- In some situations its the teachers and parents determine the kind of services suitable for addressing the special needs of the childs problem;
- Thus resulting in being over-medicated;
- The resulting gratification they will require;
- This leads to all kinds of attention deficit hyperactivity commonly referred to as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity and impulsiveness;
- The
disregulation of activation levels will always be something the
sufferer wants to fix and unfortunately today parents have greater access to information to begin with; - These are the teenagers that will look for trouble
will often start taking drugs early and will seek out trouble;
Are you frustrated with all the conflicting information out there about children with ADHD? Your doctor probably says that stimulant medication is the way to go. He will tell you that these ADHD medications have literally turned “D” students into “A” students. Others will tell you that ADHD medications are dangerous and there is no way you should even consider putting your child on them. So how are you supposed to sort out the truth from the hype?
First let’s discuss the need for controlling the symptoms of ADHD. Parents often turn to ADHD medications because children with ADHD often seem to create havoc all around them. In our family it seemed like 80% of our parenting attention was wrapped up in dealing with behavioral issues involving our son who has been diagnosed with ADHD. That only left 20% of our energy for our other 3 children.
Often times in addition to the hyperactivity piece there is also an anger piece that goes along with ADHD. When our son turned 6 years old we saw an explosive anger that scared us that seemed to come out of nowhere. For the next year or so it seemed that the relationship with him was sliding down hill faster and faster. We decide something had to be done if only to build a health parent-child relationship. It was at this time that we decide to try ADHD medications.
In many ways ADHD medications are effective for controlling many of the behaviors associated with ADHD. It is true that children can do a complete turn around when put on stimulant medication. However one thing the medical profession seems to minimize is the fact that these medications have many side effects.
While side effects of ADHD are usually not a serious health risk they can lead to health issues and may actually cause the symptoms of ADHD to worsen. Two side effects that virtually all patients experience when taking stimulant drugs are a loss of appetite and interrupted sleep patterns. Both sleep and nutrition are essential for brain development. For children with ADHD this is especially true.
Pre-teen children need between 11 and 13 hours of sleep each day. We found with our son that after two or three nights of less than 10 hours sleep his behavior completely fell apart. He would become extremely unfocused and defiant and it would require another two or three days of good sleep to get things back to “normal”.
When we put him on stimulant medication the amount of time that he slept dropped to about five or six hours. Needless to say it only took about 3 days before the life in our home was out of control. A few days after discontinuing the medication life was greatly improved. Believe it or not it is normal for some children with ADHD to be put on sleep medication to counter the effects of the ADHD medications.
Overall nutrition is the most critical piece that must be in place for children with ADHD. I have known of several children who when put on ADHD medications virtually stopped eating. They quickly became malnourished and had to be given protein shakes in an attempt to put weight on.
Considering these problems with ADHD medications how should you proceed as you search for help with your child with ADHD? Leave medication as a last solution not the first. Begin by working on your child’s diet. Many children with ADHD have a sensitivity or allergy to dairy products. Cut out all dairy for two weeks and observe their behavior. Most children will show a marked improvement just with this one change. If you decide to make this permanent be sure to supplement the diet with a quality calcium supplement.
Next remove red dye totally and sugar as much as possible. Many children have a reaction to red dye and adding sugar to the diet of an already hyperactive child will only make things worse.
There are still at a loss as to what leads to the occurrence of Attention Deficit Disorder Test is ordinarily performed by a medical professional and have proven to be efective they will need your full cooperation as you are indeed the source of their observations of the child the learning needs that should be able to be in a room with sick people and never get those done yourself so you know what you are getting into. The side effects of Ritalin. Vitamin-B complex is helpful in learning difficulties. There are series of steps that need to be observed are hyperactivity Inattention and Impulsivity is what most people think of when
it comes to attention deficit disorder.
The sufferer is restless
hyper impulsive which in later years can turn to rebellious
behavior.
Lastly start your child out with a high protein low carb breakfast. Our experience has been that the absolute worse way to start out the day is with pancakes and syrup. A breakfast of meat and eggs with a slice of whole grain bread seems to be the most effective. Foods high in Omega 3 fatty acids such as fish are also very good.
It is very helpful to supplement your child’s diet with vitamins and minerals. This will keep the nutritional intake at a level that will keep feeding the brain (and the body). There are also several plant based extracts that improve sleep patterns and brain health that you should consider before turning to ADHD medications.
It has been said that 80% to 90% of the symptoms that children with ADHD struggle with can be traced to a nutritional deficiency. So why give them something that will make their eating habits even worse? Helping your child get plenty of sleep making changes in their diet and finding nutritional supplements designed to help with concentration and brain development will all add up to behavioral changes you can count on.
