ADD To Give Meds or Not?

I work at a ped. clinic and believe me you are not alone. If you have a regular peditrician that you trust, I would definetely make an appt to discuss. Also I have 2 nephews with ADD/ADHD they are 5 and 8, their mom did not want to put them on meds but now she is happy she did, they are no longer a disruption in class and more pleasant to be around when in a public enviroment. Hope this helps.

I have child who is ADHD and at first i was totally against giving her meds for it but then she got pretty bad with her behavior so i took her to a dr and we tried one medication that did not work well but after taking her off of any ADHD meds for over a year she got really bad so i took her back and they tried her on another one that seems to be doing really well for her. As to whether or not you should put her on meds is totally up to and and if you feel it would help her out or not.

As a mother and pediatric psychologist (in training), my first advice is please do not go to a Dr. See a psychologist, psychiatrist, or someone who specializes in psychological illnesses. Family Drs and pediatricians receive very little training on psychological illness, you wouldn't see a psychologist if you sprained you ankle, so why see a physician who does not specialize in psychological problems when you have to deal with a psychological issue.

As a pediatric psychologist (in training), the first line of defense should never be medication. A lot of improvement can be shown in many situations with behavioral interventions and behavior modification methods. I never advocate medicating children as a first line method, there is too little research on the long term effects of these drugs and you could be causing unnecessary permanent damage. If other interventions do not work, then medication should be used.

I hope you consider a behavior modification intervention, especially in a child this young, you can do wonders. My opinion is children are way over medicated for simply being children. 5 years olds have short attention spans, it doesn't mean they have ADD it is normal for this age, which is why behavioral interventions work very well at this age.

S.,
I am a teacher and mother of a son who has ADD. I definitely recommend seeing your doctor and investigating whether or not your daughter has ADHD. After many years of problems in school and poor academic progress, our son was correctly diagnosed with ADD and put on the drug Aderal. The effects were immediate and he went from being a C and D student to an A and B student in a matter of months. Unfortunatley, we didn't find out he had ADD until junior high school, so his elementary years were a bad experience for him. I suggest you find out about your daughter as soon as possible, so she will be spared these problems and have a good educational experience from the beginning. What most people don't know is the correct medication helps ADHD or ADD children to focus more clearly. It enables them to pay attention in school for longer periods of time, not just put them to sleep. As a teacher I have seen children put on medication and be zombies, but that is usually because they on not on the right medication or the dosage needs to be adjusted. When students are properly diagnosed and medicated it can make a remarkable difference in their classroom behavior and progress. Medication will enable your daughter to work to her potential in school instead of being constantly distracted by other things going on around her. Also, children on medication don't have to take it all the time. Our son did not take his on weekends, holidays, and summer vacation, because those were times he didn't need to focus for long periods of time. The circumstances may be somewhat different with your daughter since she may have the additional hyperactiviy, but finding out is difinitely worth it. Our son is in college now and as a young adult he chooses to take his medication only when he feels he really needs to stay focused (test taking, writing term papers). Hope I haven't bored you, but this is a topic I feel strongly about. We lived it and I know taking medication made a tremendous difference in my son's life. He became a much more self-confident, outgoing, responsible individual who we are very proud of. Absolutely, find out soon.

S.,
I had the similar situations with my son. I had a friend recommend MonaVie. It is 19 fruits mixed into a health drink. I thought she was crazy but within the first week of my son drinking it, his teacher approached me and said he was doing sooo much better and able to consentrate and focus more and wanted to know what I was doing or if he was on meds. I later ended up trying one of the ADD meds and yes, my son was tired all the time. I went back to MonaVIe and now he is in 3rd grade with a teacher that keeps him challenged and he making straight A's!! I don't know that this would work for your daughter as well as mine son, but it would be a natural way to try before resorting to meds and getting her labeled. If you would like to try a bottle, feel free to contact me. Or go to Monavie.com or www.buildthejuice.com, and see what you think.

S. B - I am a teacher as well as your mom, but I respectfully disagree with her on medicating unless it is a LAST resort. You know your child. Trust your gut. Scope the internet, talk to friends, reduce her sugar intake, take all measures that you can.

Yesterday I heard a radio report about Omega 3s and ADD. There was astounding evidence about the good fats in the brain (from omega 3s) and how it related to ADD. Check out a health food store and see what their advice is about it. Usually it's an outside influence that causes the "signs" of ADD. It is almost always something you can control. She may not like it when you take away her chocolate, but she'll thank you later for not taking away her personality with medication that she may not need. Good Luck!

Would you medicate her for asthma? Acid reflux? Heart conditions? Would you get her glasses for poor eyesight? If the answer is yes, then you should consider medication for ADD. If she is truely ADD, she'll likely respond very well to medication (it may take several trials with different ones). If medicine doesn't help, take her off. But if she responds, that shows you that her ADD was truely a medical condition that needed medical help. The reason people oppose these medicines is that they are often abused.
Parents try to use them instead of disciplining the child, in which case they don't work anyway, but the parents try to blame their lax parenting on ADD, when what the kid needs is a good spanking. It doesn't sound like that's your case. Try the meds. If it doesn't help, quit. It won't hurt to try.

S.,

I am the mother of 2 ADHD children and my hubby is ADD, and several other family members are as well. Talk to your Dr. and find out what med's are available to find out which is right for your daughter. My son at a very young age showed the signs and in Kinder, they almost kicked him out of school. We found med's to be a great help. I know he would not be where he is today if it was not for med's. He is now 15 and is doing fair in school and is testing "proficient"(top 10% of the state) on his yearly tests. My daughter is now 9 and she is in the 2nd. grade reading on a 4th grade level and loves school. This is just my opinion and I hope it helps. My sister is a school teacher also and she sees the difference when the child is on med's. I wanted my kids to have the best chance at life and not giving them the med's would have hindered them tremendously. Your daughter will not be a zombie when given the right dose! I have a lot of people that are surprised to find out that mine are on med's. The trial and error phase will be difficult, but once you find the right med and the right dose, you will see a vast improvement and I think she will as well.She will learn to be a kid again and be able to enjoy school.
Good luck and GOD bless.

There have been lots of good responses to your concerns. It shows that this is a disorder that affects many families today. I think that our society's answers to problems today is to give a pill. It is no wonder we have the highest rate of drug addiction and alcoholism. That is not to say that meds are never appropriate because they are at times. I am just suggesting that you go through all other options first. Wheat allergy is suprisingly common and as another poster stated can cause all the same symptoms. Our bodies were not made for the processed foods we now eat and the amount of inactivity that is usually the case today. When these things get out of whack you will see symptoms of what modern medicine calls ADHD. We have a system though that promotes disease. A doctor cannot see your child more than once without giving a diagnosis of a disease or disorder even if there is no disease or disorder because insurance won't pay for it if there isn't! This is not in the best interests of your child it is in the best interests of the multi billion dollar health care industry. I highly suggest looking into wholistic remedies and try any and all that might apply before putting your child on meds. It is not a bad thing to do if everything else has been tried and doesn't work but I can almost guarantee you that you will find relief without meds. If you take that route and end up needing the meds you will have no conflict in your mind about it because you will know it is the right thing. You can try looking at allergies. You can also try homeopathy, just do a search for homeopaths and your local area on the internet to find one near you. There is a web site that covers many areas of wholistic medicine at mercola.com. You can search adhd at the top of the page and there are numerous articles and blogs on the subject. There are too many resources out there to name but with a little research I bet you can find a solution that you are comfortable with and that works. You never know this may be a blessing in disguise. It may be the motivation for your whole family to become healthier and feel better. Good luck to you.

My child was diagnosed with ADHD while she was in 1st grade. It was not the doctor that noticed it,it was my husband,the teacher,the school nurse and me. When we all brought it up to the doctor he refused to do anything about it, he said it was just her age/stage. WE WON But she was also a super preemie(29 weeks)and her father has it, so we knew she had a higher risk of having adhd. She was always bright and very mature for her age she just could not sit or focous for long. She also had alot of incomplete work or bad grades (D,F) So we fought the doctor to test her and sure enough that was what was wrong with her. After trying her on alot of medicines we finely found what worked with out alot of side effects. ADDERAL XR
So you might have problems with support from the doctors. But ask the school to watch her too. And make sure they follow her closely because a child with ADHA/ADD seems to fall through the cracks easily. And it might be smart to put her on a IEP (individule education plan), so the schools have to help her. Hope this helps. M.

Hi S.,
My oldest son who is now 27 was diagnosed ADHD and Tourettes Syndrome when he was in the 5th grade. Doctor said it was there all along but because I kept him on a strict schedule it did not surface till then. (That was the year he stayed with his dad and stepmom, he was not on a schedule). The doctor was a specialist on ADD/ADHD and Touretts Syndrome. When he came back to me I put him back on his schedule and watched what he ate. No foods with red dyes, very low sugar foods etc. When I say schedule that is what it was. He eat supper at the same time every night, took a bath at the same time, went to bed and etc. He was now on medication. His doctor told me that most doctors will prescribe Ritalin, but he did not recommend it. He said that after a while the dose you give your child will not work and you will have to keep increasing it. He put my child on a catapress. (a very mild blood pressure med) We had to figure out what dosage would work for him. He took a quarter of a pill 3 times a day, it worked for him. Several years later when one of my brothers had a son who also had ADHD was put on Ritalin, I saw first hand what the doctor had told me was true. Every so often my nephew's medication had to be increased. Most of the time he was like a zombie. All my brother was concerned about was, "now he is calm in school". My son is now off of medications and my nephew is not. Like I said my son is now 27, his son is 20. Please do more research before you allow anyone to put your child on Ritalin. There are other medications that do work. One more thing the doctor told me was to correct my child with a positive not a negative. For example if he slammed the door I was not to say 'do not slam the door" I would say " We close the door quietly like this" and I would show him. It worked in my family. Good luck
C.

There are too many side effects to medications so my advice it to try everything natural you can first and use meds as a last resort although I bet you will not need them.

There are so many resources on how to naturally cure ADD.

Does your child watch TV??? If so, shut it off!! It is a plague! This is ruining children. Go to the library!! if they cannot read on their own, read with them until they can and after a while that is all they will do! Also they need to stay extremely active! "ADD" is another of the multi million dollar med world's schemes. Organic food, lots of produce and water! No refined starches or sugar or high fructose corn syrup. These all effect our little developing children's minds!! Our society is giving them all these stumbling blocks, and then trying to call it a medical problem and put them on drugs!! Please, don't ruin your children!! They are our hope for the future!!

Just a suggestion before giving meds to your daughter - look into whether she has vision issues. I am not talking about whether she is near or far sighted, but how her eyes work together, such as convergence and tracking problems. Look for an optician in your area that deals with these issues and uses vision therapy as a treatment. For a reference, The Vision Enhancement Clinic in Springfield, MO is where we took our daughter. They are finding that alot of kids who are diagnoses ADD or ADHD actually have significant vision difficulties. The difference in our daughter since she completed vision therapy is remarkable. She was not diagnosed with ADD or ADHD, but we homeschooled and I am sure that if she had been in the public schools she would have had that label. This may not be af any help to you, but it is worth at least looking into.

S. only you know what is best for your child, not all meds make them a zombie. me and my 2 kids are on meds and we all take something different.
Also I own Acropolis you should bring in a resume and fill out an application. we are at 2003 sw.regional airport blvd.#13 or call ###-###-####

I have ADD but I don't take meds for it because I don't think it impacts my life very much. My son seems to exhibit signs that he may also be ADD, he's 8, and I am taking him to a counselor soon. If he is, I don't think it's severe because he functions very well.

I have a nephew who cannot sit through a school day without medication. He has to have it. His mother was also nervous about meds but if she thinks they aren't working or that it's doping him up they get adjusted.

The choice in front of you is very personal and it really needs to be based on what is best for your daughter. If it is affecting her life in a negative way then I think it's worth trying meds to see if they will help her. If you think she is being over medicated you will always have the right to change or stop her medicine.

My son has been on Concerta for ADD/ADHD for the past three years. It has made a world of difference in his ability to focus and have control over his impulses. I was afraid he'd be a zombie too, but he's the same kid, just with more self control and a little more self confidence because he's behaving more like the other kids. Talk to your doctor. She'll probably give you paperwork for you and your child's teacher to fill out, and together the three of you will make the decision whether or not to medicate. We meet with my son's doctor every three months to monitor his growth and dosage. I'm definetly for medication if that's what your doctor recommends.

I'm a 40 year old mom of three, and 8 year old boy and 19 mo old b/g twins. My husband of 14 years is an officer in the Air Force. I'm a stay at home mom and artist.

S.,

You are smart to ask for advice and not believe all of the lies that the media and random internet sources tells us about ADD.

Unfortunately I believed all of what people told me without getting the true scientific data. Thankfully someone got through to me, I started taking medication and I can't believe the difference. It is truly great to know how "real" people think.

The first thing that you will need to know is that people who don't have ADD can have no clue about how it feels to be ADD/ADDHD. They think that you can just eat better nutritionally, or discipline better, or "snap out of it", or some other home remedy.

What people don't understand and I didn't either, is that ADD is a chemical imbalance at the synaptic level in the brain and it is genetic. It is not caused by any outside sources.

An ADD person's brain cycles dopamine and norepinephrine too fast at the synapse. This causes inattention, distractibility, unexplained out-bursts or impulsivity, which has outcomes, that are below average scholastically (but not always), socially shunned, and generally viewed as having a lower intelligence than their peers. However, the vast majority of ADD people have higher IQ's than their peers. By using proper medicine, they can attain their IQ quotient. Without medicine, they are often viewed as an inconvenience.

I hope that you decide to have her "tested" for ADD. Your pediatrician can give you the forms for you, your spouse, and her teacher to fill out. You will also want to know that not every pediatrician really understands ADD, so not all of them will give you good advice or start your child out on the right medication.

This past fall, my daughter (who has tested with a 'gifted' IQ) went through the testing with Dr. Lillian Israel (great Dr.!). Dr. Israel did the right thing in starting my daughter on Concerta (she had to learn to swallow pills and I can help you with this too :-)).

Concerta is the medication that the Harvard Researchers on ADD always reccommend as the first medicine to try. It is basically time released Ritalin. Ritalin is a drug that has been used since the 1930's so we know that it is safe to use.

The only other drug that has been proven to work on ADD has an amphetamine base, which increases side effects and can be addictive.

We found that Concerta has little to no side effects and is totally non addictive.

For my daughter, we started her on a low dose and then increased it until we found the level that helped her the best. We even learned that her dosages would increase through the first year or 2 as her body adjusts to metabolizing it.

The results have been amazing for my daughter! She is SO proud of herself! She is making 100's on tests! She can spell when she had a hard time before. She now has the patience to sound words out. She isn't a zombie, if anything; she is a better daughter because she doesn't talk incessantly about nothing in particular just to be talking.

I hope this helps. You can also check out the website below.

K. B.

www.concerta360.com

My first child at age 5 was diagnosed with ADHD, she was doing very poorly in school also. She is very smart and we could not figure out why she was having such a hard time at school. After a visit to her pediatrician she was diagnosed and started medication. The medication process was very frustrating at first because what works well for one child may not work on another. We eventually put her on Adderall XR which is time released all day long. By the time she was in her second semester in 1st grade her grades had went from C's and D's to all A's. She is now in 4th grade and we have recently had to change her medication because she had been on the same med for too long and it had stopped working as well. She is now on Vyvanse and it is working great. Anyway, ever since she has been on meds she has been on the honor roll at school and the meds don't change or alter her great personality. My son was also diagnosed at a much earlier age. He is on a patch called Daytrana, it works as long as the patch is on for up to 9 hours, you can take it off in plenty of time for dinner and bedtime and it stops working in about 3 hours after being removed. This works well for kids that the oral meds give a decrease in appetite because you can take it off and it stops working. Also, their pediatrician told us that the reason most children who are diagnosed with ADD/ADHD do poorly in school are because they are bored because most of the children that are diagnosed are some of the smartest kids they see. Hope this helps.

I would not try meds until for at least 6 months you try an organic, low sugar, high protein diet for your child. Full of whole grains, fruits & vegetables, no artificial sugar whatsoever, and a schedule for rest & exercise/physical activity for you child. This is not easy to do. It is actually very difficult to train an adult or child to eat healthy & change life style habits. But it is well worth it.
We are what we eat. Our bodies are fully capable to regulate & bring health & wellness to us, when we give it the tools it needs.
Also there is not genetic evidence that I know on ADD & ADHD, would love to read about it.
Also as a RN & a mother myself, I have to tell tou that the times when the doctor took time to find the solutions to your problems are over, they have very little time on their hands to help you. Many times a script & a follow up appointment is all we get. This can be frustrating..
We, as parents have to seek for answers, do the research and find the evidence, many times we are forced to create our own plan of care for our families. So don't take the prescription without throughly doing the research you need. I know once you do it, you will be able to answer your question on your own :)
Best of luck with your precious child.
B.

I believe that medication is the problem, not the kid. My youngest boy, now 15, was called a probably ADD/ADHD kid from kindergarten. When he was in first grade the school nurse followed me home one day to convince me to "get him on meds to make him a good student." I refused. Instead, I gave him a lot of attention, stimulating things to do, lots of just plain good conversation, a horse at age 8, drums at 10. He's outgrown the phase.

Another thing for mothers to think about: these school shooters have ALL been on meds for this same "problem" and look how they turned out! Worse than zombies. People without feelings, without conscience. I'd rather do it the old-fashioned way.

First get her evaluated
Second - get on the net and check out both natural and medical approaches for ADD - sometimes change in diet, different forms of exercise such as swimming or karate can get some of the excess energy out.
Third - no matter what anyone tells you the only person that can decide what to do is you - to medicate or not.

I know people who have done both - medication and natural therapies...........gotta see which one works best for you and in your lifestyle.
lol

I have two children who teachers wanted to have me have tested for add. I strongly felt that through time, maturity , and the help of God we could figure out what to do to help our children work through it without drugs. For my boy it just took time for him to mature a little bit. Thats not to say he is like even my other boys. He walks around the house while memorizing spelling words. But he is no longer a problem at school and that is what I wanted. My girl just needed a teacher who stood fast to the rules and we started an incentive program here at home and the teacher started a program where she broke the day into parts. So instead of saying you need to be good all day long, it was you show me you can be good for this part of the day. I hope that made sense. Everyone is different and you shouldn't feel presurred to do meds. If you feel like that is not the way to go then trust your "MOTHERLY" instincts. That is what God gave them to us mothers for. YOu know your child best. Good Luck

Putting your child on medication for something like this is one of the hardest decisions you will have to make.

We went through this with my son. We took him to a child psychatrist for a full evaluation and then took his recommendations to our pediatrician. I have never once regretted putting my son on medication. It was hard to do it, but it has been the best thing for him.

We don't medicate when he is not in school, but it helps him soo much at school. He is not a zombie. He is still alert and playful. He is just able to tune out the clock ticking now.

It took us a little while to find the right medicine. Stick with it. You know what is best.

I have a daughter who showed signs of ADD. I was told to have her do more puzzles and play games with her. This will help train her mind to focus on something for a longer period of time. You might give it a try. It helped her alot. She is doing great in school.

I would never give my children medication because of the side effects. There are natural ways to deal with this. Have you ever heard of Shaklee? Shaklee is the #1 supplement available. My son has very high energy and has trouble focusing at times. I refuse to label him as ADD/ADHD! That isn't God's best for him! I give him chewable multi-vitamin, b-complex (most impt for attention span), chewable calcium (to relax). He needs the Omega 3 (fish oils) but he can't swallow a pill yet. He does wonderful on this. When we started him on this, we could tell a HUGE difference in a very short time. You can go to www.shaklee.com and check out the company. I am a distributor if you are interested in an order. You can let me know. I wanted to try something natural before putting something synthetic in my child. This worked so why change? We have taken Shaklee supplements for about 15 years or so. They are the BEST! Let me know if I can help.

I am totaly with you on this one. I have a son who is ADD with ODD through in on top of it. We did not know what to do with him either and no one to talk to about it. We end up putting him on meds and it helped alot. One thing you need to be careful of, is the med combonation. We had my son one two different type of meds and it sent him to the mental hospital for 48 hours then to Perire View for a week. We found out then it was the med combo that made him do what he did. I would strongly advise you not to put her on Ridalen that med will make her a zombie. One think I will let you know they can out grow it. My son has and we have very little problems with him.
Best of luck here, my heart goes out to you.

L. C.

To give medicians is all up to you it depends on your morals There are other ways teachers can teach your child in school to help with the adhd without medicating ,the school cannot tell you that she HAS to be on adhd meds
my oldest is developmentally delayed w ADHD she had been on 8 different Meds since kindergarden she would do fine on it for a while and then become immune to it and not even tell she was on anything we found that she listened worst on the meds then she did off o during her 4th gd yr the school nurse called dfs on us cause we were not giving her meds and the the nurse was informed they cannot make us give her meds its up to not the school there are ways they can teach your child with one on one in the classroom they can disapline her by redirection there are all natural vit and things that can be given to help as well hope what ever you choose it helps her

Dear S.,
Please, please, please, please get and read the book "The ADHD Fraud: How Psychiatry Makes "Patients" of Normal Children" by Fred A. Baughman, Jr., MD. Dr. Baughman is a neurologist. Also, the books, "The Wildest Colts Make the Best Horses," and "True Nature and Great Misunderstandings: On How We Care For Our Children," and "The Necessity of Madness" by John Breeding, a psychologist. As a mother, I have been personally involved with psychotropic "medications" for almost 20 years. They have destroyed my son's life, and, in essence mine. They create a dependence and a withdrawall syndrome if a person using them stops taking them or are changed from one to another. Ritalin has become a widely-used street drug. America has become a drug society, a pharmocracy. We put trust in doctors who just don't know, who refuse to listen to a person's personal experience, and who are funded by billion dollar pharmaceutical companies. Please keep researching it for yourself.

As a teacher myself, I say talk to the doctor see what they think. If she continues to have problems in school try the medicine and see how it works with some kids the medicine is great and with others it really zones them out. She how it affects her! I know in my classroom, which I teach 2nd grade, that it really saves the majority of my students from academic and social problems!

S., when you go to the doctor make sure to ask about food allergies. It can be one of the main causes of ADD/ADHD. With my child I found as long as he avoided wheat, he is fine. I don't have to make him into a zombie with the medicine the school wanted him on.

First, talk with the doc and see what he recommends. There are new meds on the market that won't turn your child into a zombie like the Ritalin did my brother years ago. I will tell you to watch out for side affects, though. My oldest son went through a lot of the different meds for ADHD. Some made him hungry and some made him not want to eat at all. The worst was the tics~ he started doing this constant eye blinking and pulling at his hair and at first I thought he was doing it just to annoy me, but it stopped when I took him off of the meds. Any side affects you should mention to the doc right away, even if you don't think anything of it at first. Good luck!

S., before I put my child on those meds, I would make certain she really needs them. A lot of things can cause a child to appear to be hyperactive. I would look at the possibility of sensisitivity to the Electromagnetic Fields in your home. Do you live close to a cell tower? Does you little girl talk on your cell phone or cordless phone? Does she play games on the internet or sit directly in front of the TV? All of this EMF could be affecting her. We have a pendant that we put on children that helps settle them down without the drugs. If you would like more information, contact me at ____@____.com
I know you are concerned! Just don't jump too fast into the drug arena. OK.

My son was diagnosed with ADD/ADHD in the middle of 2nd grade, being my only child at the time I had no idea of how things were "supposed to be" once he started on medications his attention span was much better and ended up getting all A's by the end of that year. He is now in 6th grade and still gets A's and B's. His Doctor but him on a low dosage medication Focalin at the beginning which worked really well, he was recently changed to concerta becasue his dosage had exceeded the Focalin miligram available, Concerta has multiple choices of miligrams and my sons seems to be doing fine on that. Only thing that I find disturbing with some Doctors is that they want to put children on Ridilin right away, this is basicly for severe ADD/ADHD people not children with a slight case. Neither Focalin or Concerta has made my son "a zombie" the only side effect for him is his appetite is a little surpressed during the day so he does not eat much at lunch but he makes up for it when he gets home from school. Good luck, I had the same worries as you, but am releived that I do not have to struggle with his grades and homework. They are in most cases extremely smart and creative and get bored easily and these two medications that I have had experience with have made it so they can get through school without any labels, do explain to the teacher becasue without their input you do not know if the medication is working, or effecting them in a different way.
Proud Mother of An ADD/ADHD child with excellant grades

I've worked with a lot of children that have ADD/ADHD. It has been my experience that a change in diet such as limiting the processed foods, refined sugars, etc has relieved some of the parents issues. I also think it is good that when they are outside of the classroom to work on structure as well finding things that excite them and helps them use that energy. I personally suggest making meds the last priority.

I am totally against giving meds to these kids. In my life I have only seen two kids that were severe enough to need drugs. Basically the drugs are very bad for the kids and most of this can be sorted out with diet. How much wheat and dairy is she eating? That would mean cereal with milk- mac and cheese, pizza, etc. etc. The wheat especially has been hybridized to the point that many kids have sensitivities to it. When their bodies try to digest it, it is partially broken down and one of the byproducts is an opiat that they become addicted to. This is well documented. When the kids start to come off their "high" they have ADD-like symtoms: aggitation, loss of focus, brain fog...They also crave these foods. Its hard to get Dad and Mom to both agree and also if they go to Grandmas house and she doesn't agree well you have a mess because you must take these kids off wheat completely.

My suggestin is to get on the internet and read everything you can that is negative about the drugs and you will certainly find many people with success stories regarding diet. Also, you must begin supplementing with fish oil. It needs to be pharmaceutical grade. SOme people use cod liver oil as well. It is slightly different. Garden of Life makes a nice mint flavored CLO that is pretty easy to get down. Put it in her juice if she can't take it off the spoon or swallow pills. Start giving her raw vegetable juice drinks. Do you have a juicer?
Good luck.

We knew about our daughter's ADD for a couple of years before she needed it for school (5th grade) and we started using the Ritalin. Thank God we had patient teachers, she mainly needed it to learn more difficult concepts. We have used it for over a year and only used 5mg, the smallest dose that helps make a difference, and I think it only helps her slightly to focus and pay attention in class enough to learn. We don't give it in the afternoons or during weekends or school breaks. We don't bother with behaviors or hyperactivity at home etc. We just give her the minimum possible in the morning to help her learn.
She has been more emotional lately and we discussed taking her off for awhile and seeing if it solves the tears at school. It's something you have to decide for yourself and experiment with to see what works for your child.
This is just our experience, but I hope this helps. God bless.

My son was incorrectly diagnosed with ADD by a teacher and then a pediatrician. I took him to see a psychologist and this is when I was told he was slightly autistic. Autism, in the milder forms, can actually mimic ADD/ADHD so please make sure your child is tested for both ADD & Autism by a licensed child psychologist that deals with both medical conditions because they know better than a teacher or pediatrician what to test for and how detailed the testing needs to be since each child is different.

Hi S., my oldest son was hyperactive but did not have the ADD that so often goes along with it....we found that the hyperactivity was stimulated by red dyes and such. Watching her reactions to certain foods might help some. For us it was a trial and error type thing...that was many years ago so there may be some way to test for it now....it was not a food allergy just some things prompted the hyperactivity to come into play. For him, a glass of classic coke would reverse the effects. I do have a friend who's son is ADD/ADHD when they finally put him on medication it was amazing the changes. Her comment was that "he was finally able to accomplish things" If your doctor puts your daughter on medication just watch her and have her teachers watch her during the day to be sure that it doesn't make her groggy but simply allows her to focus enough to accomplish the things that she is trying to do. I, myself, was labeled as a bad kid in elementry school due to the same issues that my son had. they didnt' know that much about it then. my parents tried the medication and chose not to continue it. as i matured i learned how to manage it. but once again, the ADD part does make a huge difference. the experts say that these children are normally extremely intellegent and creative. help her learn to focus and bring those things to the surface. R.

I believe the first thing you need to do is have your child evaluated. She may or may not have either ADD or ADHD, so it's best to know whether that's even the issue. From there you can be told various options and get the full information you need to make your decision on medication. It's hard to tell on a child this young what exactly is going on, unless there are extreme displays of the condition. Children this young are going to vary tremendously. Some are more energetic than others, some can sit for longer periods of time than others, etc. Evaluate first, I wouldn't rush to medication unless it is a sure thing. Once she is on medication you need to monitor how she accomplishes things verses when she wasn't on medication. I am a former teacher and believe that rushing to medication can be a big mistake because you are going to develop a dependency in this child that will last the rest of their lives. Your child may need practice on how to behave and work on school work, or there may be some strategies worth trying that a professional can give you before jumping to medication. However, there are certain children, I taught a few, who most definitely need medication. They are unable to accomplish even the simplest goals because their minds cannot settle down on what they need to accomplish. At your child's age that is hard to determine because of the age. Some children't maturity levels as far as school work, etc. can vary. They are just starting to learn how to act or do things under new situations. She may just need to be held back a year to adjust developmentally. You need to talk to a professional and get real answers and advice. That is step #1!

Hi S.! We've been just where you are - our daughter (now 13 - also very smart and creative) was diagnosed ADHD when she was in 1st grade. The zombie medication was my husband's biggest concern. She was started on a very low dose of Ritilan and the dose was increased as needed. There are many more choices these days (think we ended up on Adderall) that don't have the zone out side-effects and your peditrician/doctor should be able to explain all the options. She did fine on the meds - only once did she get spacey after a tweak of the dose, but we quickly fixed it. The major problem we did have with meds was her appetite. Other friends with ADHD kids have had the same problem. Many of the medications tend to suppress the appetite.

We ended up taking her off the medication a few years later and tested her for food allergies (reactions). I had done some research on what I call the "red dye theory" and found out about the Elimination Diet. (There are several books on the process and benefits.) As it turned out, wheat triggers her hyperactivity and lack of focus. And I had been feeding her 100% whole wheat bread, thinking I was being a good mom! Another mom I know did essentially the same thing and found out that her son was affected by sugar. It isn't the perfect solution and is a pain of a process, but the results can definitely be worth it!

Hope this helps some! You definitely are not alone!! God Bless!

C.

S., NOT ALL MEDICATIONS WILL MAKE YOUR CHILD TURN INTO A ZOMBIE YOU HAVE TO TRY THEM TO FIND OUT THOUGH. THE FIRST MEDICATION THE PUT MY SON ON WAS ADDERALL(sp?) AND HE DIDN'T WANT TO DO ANYTHING NOT EVEN EAT SO I HAD IT CHANGED. CONCERTA WORKED REALLY WELL FOR HIM AND NOW HE IS ON FOCALIN WHICH IS LIKE CONCERTA BUT GOES TO A HIGHER DOSE. AND HE IS DOING GREAT IN SCHOOL AND ON THE BUS ( HE WAS GETTING SUSPENDED FOR HITTING AND TALKING BACK) NOW HE IS MAKING B'S AND C'S INSTEAD OF F'S AND D'S, YOU SHOULD TALK TO YOU DR. ABOUT ALL OF YOUR OPTIONS AND TO MAKE SURE SHE DEFINTLY HAS ADD OR ADHD. THE MEDICATIONS WILL HELP HER IF SHE DOES HAVE IT!!

Hi.
My name is C., living in south Louisiana, 49 and mother of a 10 year old.

I won't say don't seek medical advise for the problems you are facing. However, I will give my experience with the 10 y/o and the behavior problems that started showing up at around 3 y/o. She is extremely intelligent and the last thing I wanted to do was medicate her.

So, on a hint from an Aunt, I went on a research mission. I found a little known study concerning the effects food additives, particularly artificial color (ALL colors), flavorings and some preservatives, had on behavior, specifically those already diagnosed with ADD/ADHD. The book was B.F. Feingold (1985), Why Your Child is Hyperactive.

The Feingold Program (or KP diet) restricts the intake of synthetic additives (most petroleum based) from the diet. Of course there has been quite a bit of critisum, particularily from the chemical companies that make this stuff, saying it's all a hoax. However, just in the last couple years, studies overseas and in Australia completely support his 1970's findings. The controlled studies are getting 70-85% improvements, some cases the kids no longer need the meds.

When I eliminated all artificial color and flavor from her diet, within two weeks the preschool teacher asked me what I had done to ******, it wasn't the same child.

I kept a detailed food and behavior log, tracking her disruptive incidence.

It requires strict adherence on your part, every lable must be reviewed. I even found that, at least here, you can't buy a chocolate syrup or powder for milk that doesn't have color or fake vanilla (vanilin) added. I make my own from scratch. She takes her lunch and snacks to school. Of course, all teachers, admins and any other school personnel are advised of what she can and can't have.

I'm not a doctor, no formal training, just a Mom who didn't want her child drugged unless it was absoutely necessary. She is a straight A student (4th grade) and scores 2-3 grade levels higher on annual standardized (Iowa) test. And believe me, I know exactly when she's ate something she shouldn't have, it's that obvious.

Just passing on a tip you may want to try before putting your child on meds.

And as a note to another comment I just read, yes, it is a chemical imbalance in the brain, however, it is caused by outside chemical sources. The original Feingold study time line the increase of incidence of ADD/ADHD with the introduction and increased use of chemically generated additives in foods.

I suggest visiting with a chiropractor. Check out this website. It isn't a chiropractor in our area, but it's very informative: http://www.hansonchiropractic.com/ Click on Kids & Chiropractic; Chiropractic research & then it gives you a list of items, including ADD/ADHD. They can explain to you how your body has to be aligned correctly in order for your natural chemicals to flow through your body. They can give her adjustments using an activator (they won't bend & pop her back). Once the adjustments start going into place, she will be able to focus on her own & won't need the meds. Let me know if you need the name of a good chiropractor in Edmond.

Hi My eldest daughter is on concerta. She was diagnosed in 4th grade. I suspected she had add in 1st though. I am grateful she finally got the help she needed. The way she was going in school before meds had her on a collision course with a life of working at Mc D's. She is not a zombie, the concerta helps her concentrate at school and helps her control her impulsivity. She still has all her quirks and personality traits that make her-her, only calmer. Definately talk to your Dr. about it, also talk with her school counselor about other things that maybe happening, like a learning disability or eye problems. That is how I finally recieved the help I needed for her. The school did tests and i took the results with me to the dr. appt. Hope this helps some. D.