngest sibling reading a book so she sat next to her and began whistling in the reader’s ear. When the younger child protested, the older child yelled that no one ever wanted to play or do anything and that she was bored. “You just SIT there and READ!”
When ‘invited to do the dishes’, she accused mom of being ‘mean’ and protested that she was the only member of the family who ever did anything etc. She was angst driven that others could entertain themselves or sit reading a book; it meant she was alone and bored.
When she reached high school she was said to have an IQ of 120 but brought home D’s because she wasn’t able/willing to sit and study. In each of these instances, no amount of parental involvement seemed to do anything and it was prior to the idea that this was a syndrome or there were drugs to help.
As an adult she readily identified with the commercials re ADHD which said it was like listening to multiple television channels with the radio going and someone talking to her - she couldn’t concentrate at work.
The drug Concerta actually helped - something she thought was impossible. She had never been able to sort through the garage due to lack of attention but if taking Concerta, she could stay working in the garage for 4 hours, a novel experience for her (never stayed with any task that long before). She said her mind would wander as it always did but then there was the strange sensation of her attention being pulled back on task by 4 or 5 rubber bands.
I do think ADHD is real and that some drugs help some people; what I haven’t seen yet is how to tell if you’re dealing with an over prescribed situation or one which would respond to treatment. Sorry I don’t have info but I guess I wanted to encourage and root for you; it won’t always be like this (stating the obvious, I know)
Back in the 90s both my boys were diagnosed with ADHD. The determination wasn’t based on any particular scientific standards. My thought was that it was a way for school teachers to lul young male students into some kind of drug induced passive conduct. Yep, if the kid doesn’t fit, drug him or her!
I refused to drug my sons.
One son is an A student in college and leads a productive life. The other son is a decorated combat veteran of the war on terror. Twice, no less!
My advice. Stay away from drugging your kids! Better living through chemistry is a bad joke!
Absolutely correct! CHUB permotes ADHD but makes and sells the drug to treat ADHD!
Caffeine has been known to calm hyper kids down.
This sounds just like my son before he went on stimulant medication for medical diagnosis of ADHD and eventually a mood stabilizer for medical diagnosis of bipolar disorder.
He had terrible self esteem from always being disciplined and being avoided by the other children who didn't want to be friends with such a child, not to mention parents making sure that their child avoided playing with my child.
He just earned his BA from SMU where he had been awarded a full scholarship for five semesters of study (worth $100k+) after excelling at Collin County Community College while earning his associates degree. He would have graduated a year earlier if he hadn't decided to go off all of his meds after his freshman year...and run off to Hawaii to pick pineapples...which seemed to be a good idea off of his meds. I don't know why a person would decide in advance not to try stimulants, if there was the possibility that it could change their child's life dramatically for the better, as it did with my son.
That was in the late Forties.
In kindergarten we relied on a 504 plan and behavior modification and therapeutic techniques provided by an occupational therapist (Sensory Integration Dysfunction was a side diagnosis based on an OT evaluation)
In 2d grade we got at our expense a complete neurosychological evaluation that diagnosed fetal alcohol exposure (he was adopted) and a raft of learning disabilities.
The effect on the fetal brain of exposure to not just alcohol but any number of chemicals or maternal exposures including oxygen deprivation or other factors before or during birth, can be subtle but devastating as the child grows and faces demands for functions such as self regulation.
In our case medication was a godsend and made it possible for him to be able to be part of a group, to learn to read by 4th grade and to do quite well in 5th grade. I have homeschooledhim since then. He could not learn or participate in normal social interactions without medications.
Do not be offput by the idiot comments about ADHD being a made-up disease controllable by better parenting, less sugar, more exercise and spanking.
True ADHD is on the same spectrum as autism and is a real real disorder that should be diagnosed by a psychlogist and treated by therapy that includes a child psychiatrist. The cause can be difficult to determine, do not beat yourselves up. You may never know the underlying cause, especially if you tried to do everything "right" even before he was born. Getting a diagnosis makes it easier to be compassionate, patient, and an advocate for your child.
Stay focused for your child. You know he's different and he knows he's different, and being different if untreated is quite devastating to him as he matures.
ADHD can be controlled so the difference does not devastate his ability to be part of a group, to be accepted by other adults and children, and to suffer damage to his own self esteem as the kid who is always yelled at or excluded... the kid who "cant sit still" and can't pay attention"
The ADHD and other experts we have seen, and special ed teachers in particular, have been compassionate skilled and knowledgeable.
People with ADHD (or ADD, inattentive without hyper) who go untreated can find ways to self-medicate by or before their their teens- smoking, drinking or drugs, acting out or risk-taking behaviors. Don't want to go there
Vyvanse has been a wonder medication for our son.
Thanks for sharing your experience as an adult.
There are sites that simulate for us “normal” folks what it is like to be ADHD- God Bless!
In the beginning I asked my pediatrician if putting our son on medication would lead him to get addicted to his ADHD meds-she said “no, but he may get addicted to being able to act normally”.
I never forgot that.
I thought the same thing when I read that- child sounds aspie or autism spectrum. Which ADHD behaviors are part of the package.
Hope OP goes and gets a true medical diagnosis, it could be a life changer (for the better)
That’s not the question. The question is, “Is there a freeper whose kids are NOT dignosed as ADHD!?”
This ADHD crap is just that, crap, along with the other dreamed up popular maladay, what is it, AUTISM!
Just about all of them.
This ADHD crap is just that, crap, along with the other dreamed up popular maladay, what is it, AUTISM!
What a vile thing to say.
And you haven't been around here long enough to know you have no clue what in heaven's name you are talking about.
You mean "how come it wasn't discovered" till the 70's? Trust me ... it existed. I've struggled with it all my life. Sure wish they did diagnose it back in the day. Perhaps I'd have done better.
I resisted as long as I could with my kids, but no longer. They take medication for it and they're able to concentrate and get their tasks done. We do NOT medicate on weekends and during summer. I wish we didn't have to at all, but we do. I hate it. I hate the disorder. It's so frustrating.
You’re an A-Hole.
He's now a nuke on one of our fast attack subs.
A profession well-suited for someone with ADHD. Main thing is to find a profession that a person with ADHD finds exciting in order to hold his attention. Being a paramedic is an excellent choice.
Being here for a specific length of time has nothing to do with knowledge or the ability to give an opinion on any given subject. How is it vile to challenge either of these notions. Quite a silly reply, imo.
My opinion is that there are waaay too many diagnoses of at least ADHD (and ADD, for that matter). So many that they are highly suspect. The levels of our children being on drugs is the highest it’s ever been. Sure, the technology may have advanced so much that it is easier to detect, but I still do not buy it. It smacks of trumped up standards of detection to feed the hungry machine of the pharma and medical commmunity.
Re autism, not so much, but again, it seems to be everywhere. Why? Methods of detection? The spread of information by the web? You can tweek the thresholds only so slightly to achieve the desired outcome. These businesses need to be watched closely.
This was your question that I found extremely offensive:
“Is there a freeper whose kids are NOT dignosed as ADHD!?”
Considering the general level of skepticism shown by most FReepers, if one says their child, or his/herself, has been diagnosed I will take it to the bank he or she has exhausted all avenues to do what is best.
Has there been over zealousness in diagnosis, of course and that is why I trust those FReepers who have experience with the issue as opposed to those who just want to blow it off as a lack of parenting or laziness on the part of parents.
Over time, the body becomes accustomed to the meds, and higher doses may be required at some time in the future. For that reason, I take "holidays" where I will go from 2-3 days to a week with no meds. When I start back, they seem to work better for some time. It also reassures me that there is no dependency.
Where can I find the ADD simulation website? I'd like to see that.
I never noticed any difference in the ADD with or without the vitamins. I've gotten away from my vitamins lately, and haven't taken Magnesium in a few years. I'll try it again and see if I notice a difference. Any particular formulation of magnesium?
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