ADHD Help

Thirdly you need to remind yourself that the more angry you become, the
bigger the problem becomes.  Becoming really angry frequently does not
reduce the frequency and severity of the problems and often can instead
lead to an increase.  Self talk and reminder signs to remind yourself of
this fact can help.

Next it is better to act than to react.  A lot of problematic behavior is
cyclical.  In other words the same problems happen over and over again.
Once you realize this, you can develop in advance a strategy for
responding to the problem the next time it occurs.  Then you can
determine whether or not this new strategy is helpful. If the new
strategy doesn’t work, come up with a different plan.

Finally, it is beneficial to have an incentive program in place.  Reward
programs for appropriate behavior can help.  They allow you not only to
reward good behaviors but also to have immediate consequences for
inappropriate behaviors. If the child acts inappropriately, the child
does not received the reward.

Years ago my son used to miss the high school bus almost every
morning.  A consequence for this behavior was that I had to get up really
early to take him to school. This made be quite angry.  Eventually I
began to pay him $0.25 every time he caught the bus.  Two things
happened: first of all, he began to catch the bus much more frequently.
Secondly, when he missed the bus, I wasn’t as angry.  Apparently knowing
that he didn’t get the lousy quarter helped reduce the severity of my
anger.

Anyway, I hope that this is helpful.  If anybody else has other
suggestions, please feel free to write.

Periodically someone claims that ADHD is related to genius.  Unfortunately there is no research to support this.  People with ADHD come from all levels of the intelligence spectrum from way above average to way below average.  The last letter of ADHD stands for disorder for a reason.  In fact, in order to make the diagnosis, you must identify significant impairment.  Without impairment, we are not supposed to diagnosis ADHD.
Now, on the other hand, there are a lot of very successful people who have ADHD.  Check out the list at http://add.about.com/od/famouspeoplewithadhd/a/famouspeople.htm

ADHD Specialist / Child Psychologist, Dr. Sam Caron answers your questions about ADHD. Send them to: drc@adhd1.net

or leave him a message! Call toll-free 1-800-993-ADHD (2343)

Stephanie Deering from South Plains College writes:

I just received and viewed the first 2 Dr. C and Elwood videotapes. Planning to use them in an inservice for early childhood teachers! On that subject, would you like to comment on the use of medication with very young (preschool) children? We are seeing a drastic increase in the number of 3-5 year olds diagnosed as ADHD, with medication. Our concern in the early childhood field is that many behaviors interpreted as ADHD symptoms are actually developmentally appropriate for young children.

Dr. C’s response:

Dear Ms. Deering, First of all, thank you for ordering my videos. I hope that you find them to be helpful teaching devices. Your question is an excellent one. The DSM IV requires 6 hyperactive/impulsive symptoms prior to diagnosing ADHD, Primarily Hyperactive and Impulsive

The same is true for diagnosing ADHD Primarily Inattentive. Six symptoms in each area is required in order to diagnose ADHD Combined type. Even though it is not stated in the DSM, symptoms reduce in number as a person ages. Therefore it is prudent to require more symptoms be endorsed before diagnosing younger children

For example 8 to 10 symptoms instead of 6 should be endorsed when diagnosing a 3 year old. Additionally one should endorse a symptom only if it is in excess to the norm for the age group. Finally there must be some impairment in two or more settings and clinically significant impairment in social, academic, or occupational functioning.

I, personally, only diagnose ADHD in young children if the symptoms are extreme. If the symptoms are severe enough to be causing the needed clinically significant impairment, medication is, I believe, an important part of the treatment.In order to diagnose a child, the evaluator should obtain input from the child’s teacher; after all, who knows more regarding normal expectations for any specific age group than one who spends her/his day with members of that age group.

Teachers concerned that their students have been misdiagnosed should ask, I believe, to provide their input to the evaluator. Unfortunately children are often diagnosed without obtaining any of the necessary input from the teacher but rather entirely based upon a parents input. I hope this is helpful.

Sincerely,
Samuel R. Caron, Ph.D.

Dr. C & Elwood
adhd1.net