Adhd

[Linzo]

Yes, I know that this is widely over-diagnosed but we have noticed Mia's behavior for a while now and now that she is in school, it's becoming more clear. She is almost 4. She is a good kid, but truly has a hard time sitting and concentrating and .doing what we ask her to do unless we say it about 5 times or 50 depending on the day. She is so intelligent when it comes to her day to day conversation and the level she is at but definitely seeing issues that point to.ADHD. She fits every single symptom and her father also has it. We are going to see the pedi about it to see if she could determine at this age if that is what we are dealing with or not. I am curious for moms here dealing with a child with ADHD and who do NOT use medication to treat. It's not an option I think I'll ever agree with so at this point Im wondering if anyone has had success with other methods. I don't want this to turn into a debate, just looking to know more about what I might be up against!

[hotpinkmomma0811]

I was looking online and Omega 3 Fatty Acids can help, behavioral therapy, and getting tested for allergies. I do not have children with A.D.H.D. but, I had my own personally struggles and I did better with avoiding caffeine and food dyes. Is she in school yet? I would also wait and see what a teacher would say about her in school if she goes to Preschool. Cody has been hyper before and he still can be. He doesn't listen to me well but, he excels in Pre-K and the teachers don't have a problem with his behavior he listens better to a teacher than me which is hard to admit but, its true.

[Linzo]

We thought it was just behavior at home but seeing her doing "homework" was a sign too. She literally would draw
one letter and ask about something out of the blue. The teacher brought it up to my Dad today when he picked her up from prek. Said they will all be sitting on the rug and she will just get up, walk.somewhere else in the room or just start talking in the middle of the story. She said it is not an everyday issue but some days are worse than others. There are more signs than this, just hate typing on my phone!

[tanyachap]

My DH has it in his family and unfortunately for the people (in his family) who have it the meds are the only thing that worked. My SIL tried different natural remedies until the point when she was told that her son could no longer attend the private school he was going to if there are no changes in his behavior.

My older son has a lot of signs of ADHD - both attention deficit and hyper activity; in addition he has some minor sensitivities and other things. He is too young for a formal diagnosis. He is 4.5 and it is getting only more obvious and worse as the time goes on, not better. Food colors definitely affect him and we try to avoid them within reason. Sugar, however, calms him down?!?!?! We have never tried caffeine which is helpful to some ADHD kids but I think he is too young for that. Foods rich in omega 3 fatty acids and vitamin B complex definitely help him.

[hotpinkmomma0811]

We thought it was just behavior at home but seeing her doing "homework" was a sign too. She literally would draw
one letter and ask about something out of the blue. The teacher brought it up to my Dad today when he picked her up from prek. Said they will all be sitting on the rug and she will just get up, walk.somewhere else in the room or just start talking in the middle of the story. She said it is not an everyday issue but some days are worse than others. There are more signs than this, just hate typing on my phone!

Oh okay

[sammilynn]

With my niece we finally confirmed the DX when she was in the 2nd grade. She has been on and off different meds and the thing that has helped the most is low dose meds and cutting out gluten, high fructose corn syrup and a few other things I'd have to look at my list lol. She is now 14 and doing great with these adaptations. She also speaks to a psychiatrist for behavioral therapy and he even says after cutting out the foods and lowering her dose, that he sees a major improvement.

[ibisgirldc]

for our foster care classes, we had to do an extended class on adhd. Abuse and negiligence contributes to brain mapping and developmental problems, and for those reasons, foster kids tend to have a higher incidence of adhd. Doesn't make me an expert by any stretch, but I'll share a little about what we learned.

So the instructor showed us the PETscans before and after the medicines; you can absolutely see the dramatic difference due to the increase of the flow of oxygen to the brain (which is what the medicines are designed to do). She explained that in addition to medicines, depending on the child's adhd traits and severity, occupational therapy options could make a huge difference. (Rather, that they make a difference for every kid, but how helpful they'll be depends on the circumstances. And that for some, it's the medications that allow the OT to succeed.) That being consistent and proactive with a child's school, hopefully to allow for things like velcro strips under a desk or to let a kid pace in the back of a room during instruction, make it possible for some kids to adjust enough to keep up and to control focus and behavior. She did alot of discussion, too, about designing work space for those kids, how to converse with them, how to help them to organize, etc. She also said that in conjunction with therapy, many of the kids would get to a point where they could manage their symptoms. (the instructor was adhd herself and showed us some of the techniques that she uses to stay focused on teaching classes.)

This was the course: http://www.upsidedownorganization.org/rethinking-adhd If you wanted, I could scan in the print-outs and email them to you.

[Ky'sMom]

I think she is too young to be worried about ADHD and that most 3 year olds cannot sit in groups very long and may not want to sit still at a table and do work or sit and concentrate on anything that she doesn't want to do.

I wouldn't worry about it much at this age and would wait until she was school aged to even consider it. I would keep an eye out for it though since her dad has it.

In the meantime, I would try to incorporate a lot of physical activity for her to burn off energy. I would also do as other posters suggested and cut out corn based sugars and even red dyes as I have heard they have an effect on kids. Elle get super hyper when she consumes products with red dyes in them.

Erin

[pumpkinseed2011]

I was an ADHD kid so I get worried that my DD will be that way, too. So I did some research and found that artificial food colors (red, yellow, orange) food dyes can contribute to behavior issues. We do our best to eliminate them from foods and beverages we provide. I know I can't eliminate from what others provide, but I can do my best to keep them out of her diet. Daycare knows no red dyes, but not sure how much they follow that.

I have heard there is a ferber diet or something. We are not that strict, but definately know that it can be helpful. Here is a link of just one of the websites I have referenced: http://inspirationgreen.com/food-dye...-problems.html

[tapir]

She's 3. You can't possibly know if she has ADHD at 3 - there is WAAAAAYYYY too much overlap between normal 3 y/o behavior and ADHD behavior. All you can do at this point is make sure she gets enough sleep, enough exercise, and watches as little media as possible. And choose her environment carefully so the expectations are reasonable and age-appropriate.
I diagnose ADD for a living and the flat out absolute youngest you can legitimately call it is around 5.

That said, I am pretty sure my almost 6-year old has it. She is not going to get meds (yet, at least) but is going to be in a private school that can accomodate her learning style. She is improving with age, but we really only began to see improvement in her attention span and ability to hold still at around age 5.

[ibisgirldc]

Oh, I missed that she was three. As I said above, i have no expertise in adhd, but i do have a 3 yo, like you. For what it's worth, his attention span is top-notch when transformers or rescue heroes are on, but on many occasions, he jumps around from thing to thing, as well. I think what you describe is quite normal for that age.

[Linzo]

She is 4 in a month and once again, I did not ask to diagnose my child or give opinions on whether she has it or not I simply asked those who have a child with Adhd, what are the methods you use aside from meds. I get that everyone has opinions but that was not the point of this post.

[janben]

I have been having similar concerns with my children. Their dad was medicated as a child. They are both extremely busy. My DD is five and while keeping up in school, she has been in trouble constantly for talking and not paying attention. Daily.
My Ds will be four in January. He was labelled as difficult in his daycare. We moved him and his problems stopped.
We routinely avoid red and yellow food color. We know behaviour is worse after those.
Another thing we are trying with my DD is to have her hold something in her hand while doing schoolwork. Fidgeting with something small has been a great coping mechanism for my husband so we hope it will work for DD too. It might be worth trying for your son.

[i.<3.cheesysmiles]

I do not have a child with ADHD. However, when I taught, I had one boy who clearly had it. His mom did not want to try any meds. I know she cut out all food dyes, but I am not sure what other dietary changes she made. I did work with her and modify my instruction to help him succeed in my class as best as I could.

I am concerned about my own child's behavior, too. We already avoid dyes, preservatives, and colorings. We are now going to try cutting down more on sweets. Next on the list to remove is gluten, and then maybe dairy. I have been thinking of making these dietary changes for a while, but they are HUGE changes to consider.

Good luck!

[impatient]

I only have a couple moment but wanted to reply with two resources: check out www.feingold.org in regards to diet. I would also recommend a book called Bright, not Broken by Diane Kennedy, Rebecca Banks and Temple Grandin to anyone who is concerned about ADHD with their child.

[Linzo]

Thank you for the helpful resources!

[tanyachap]

This is just my experience (again, my child has a lot of symptoms but like your DD my DS is too young to diagnose and he might outgrow it) but I have noticed that certain foods help him a lot. For example, we try to give him a lot of bananas and grapes and non processed foods. Also, if he has a sweet tooth and I give him candy he becomes a mad man but if I make my home-made pancakes and put honey on top or even some powdered sugar, he is fine. In fact home made sweet breads (made with home and/or organic brown sugar), pancakes and other homemade stuff actually calms him down. Same with nuts. I have definitely noticed that foods rich in Vit B (all kinds of vit B), magnesium and vit K are so helpful for him. He is a very picky eater so I am very limited in what I can give or eliminate. So, what I am trying to say/encourage you is to also do some trouble shooting and see how different foods affect her.

Also, try to break down the tasks; keep her room, play area reasonably tidy; teach her to clean up what she is done playing with before she pulls the next toy etc. These are different coping mechanisms for ADD/ADHD people and she will take time to learn them but they will help.

In the end of the day, she might not have this diagnosis but changes in diet and teaching her coping mechanisms are not going to hurt KWIM.