ADHD diagnosis

Tips for Creating an ADD-friendly Study Environment

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ADD affects a multitude of characteristics that make it difficult to complete quiet tasks. Distractibility, short attention span, trouble concentrating, and hyperactivity are contradictory to the characteristics needed to complete homework and studying.

A recent article describes ways to create a less distracting environment for students with ADD during musical instrument lessons. These tips can be extended to creating a less distracting environment for the completion of homework and other quiet activities.

To create the best environment for your loved one with ADD, try these suggestions:

  • Clocks. Avoid ticking clocks as these can be distracting to children with ADD.
  • Phones. Silent phones during the child’s homework time. Children with ADD can be, not only distracted by the ringing noise, but also by thoughts of thecontent of the phone call.
  • Windows. Homework should be completed away from windows as weather, cars, animals, and people outside the windows can take attention away from homework.
  • Aromas. Smells of food can be especially distracting to children with ADD. Keep a closed door between the study environment and the aroma of cooking.
  • Interruptions. Unless it is an emergency, do not allow any visitors or family members to interrupt your child when he/she is doing homework.
  • Background noise. The study environment should be away from any distracting background noise including loud conversations or television.
  • Pets. Animals in the study space can serve as a distractor during homework.

Contact Dr. Gordon for help with your ADHD. We have treatment and solutions available online, by phone, and in our offices.

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written by:
Brianna Malinowski
Jay Gordon, Ph.D

Melago, K. (2014). Strategies for successfully teaching students with ADD or ADHD in instrumental lessons. Music Educators Journal, 101(2), 37-43.

ADHD diagnosis

Smartphones Helping to Increase Attention

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ADHD, while commonly known to be a disorder found in children, can persist throughout adulthood, with about 2-4% of adults living with this diagnosis. Adult symptoms of ADHD may include the following:

  • Difficulty paying attention
  • Difficulty controlling impulses
  • Impairments in working memory (temporary storage of information)
  • Difficulty planning and organizing
  • Trouble with multitasking
  • Hard time completing tasks
  • Difficulty with time perception

Improving organizational skills is an effective way to manage ADHD with the use of calendars, shopping lists, to-do lists, and alarms. Results of a 2014 study give insight into a new technology-savvy way for people with ADHD to manage their time and tasks. Participants who used various organization apps on their smartphones and who received support via texts and phones call from coaches, reported higher levels of attention, decreased hyperactivity, and decreased depression than participants who did not use organization apps or receive support.

It may help to try including organizational smartphone apps into your life! Here are some examples used by participants in the study:

  • Google Calendar (Time management)
  • N-back (improving working memory)
  • Evernote (Notes to aid memory)
  • G-tasks (to-do-list)
  • Stayfocusd (block distractions)
  • SimplyNoise (reduce distractions)

Contact Dr. Gordon for help with your ADHD. We have treatment and solutions available online, by phone, and in our offices.

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written by:
Brianna Malinowski
Jay Gordon, Ph.D

Moëll, B., Kollberg, L., Nasri, B., Lindefors, N., & Kaldo, V. (2014). Living SMART — A randomized controlled trial of a guided online course teaching adults with ADHD or sub-clinical ADHD to use smartphones to structure their everyday life. Internet Interventions, 2(1), 24-31.

ADHD diagnosis

ADHD in Children – ADHD & Homework

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Conflicts over homework are common with children and teens who have ADD / ADHD.

adhd in childrenGiven that students with ADD/ ADHD are often disorganized, forgetful, distractible, careless and lack persistence, it is not surprising that homework time leads to child and parental distress, a deterioration of the parent/child relationship, and eventual academic underachievement.

 

 

The following points may provide useful when assisting children or teens with ADHD in completing their homework:

★ Organizing information and note taking
★ Providing a quiet environment
★ Maintaining a routine
★ Break homework into parts
★ Manage time and set goals
★ Rewarding
★ Consequences
★ Communicating
★ Seek professional help

Get started with Dr Gordon. We have treatment and solutions available online, by phone, and in our offices.
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Dyslexia Testing – Signs of Dyslexia

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Possible signs of Dyslexia or a language based learning disability include:

➡Slow progress acquiring reading skills
➡Trouble reading new/unfamiliar words
➡Mistakes with small words such as: that, an, in
➡Difficulty sounding out multi-syllable words
➡Omitting part of a word when reading out loud
➡Poor oral reading ability
➡Extreme fear or avoidance of reading out loud
➡Poor memory of dates, names numbers, etc.
➡Substitution of words with the same meaning
➡Very poor spelling
➡Frequent hesitation and pauses when speaking
➡Using the wrong word when speaking with one that sounds similar
➡Slow, labored reading, avoidance of reading and/or lack of pleasure in reading
➡Despite reading/language weakness, demonstrates strong, higher level reasoning ability
➡Better reading words when in context than as a single word
➡Poor performance on multiple choice tests and math word problems

 

adhd and dyslexiaADHD and Dyslexia

Studies indicate as many as 40% of all early elementary school students in the United States have some initial difficulty learning to read. Nearly half of these students

(ie, 15-20% of elementary students) have significant problems and continuing difficulties with reading fluency, comprehension, and spelling. Many students with ADHD also have dyslexia or another language based learning difficulty.

 

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ADHD diagnosis

ADHD Treatments

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adhd treatmentEducation: Educate yourself as much as you can about ADHD and its management. Read books, talk to professionals, and research on the internet.

Medication: Stimulant medication (methylfenadate, amphetamines) and non- stimulant medications (atomoxetine) have been shown to be effective. Seek a qualified physician to evaluate use of medication.

Parent-training: Parent-training is an affective treatment for ADHD. Parent- training helps decrease parent/child conflict, child defiance, and disruptive behaviors. Parent-training also helps reduce parent stress and household stress in general. Parent-training strategies include contingency management, effective use of commands, transition planning, positive attending, behavior management plans, and various monitoring programs.

Psychotherapy: Psychotherapy is helpful for adolescents and adults by helping them gain a better understanding of the nature of ADHD, its management, and how it has influenced who they are today. It is also useful to help with medication compliance.

School-based accommodations and interventions and Social-skills training

DEVELOPMENTAL RISKS

adhd development risks✓Academic under-performance 90% of the time
✓Retention in a grade from 25% to 50% of the time
✓Requiring Special Education in 35% to 60% of the time
✓Failure to graduate high school in 30% to 40% of the time
✓Less likely to attend college 20% of the time
✓Less likely to graduate college 5% of the time
✓Peer-relation problems 50% of the time
✓Delinquency in 25% to 35%
✓Substance-abuse/dependency 10% to 20%
✓Early sexual activity and teen pregnancy in 38%+
✓Increased risk for STDs in 16%
✓Greater health risk

 

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ADHD diagnosis

ADHD Testing – Assessing ADHD

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Find a trained professional specializing in ADD/ ADHD with whom you feel comfortable. An evaluation for ADD/ADHD should be comprehensive. The evaluation should include taking a comprehensive history including; symptoms, medical history, social history, and family medical history. When evaluating a child, the evaluation should include observations of the child. Behavior questionnaires which provide an objective behavior sampling in at least two settings are generally utilized. In some cases, psychological and/or neuropsychological testing is used to rule out other concurrent cognitive, psychological, or learning problems, and to assist with treatment planning.

Get started with Dr Gordon. We have treatment and solutions available online, by phone, and in our offices.
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adhd coaching

What is Good Parenting?

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It is well known that parenting behavior has a significant impact on a child’s psychological health and behavior. Research has shown that there are certain parenting behaviors that are beneficial to a child’s well being.  These behaviors include being sensitive to a child’s needs, developing a positive parent-child relationship and encouraging and rewarding positive behavior.

When a parent responds sensitively to a child’s needs a child is more likely to demonstrate secure attachment.  This type of sensitivity can be seen when a parent interacts with a cooing or smiling baby.  Ignoring or acting aggressively to a cooing or smiling baby can lead to anxiety and insecure attachment.  But responding to the baby in a sensitive way the reflects the baby’s level of arousal and needs will help develop a securely attached baby.  Securely attached children are more likely to demonstrate positive behaviors as an adult.

When parents provide love and support to their children, children tend develop positive feelings of self-worth.  Research show that parents own mental health and attitudes toward parenting can impact their ability to develop this positive relationship with their children.  Therefore, it important for parents to be aware of their own psychological well being and attitudes and address any issues they may be having themselves.

Finally, there is a great deal of research to support the effectiveness of focusing on and rewarding positive behavior.  Often, as parents, we accidently do the opposite!  Without realizing it parents reinforce negative behavior by either giving in or paying a lot of negative attention to it, while ignoring our child when they are well behaved.  It is important for parents to consciously keep their focus on positive behaviors, provide attention to their children when ‘good’ behavior occurs and attempt to minimize attention to negative behaviors.

Participating in a Parent Management Training program can provide parents with the support, tools, and feedback to develop parenting behaviors that will lead to healthier children and a happier household.

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ADHD diagnosis

Causes of ADHD

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Understanding the Diagnosis

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder is one of the most over-diagnosed and under-diagnosed disorders. This is because many other disorders and problems can mimic the symptoms of ADHD. In addition, the majority of children who have Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder also have other related problems.

Causes of ADHD

ADD/ADHD is a neuro-chemical disorder with a large genetic component. The genetic contribution to ADD/ADHD is 80% or more. It is now known that poor child management by parents does NOT cause ADD/ADHD. Other causes of ADD/ADHD that have been disproved include; food additives, allergies, sugar, milk in diet, excessive caffeine in diet, environmental allergens, family stress, excessive use of TV and video games, increased cultural tempo, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, depression, anxiety, and learning disabilities. Although many of the previously-mentioned environmental and emotional conditions can result in other behavior/emotional difficulties, they do not cause ADD/ADHD. ADD/ADHD is a problem of the brain. Therefore, symptoms will be observed across time and across environmental settings.

Prevalence of ADHD

Prevalence of ADHDADHD occurs in approximately 5% to 8% of the childhood population, and approximately 4% to 5% of the adult population. Three times more boys have ADHD than girls. Among adults, the ratio is 2 to 1.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ADHD Coaching is available online, by phone , and in-person by Jay B. Gordon, Ph.D. Neuropsychologist and staff ADHD Coaching Psychologists.