Physicians Health

Seeing your child having difficulties in interacting with other children, being teased by them and having problems with schoolwork or some other aspect of his life may be very harmful. So you should understand the reasons and prevent them, if possible.

Child abnormal psychology can have different reasons and therefore different circumstances.  Attention deficit disorder (ADD) can be one of those reasons.

There are several tests that can help reveal ADD symptoms. If the test results show that a child suffers from inattentiveness, belligerency, hyperactivity, restlessness, lack of concentration, aggressive behavior and poor impulse control, then there is a great probability that he/she is suffering attention deficit disorder.

However, it should be noted that before attaching the label of ADD to a child, changes in his behavior must appear before age seven. They should last for at least six months and the symptoms should make it difficult for a child to communicate and get along with the people around him or her in at least two of the following areas of the child’s life: home, school, playground, community or social settings.

ADD more frequently appears among male children than female. The main cause for ADD is genetics, but environmental and family factors should not be ignored as well. And also it should be noted that ADD symptoms are often carried into adulthood.

For managing ADD symptoms you can turn to medications, behavior therapy or both.

• There is a variety of drugs that help control ADD symptoms. However, it is necessary to realize that medication can relieve the symptoms, but not cure the condition. They can be very effective for one symptom and have just the opposite effect for another. The dosage and type of medication depends on the individual, so always turn to your doctor.
• Behavior therapy works on a psychological level. Much depends on the child’s personality, his understanding and wish to please his parents and people around him. For that a child needs to get some motivation for behaving in an appropriate way. He/she should comprehend that inappropriate behavior will bring him nothing but harm, whereas when behaving properly he will gain much more (that can be some rewards or privileges).
• Most experts consider that combining medical treatment with behavior therapy is the best way of coping with ADD symptoms. They indicate that ADD is a psychological disorder and therefore needs psychological treatment. Here is where the attention and care of parents, teachers and friends is irreplaceable.

Make sure your child gets the proper treatment he needs if he or she has been diagnosed with ADD.

Photo © woodleywonderworks

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