How to Recognize the Signs of Attention Deficit Disorder

All children are active and require time to develop the ability to attend for lengths of time. Here are a few ways to identify whether your child may have attention deficit disorder.

Difficulty: Moderately challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Fresh Fruit
• Healthy Foods
• Fresh Fruit
• Notebooks
• Children's Board Games
• Children's Puzzles
• Notebooks

1. Consult your doctor. Every state and school district has differing interpretations of the federal laws concerning diagnosis of attention deficit disorder (ADD). Your doctor will be able to give you clear guidelines for diagnosis or refer you to someone who can. Your doctor may even provide you with some drug-free solutions to try at home.

2. Watch your child. In order to diagnose ADD, your child must exhibit some characteristic traits for six or more consecutive months and they must be present before 7 years old. Major life events like a death or divorce can trigger behavior change, as well as a sudden move or change in schools.

3. Ask yourself these questions. Does your child not pay close attention to details or make careless mistakes? Not seem to listen when spoken to directly? Avoid, dislike or refuse to do tasks requiring sustained mental effort? Have trouble following directions? Have difficulty staying in one place when asked to? Change activities without completing the first? These are indications that your child may have a problem attending and needs further professional observation.

4. Assess the areas in which your child is experiencing problems. If your child exhibits these and other behaviors, it is possible he or she might have ADD. However, if the inability to attend does not have a negative effect on at least two areas, such as school work and social interaction, you may just have a spirited child or may need to consider other forms of intervention. Before your child is diagnosed and labeled with ADD, make sure the behaviors your child exhibits are not a product of an overstressed or hectic lifestyle.

Tips & Warnings

• Try changing your child's diet to include more fresh foods and less processed foods.
• Remove your child from abusive or chaotic environments.
• Spend more quality time with your child. Negative behaviors are often a ploy to gain attention from adults, even if it is negative attention.
• Find information on how to effectively parent your ADD or ADHD child, if you experience extreme frustration.

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on 8/8/2006 I am ADHD. I'm pretty popular at school and got into a decent college.
I used to use my disorder as a crutch and still do from time to time, but it's not a mental retardation, it's just a different way of thinking. We do have trouble paying attention and are the little kids who get into trouble for being hyper or daydreaming But it isn't necessarily a bad thing.
One day I was at a church function and we were doing things to get to know each other I mentioned that I was ADHD they acted like I just said that I was HIV positive! It's not that serious, it's just a different way of learning.

on 11/22/2005 ADD and ADHD aren't always negative things. It's true that people with ADD generally can't focus on something for long periods of time, but what most people don't know is that when an ADD person finds an activity that they like or that engages them, the will hyper-focus and may be able to sit and do the same activity for hours. They can become very driven and effective people if they can be shown how to channel their attention into something they enjoy.

on 11/22/2005 I'm a teacher, and can tell you that most ADHD kids are simply under stimulated. Change your parenting approach, do your research and in most cases medication can be avoided! It should be a last resort, not a knee-jerk reaction. Some studies have indicated that long term use of ADD medication (say from age 7 to 17) have a comparable impact on the brain as long term cocaine addiction! Not that this isn't a legitimate condition, but ADD is extremely over-diagnosed. A seven year old child is supposed to have a hard time concentrating on difficult tasks! They need to practice, not be medicated!

on 11/22/2005 A lot of manic-depressives don't want to be treated, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't. If your child is having problems with school, you should sit down with them every night with their homework and see how they work problems and see also if they have a hard time concentrating even when you're right next to them. Even if your kids seem normal and doing well, from the first day of first grade you should be asking them what their homework is and to see it when they're done.

on 11/22/2005 A common problem in society is the belief that everything is curable through medication. I have a cousin who is bi-polar, she needs medication because of a very obvious and dangerous imbalance of chemicals in her brain. Know the difference before you start medication and keep in mind that these drugs are mind altering. Your child will be a different person than they naturally would. The body also becomes dependent on Ritalin, just like any other drug, and the child must deal with the fact from a very young age that they are an ADD kid and essentially a medication addict. This is a choice most children are too young to make. All parents should keep these simple truths in mind when balancing the good and bad.