Most of us are aware of the benefits of exercise for our bodies. But it is also great for your brain. For individuals with ADHD, exercise can help them focus and leads to changes in the brain that are comparable to the effects of medications used to treat ADHD. The benefits are well worth the effort and can augment other forms of treatment for your ADHD symptoms.
Many adults can have ADHD without even realizing it. These individuals may have all the typical symptoms of ADHD, but found ways to cope with them and get through life without major issues. This is known as “high functioning” ADHD. Here are some of the symptoms that characterize adult, high functioning ADHD.
A gap year is simply a break either before or during college. It is a time when students take a break from formal education to do activities like travel, volunteer, study, intern, work, perform or research. The increased maturity, self-confidence and life experience that a gap year can confer, especially for a student with ADHD, is well worth the investment if it means a better chance for your child to succeed in college and, later, in a career.
Oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) is a condition where a child is almost always angry, frustrated and defiant toward authority figures. The exact causes of ODD are not known, but it occurs more frequently in families with a history of ADHD. There are many effective treatments for ODD, and strategies that parents can use to lessen the severity of symptoms and their negative impacts both within and outside the home.
Many parents who have children with ADHD may wonder how the symptoms will change as their child gets older. Will they get worse, diminish, or just change into something different. Researchers have studied this question and come up with a kind of roadmap for how ADHD symptoms are likely to change, on average, with age.
Findings from several recent studies suggest that certain aspects of ADHD can be improved with at-home computer interventions. This comes as welcome news to children, who adapt easily to mobile devices, and to parents who seek alternatives to drugs that have limited effectiveness and adverse effects. These studies provide encouraging evidence that video game technology might one day be used as part of an ADHD treatment regime.
Recent studies have suggesed that the incidence of substance misuse can be higher among those with ADHD relative to the general population. Appropriate treatment of ADHD symptoms with medication and behavior therapy may, however, reduce the risk of development of substance use disorders. An important part of ADHD treatment and stimulant medication management includes screening for substance use disorders and providing guidance around the appropriate and safe use of stimulant medications.
Raising a child with ADHD is tough on parents. Children with ADHD often struggle in school, with friendships and at work. Getting your child a coach can do more than help your child succeed, it can help you too. An ADHD coach can be a critical and highly effective part of a multi-modal approach to managing ADHD symptoms and learning the necessary life skills for young people to learn to live well with the challenges of ADHD.
The transition to college for students with ADHD can be stressful and the first year drop out rate can be high. That makes selecting the right college even more important. The college should not only provide accommodations and services to support those with ADHD, but should have a culture and structure that matches well to your symptoms and routines. Here are a number of important criteria to consider when selecting a college that is ADHD-friendly.
You have ADHD and your life seems chaotic and disorganized. You want to add more structure to your daily activities. You need to approach it carefully. Making changes that are too big or complicated, or tackling too much at one time generally won’t work. If you add structure in small steps, you won’t always get it 100 percent right, but you’ll probably be better off than you were before. We offer tips to help you create a daily routine that will give your life structure without being burdensome.