Help for ADHD? - Page 2

[Emmeline II]

Originally Posted by melissa17s 

I don't know.   I think evaluation outside of school will be expensive and yield little results especially since jdsf stated they are not interested in testing.  I am not really seeing the ADHD except some with the memory, but is not enough to impair her, if it is adhd.  Maybe enroll her in a martial arts program or an exercise program.  Both are good form of natural treatment for ADHD and are great for kids with out ADHD, too. 

It seems that it is impairing her to some degree.

It's more expensive than a typical co-pay but an evaluation at a hospital based clinic is around $300, depending on how one's insurance works. Schools often get it wrong, particularly with more subtle issues that seem like "obvious" instances of laziness or lack of will power. ADHD symptoms are shared with other diagnoses, so it is possible that it isn't the problem. School evaluations for ADHD tend to focus on symptoms of hyperactivity, using an evaluation like Conners which isn't useful in identifying ADHD-PI. And though ADHDers benefit from exercise to some degree like everyone else, it isn't a "treatment" for ADHD.

[melissa17s]

Originally Posted by Emmeline II 

 And though ADHDers benefit from exercise to some degree like everyone else, it isn't a "treatment" for ADHD.

Actually, it is thanks to info about adhd drugs that you posted in other threads that I did learn that exercise IS a treatment for adhd.  There are numbers of articles about.  It is not always the best or only treatment an individual needs, but it is good at releasing chemicals that focus attention and control impulsivity.  On a personal level, we have seen ds make more academic break throughs when he is physically active.  We did talk to his psych about this and she agreed that it was good to encourage physical activity whether organized or not.  http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/3142.html  

[kasihmama]

hi friends..Im new here from Malaysia. My eldest son, will turn 12 this oct was diagnosed with ADHD last 2 years. Before we knew he got ADHS, we sent him to martial arts. He did like the class but he did not perform very well. We withdrew him.

Now, our specialist gives him Ritalin but he refused to take it. It reduces his appetite, dont want to eat or even drink. I like to know if there any other drugs or treatment for him besides Ritalin.

His behavior is up and down. He can read but extremely DO NOT want to write. This is his major problem. Even our specialist found this very strange. His writing is very bad. It takes a long hours for him to complete one sentence. He can and will write when he want to.

Sometimes, I was very frustrated and turn off.

Please advise and I really hope to get some opinions and suggestions here.

Thank you.

Kasihmama.

[queenjane]

Originally Posted by blessedwithboys 

No, it doesn't mean the child can't focus at times.  Something that is especially engaging, like a favorite TV show or video game, can keep a child with attention deficit entertained for hours.  This varies from one individual to the next, of course.  It doesn't indicate "control".

Hyperfocusing is one trait associated with ADHD...but i thought the OP meant more like she will remember to flush at school, but not at home. That seems to be different.

[Cyllya]

I have all the symptoms of ADHD inattentive-type, and I think never getting a diagnosis as a kid ended up screwing me over. Even though the symptoms were there when I was a kid, they didn't really cause me any problems at school and only a few problems at home (forgetting to flush the toilet was one I had trouble with, in fact).

I think a sign on the wall might help, but you'd have to change the sign every day or two. That's assuming she doesn't find the sign condescending. Maybe an ADHD therapist could convince her not to be too offended by your nagging?

Personally, I think I wouldn't have minded if my parents reminded me about the toilet as I came out and they didn't hear it flush, but they'd always go find it unflushed later when I was in the middle of something, and they'd make me stop and flush it then. So annoying!

Originally Posted by melissa17s 

If it is true ADHD, then food will not change it.  

"True" ADHD or not, a lot of people seem to have ADHD symptoms caused or exacerbated by certain substances. I've never heard of it having much to do with carb, sugar, or veggie intake though... except that certain fruits and vegetables can actually make the problem worse.

It seems like the diet treatments are more for hyperactivity/impulsiveness than attention problems however.... I'm not sure if anyone uses it to treat inattentive-type ADHD.

Originally Posted by Jen Muise 

wait a minute, I thought that ADHD/ADD meant that they can't focus even if they want to?  If she can remember some places but not at home, doesn't that selectiveness mean she *is* in control?

 

Remembering to flush the toilet? Heck no, that's totally going to be different at different locations. It's not like she just hasn't grasped the concept of toilet flushing. You use your own toilet so often that you're just sort of on auto-pilot through the whole process, and if there's some step that never got programmed into your auto-pilot for some reason, you're going to skip it and not even realize you skipped it until something alerts you to it later. But when you use someone else's bathroom, you're more fully aware in the whole thing. Unless it's a friend whose bathroom you use a lot.

Quote:

Originally Posted by blessedwithboys 

No, it doesn't mean the child can't focus at times.  Something that is especially engaging, like a favorite TV show or video game, can keep a child with attention deficit entertained for hours.  This varies from one individual to the next, of course.  It doesn't indicate "control".

Yeah, plus being "engaged" doesn't necessarily mean concentrating.... Video games, books (depending on your reading skill compared to the book), and TV can all be enjoyed even if you can't concentrate well. Just because you see a kid playing a game and staring intently at the screen for two hours doesn't mean he didn't find himself thinking, "Wait, what was I just doing...?" over a hundred times in those two hours. (In fact, my DP coined the term "Questing ADD" to refer to our behavior in some of these games... and I don't think my DP even has ADHD.) Video games in particular seem to be pretty ADHD-friendly--at least modern games. They either give you one task at a time, to do over a short period, OR they give you a built in to-do list which will inevitably have bazillions of tasks on it.

But just try to program a video game when you have attention problems... Ugh. I feel like I need to do mental gymnastics but my brain is the mental equivelent of a big fat unflexible out-of-shape person....

[adultwithadd]

Kasihmama -

There are a number of medications other than Ritalin that are available. If your son doesn't like to take it because it eliminates his appetite, I totally understand. Unfortunately, that is a common side effect of stimulant ADHD medications. Here are a few other options. They are almost all stimulant options, but some are extended-release form (one pill in the morning) instead of multiple pills:

1) Adderall (also a stimulant)

2) Concerta - extended-release Ritalin (basically)

3) Adderall XR (extended-release stimulant)

4) Strattera - this one is non-stimulant, and it can be expensive since it is relatively new. I live in the USA, so I'm not sure how prescription costs differ in Malaysia.

My advice is to speak with him and his doctor and get your son to agree to try something for a month. Many medications take a while to feel "normal" in one's body.

As far as the writing is concerned - written expression issues are very common with ADHD, as is dysgraphia (issues with handwriting that are unrelated to reading ability).  I believe it would be most worthwhile to ask him exactly why he does not want to write. Many children (and adults) with ADHD prefer to type on a computer because many cannot read their own writing when they are finished with a pencil or a pen! :)

I hope this helps.

adultswithadd.net has links to a lot of great resources on childhood and adult issues stemming from ADHD, as well as tools for treatment.

-adultwithadd

[melissa17s]

Originally Posted by Cyllya 

"True" ADHD or not, a lot of people seem to have ADHD symptoms caused or exacerbated by certain substances. I've never heard of it having much to do with carb, sugar, or veggie intake though... except that certain fruits and vegetables can actually make the problem worse.

I feel, based on what I have read and understand about ADHD that food sensitivity is a separate issue from ADHD.  Maybe because some of the outward behaviors are similar there is a lot of misdx that leads people to believe that their dc is "treated" or even "cured" because elimination of a food the child is sensitive to.  Adhd is a different way that the brain processes and although we all react to some degree to the food we eat, it is not the cause nor will it change the way one processes- it takes more than that.    My ds, like many dc, has had organic food and been dye free from in utero, but still he has multiple comorbid neurological conditions.  http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/1880.html

In the end, I think I agree with those encouraging an outside evaluation to fully understand and best approach what ever the Op's dd is working through, but I get the op's resistance, too.  As stated earlier in the thread, we worked nonmedicated with a psychologist, and it has benefitted ds.

I would guess that the issue you noted about veggies and fruit has more to do with the recent study that noted pesticides on fruit and veg can be a cause of ADHD.  It is another great reason to eat organic and I would encourage healthy eating regardless of adhd or otherwise.  

[jdsf]

Yeah, the doctor gave that recommendation not as a "cure" for ADHD but to cut down on any behaviors caused by heavily processed foods (which is more what I meant by "carbs" - empty foods generally packed full of preservatives and other nonsense, generally carb-heavy) and more veggies to boost her vitamins and minerals and help with brain function. We can't keep children's vitamins in the house because she is bad about sneaking things and ate 10 gummy vitamins in one sitting, even though they didn't have iron we still stressed the importance of never taking more than 2 children's vitamins a day but she kept doing it, even the plain old chewable ones. She hates swallowing pills so all the vitamins she gets are either natural or from drinks like Emergen-C or vitamin supplemented smoothies. Obviously, eating vitamins in food is better, so that's what we try to push... anyway, I am very sensitive to food additives, red dye particularly, so we don't keep a lot of unhealthy junk around the house but it seems wrong to deprive kids completely of Cheetos and Oreos so we let them have those sorts of things as a special treat. We are also a vegetarian household so being healthy means eating a wide variety of things.

I would like her to see someone, but she is resistant to the idea because she thinks she's in trouble for something, even though I told her she wasn't, it was just to help. She says she doesn't need help, and as much as I'd like her to go, she doesn't want to be there, so I'm not sure forcing her to go will get her to participate. We don't have a lot of money and she is on the insurance plan provided to state teachers/employees and their families, so the coverage isn't great, we would be paying a percentage in addition to the copay so it's at least $50 a pop.

If I don't hear the toilet flush, I always ask her if she did, but I'm not necessarily in earshot... we have a shotgun style house, so the kids' rooms and bathroom are on one end with the kitchen and living room in the middle and the master bedroom on the end, so I don't hear anything if I'm in my room (unless it's yelling ;) I always remind her to buckle her seatbelt when we get in the car, but half the time she doesn't because she's preoccupied with something else so I have to remind her again before we leave the driveway. Usually that means I sit there and wait for her because she's fidgeting with something else and won't stop what she's doing to buckle herself. I would do it for her, but she's almost 12 and I really feel like this is a life skill one of her level of functioning should have by now, I worry that other people's parents have stopped reminding them and I don't know if she would remember in someone else's car. She is going to middle school next year where she will be riding the bus, and I know the bus driver won't be reminding them.
 

[jdsf]

Okay, so after mulling all of this over, I remembered that I have a friend who is an ADHD "coach" and I talked to her about it. She said because she does show an ability to focus when necessary and is very organized and neat and meticulous with her school work, it would be hard to get an ADHD inattentive type diagnosis for her since she only exhibits two symptoms regularly. She also said that this type isn't one you "grow out of" so while it seems more likely for her age, it is very very rare that an inattentive ADHD kid shows the attention to detail and level of organization that she has. Her handwriting is perfect, she always comes home knowing exactly what her homework is and the order she will do it in, and is rarely forgetful when it comes to school (except where jackets or extra bags are concerned). Forgetfulness and not listening are not enough for a diagnosis. She ran down the whole list of every possible symptom and she doesn't do any of them frequently enough for it to "count". So, I'm back to square one. She said a lot of times anxiety disorders manifest similar symptoms, but again, she only meets the same two criteria on that. She is very self confident and is more willing than her older sister to try new things, the only anxiety I see from her is the same as mine - test anxiety - but again, certain people's brains don't do well with the power of suggestion so I totally get it.

She is a very visual learner. I'm starting to wonder if these problems are caused by that: if it's out of sight, it's out of mind. She will always remember something if she can see it, the reason she doesn't flush the toilet is because she's washing her hands and then just moves on from there. Same reason she loses things. I have accepted the fact that she's just kind of a space cadet but I know that's not going to fly in the real world. My friend said that I shouldn't worry too much, because kids don't have real world problems to worry about, they tend to spend a lot of time "imagining" but that will be replaced with "Did I turn the coffeepot off" later when they get older. I just want to make sure she gets there without walking into oncoming traffic because she was off in her own world.
 

[MrsBone]

Based on your description, she doesn't sound adhd! My hubby is adhd and my son is probably, but only 4 so undiagnosed. If she's excelling at school and otherwise has it together, she sounds pretty normal but a little spacy!

[Swimmyswim]

I have ADHD.  I had a nightmare childhood and have had a very difficult adult life.  I only began on concerta a year ago.  I am now applying for a PhD.  Knowing and understanding my ADHD has literally completely changed my life.  And yes, the pills too.  They cleared my head and helped me think effectively for the first time in my life.

I was 'dilly daydream', 'space cadet', 'on planet Jane', 'Calamity Jane' etc etc.  I was lazy, stupid, selfish, difficult, a liar, was only interested in school for the socialising and education was 'wasted on me'.

Actually, I was very smart and dealing with a serious, untreated neurological disorder.

Not all people with ADHD need to be medicated.  It's not appropriate for everyone.  But notes don't work.  Telling her to colour code her diary won't work.  Expecting her to 'just do it' won't work.  Punishing won't work.  Despairing or being disappointed won't work.  

It's very useful to get a proper diagnosis with cognitive testing.  Knowing whether working memory or processing speed are affected is useful, as is knowing how much inattention is an issue.