Over the last couple of months I have kept having recurring thoughts about ADD/ADHD children, so I started studying more and more about the subject. My youngest child was diagnosed with ADHD when he was in the 8th grade, but I never really understood a whole lot about it.
I will admit when Nick was growing up he was a handful. He was wonderfully funny and full of energy, but when it came time for him to do his homework or any chore he may have been asked to fulfill, he would keep disappearing. You would locate him and ask why things weren't completed. The common answer was "I forgot." After a while this became very old, and my husband and I were at our wits end trying to figure out what was going on with him. We had never heard of ADD or ADHD before, so when someone I happened to bump into mentioned it I thought what if this was what was wrong with our son.
We took Nick to see a psychologist who spent 20 minutes with him, and never spoke with my husband or I about what was going on with him. She came out and stated that if he had ADD he would have been diagnosed in kindergarten.
Here our son was in the 8th grade and he'd been labeled behavioral disordered in grade school. He was always in trouble for being "too active", talking too much and generally not listening to the teacher.
We took him to another counselor who specialized in ADD. She spent two hours with us, asking us each a series of questions. Out of 250 points Nick got 189. The prognosis was "I can't say definitely that he's ADD, but it sure looks like it." From there we went to another doctor and Nick was put on Ritalin.
As soon as our son started the drugs we lost our happy go lucky child. He always looked and acted like he was depressed. Oh yes, his grades improved, but he was still getting into trouble as soon as the drugs wore off. So we had to have him receive another dose of Ritalin in the middle of the day. From there we went to Adderall. We did this for four years until he said no more, he wasn't going to take the drugs any longer. He wanted to be "normal" like all the rest of the kids.
Our happy go lucky child was back, but now he'd moved on to "recreational" drugs. Those drugs were just the same type of stimulant that he'd gotten from the doctor's to control the ADHD, only now they were illegal.
My son is grown up now. He holds down a job. He's responsible about getting too and from work on time. He's responsible enough that he's considered one of the best employees. It took a long time for him to get to this point. He dropped out of high school because he just couldn't seem to deal with it. He went through several jobs because he learned to play the "victim" game - I've got ADD, and they aren't being fair to me, or they aren't treating me right.
I've noticed that kids with ADD/ADHD don't seem to mature as fast. What I do know is that these kids are smart. Very smart. What I'm learning is that their self esteem is usually very low. They have been ridiculed by teachers, parents, and their peers over the label that society has given to them.
Their brain works differently from ours. Period. End of story.
From the studies that I have been reading these children don't need to be put on the drugs that keep the pharmaceutical companies happy. They need proper nutrition. They need a higher self esteem. And they need to learn to calm themselves, quiet their minds and completely relax so that they can focus.
As a hypnotherapist I can help them build higher self-esteem, self-confidence, to calm themselves, quiet their minds and completely relax so that they can focus. I can assist them in learning to listen and to wait to speak until it is their turn to speak. I can help them to feel confident enough about who they are so that they can achieve their goals.
These children don't need to be labeled. Their creativity, joyfulness and gift of life does not need to be stifled by drugs that after long term use can really screw up their cognitive thinking and ability to deal with stress.
If you take them off their medication without teaching them how to cope, they haven't healed anything. In fact, you may find their behavior is worse. They are out of control. The healing needs to come from within them. But they need the help of their parents, their families, and the education system.
These children do not deal well with stress. Stress reduces the nutrients in our bodies that can cause symptoms of ADD/ADHD. Proper nutrition and good vitamins will help with this. Sleep deprivation can also produce symptoms of ADD/ADHD. So your child needs a good night's sleep. Plenty of exercise and good nutrition will also add in your child's ability to sleep soundly.
If you are interested in learning more about helping your child cope with the symptoms of ADD/ADHD, or if your child has been labeled ADD/ADHD and you are wanting to try holistic approaches of helping your child away from the drugs, please feel free to contact me for more information.
Our children need a fighting chance. It isn't simpler to give them a pill and call it good. We aren't being fair to our children. We aren't being fair to the generation that will be in charge of this world some day. Give them a chance to remain true to themselves; to stay that happy go lucky child and not become a zombie walking.
Namaste
Sue
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