ADHD Help

I am looking forward to my first video ADHD seminar.

You can learn about ADHD without even having to leave your own home.  This seminar is specially designed for parents who have just found out that their child has ADHD.  I will discuss how ADHD is diagnosed, the causes of ADHD, and parents’ responses to learning that their child has been diagnosed.  Frequently parents don’t feel that they have the opportunity to ask questions when they visit the doctor.  After all, doctors are busy and often don’t appear to have much time to spend with the parents.

If you are anything like me, I always remember my best questions after I leave the doctor’s office. Please email me your questions when you think of them.  When you sign up for my email newsletter, you can reply to them and I will get your emails.   The questions will either be answered live, or, for those questions I am unable to answer during the seminar, I will email the questions and answers to everybody who attends.  There will also be a comprehensive discussion guide and a chance for you to win a free magic trick grab-bag for your child.  The Puppet Dr. C., Mr. Splinter, and Mrs. Splinter (Elwood’s parents)  will all participate.  I hope that you will be able to attend my first video teleconference. I guarantee that my seminar will be a unique, enjoyable way to learn about ADHD.

WAIT!!!

If you know you can’t make it, forget, or just want to pre-order the dvd for ONLY $7, you can do by clicking here: “>

You’ll receive the video of the seminar, along with a number of of goodies and surprises (worth over $47.00, including several magic tricks you can learn with and teach your child), among other things. Plus, you’ll receive a FREE 30 day trial to Dr. C & Elwood’s ADHD Club! After your trial, you’ll pay just $17 a month to continue to get members’ only access to seminars like this one, brand new videos you won’t see anywhere else, special mailings, and much much more. We may even do a special video on your particular question, so send them in! You can cancel at any time, AND the gifts are yours to keep, no matter what. So go ahead and pre-order now, or get your copy if you missed the seminar. Thanks!

Click to order now: “>

This weekend Elwood and I led a workshop on social skills training for ChADD in Tucson. About 40 people attended, including 17 children. My goal was to present in such a fashion that it was attractive to the children as well as to the adults. I began with a vignette with Elwood in which we discussed the importance of communication, cooperation, kindness, and conflict resolution. After that Elwood shrunk my head. I am going to try to put the head shrinking up on my page. Everybody seemed to enjoy our presentation.

I have been thinking a great deal about how to conduct attractive and productive video seminars. I think that I will alternate between sessions for the parents and special entertaining therapeutic shows for the children. I will let you know when more information is available.

My thoughts have turned to 9/11. Currently I work at Fort Huachuca, an Army post in Southeastern Arizona. Not only am I remembering 9/11 but also quite aware of the impact the attack has had on young soldiers. I sincerely hope that peace will be with us in the near future.

Ever since I have been counseling children and families, I have tried to combine my entertaining talents with my therapy skills in order to make my treatments more powerful.  I even conducted workshops for mental health professionals on how to use unique toys to improve counseling skills.  I also conducted workshops for ventriloquists on puppet therapy.  In fact, I am an honorary member of the Japanese Puppet Therapy Association.

For a long time I have wanted to use my skills to provide group family treatment for ADHD families.  However, living in a small town, it is difficult to start this type of group.  Also most people accept the fact that it is tricky to run groups for children with ADHD since they tend to set each other off.

That is why I have finally decided to run these groups online.  I am actively preparing them and hope that some of you will be interested in participating.  We can have fun while simultaneously improving the quality of family life.  More information will follow.

Today was the first day of school. I always worry that the other kids will tease me and call me a dummy. Dr. C told me that puppets like me are called dummies. I told him that I preferred puppet or vent figure, and he told me that he would just call me Elwood.

The first day of school is always hard for me. I worry whether or not I will like my teacher. I worry whether I will know the children in my class, and if they will be nice. I also worry about bullies.

Dr. C. made a shirt with me on it. I say no, no, no, no, no, no, no to a bully who wants my money. The shirt is in Japanese, so all I can read are the no’s. I told Dr. C that if I said no, no, no, no, no, no, no to a bully, the bully might hurt me. Next he told me that I could tell the teacher or the counselor, or the principal. I told him that then the other children might not like me. Finally he agreed that bullies can be a big problem.

The writing on the shirt is in Japanese because Dr. C. wore it when he spoke about bullying at the Japanese Puppet Therapy meeting. I got to be there too because I am the puppet. Dr. C. said that bullies are even a bigger problem in Japan than in here in the USA. I am sure glad I don’t live in Japan because I don’t like bullies.

Anyway, probably it will be ok for me this year. Usually I have friends and nobody bullies me. Also my friends can help me if there is a bully. That’s good to know.

That’s all for now from me. Elwood, signing off.

There are many who believe that there is a positive relationship between ADHD and creativity and ADHD and high intelligence. Unfortunately, research does not support this belief. There are brilliant people with ADHD and also retarded ones. Some are artistically or creatively gifted, and others are not. ADHD is a disorder and not an advantage. The good news is that we are becoming progressively more successful treating ADHD. With good treatment, ADHD does not need to interfere with relationships, occupational success, or overall life quality.

A high percentage of children with ADHD , particularly boys, also have Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD). ADHD alone can create friction within the family. ADHD, when combined with ODD, can make family life much more challenging. I have known parents who did not want to go home after work and face the frequent conflicts. Some were also concerned that if they did not go home, the problems might escalate even more. Family life with ADHD and ODD can become quite unhealthy for children and parents alike.

It is better to act than to react. In order to improve the situation it is a good idea to have a plan in place to improve family communication and cooperation. Consequences need to be clearly stated, and parents must follow through. I also want families to have fun together and accomplish goals as a team. I want people in families to treat each other with respect.

I have created a program specifically designed to encourage more peaceful families. The program takes into account the special needs of children with ADHD. I will be presenting the program in the near future in a series of teleconferences. I hope you will be able to attend.

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Today I have to go to summer school. I don’t like summer school. No, no, no, no, no, no but mom and dad say that I have to go ’cause my grades were bad. The good things about summer school, it doesn’t last very long and there’s not a lot of kids. I’m trying so I won’t have to go next year. Bye.

Behaviors tend to be cyclical. We deal with the same problems over and
over again.  This means that we don’t necessarily need to have good
skills thinking on our feet.  If we don’t get it right the first time,
we can plan how to handle the problem the next time around.

A general principal is that it is better to act than to react. If a
problem occurs and you are unhappy with your response, sit down with
your spouse or some other trusted adult, discuss what happened, and come
up with a plan regarding how to respond if and when the problem recurs.

Look at management of problem behaviors as problem solving. If a
particular response is not effective, come up with another one.
Eventually you will get the problem under control.

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Sometimes less is more.

This is a counterintuitive statement (goes against intuition) which is often true when dealing with misbehavior in children. Conventional wisdom is that the more you yell at your child for a wrong deed, the better. However, I usually do not find this to be true. What you do when you yell is give your child lots of negative
attention. Sometimes this rewards the behavior instead of punishing it.
The more you yell the more powerful your child might feel.

It is better to deal calmly and efficiently. Tell your child the
consequence and move on.

We define a punishment as anything which follows a behavior and
decreases the probability for recurrence.
A reward is anything which follows a behavior and increases the
probability for recurrence. If you are yelling over and over regarding
the same type of misdeed, you are probably not punishing the problem.

Regarding less is more, shorter consequences tend to work better than
longer ones. When we use long consequences we have a difficult time
following through and can easily end up burying our child in
punishments. Better to use shorter punishments and follow through.
That way children also learn that we mean what we say.

If you overemphasize to your child the importance of the medication, you very well might tap into his/her oppositionality. A high percentage of children with ADHD are oppositional. They do not want to do what you tell them to do.

If they think that you are trying to control them with medication, they might try their best to do the opposite. It is very important that you avoid falling into this potential trap. That is why you emphasize that the child is doing better because (s)he is trying.