Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

When my son was four years old he was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and also Oppositional Defiant Disorder.

He had shown no signs at all when he was younger than that and when he started acting out, it was a surprise and shocked us all.

He started being very aggressive, not listening or following orders, he was very hyper, did not pay attention and could not control his impulses.

The child who could sit through whole movies and not budge before 2 years of age, would no longer sit still.

One thing that really irritated me is the assumption that these children do not need medication and we are just doping up our kids. For my son, I would hear that he was just 'being a boy'. Some children may not need medication, that is very true. Some children do in fact need medication and my son is one of them.

Here are some of the things I found relating to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

About eight to ten percent of children will have this common behavioral problem. Three times as many boys will be diagnosed than girls.

There are 3 basic category's. Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), a hyperactive-impulsive type, then there is the combined type referred to as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Some of the signs of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)are:

• Forgetfulness in every day activities
• Having trouble organizing
• Avoiding and disliking anything that requires any mental effort
• Inability to pay attention and concentrating
• Making careless errors in schoolwork and activities
• Tendency to lose items. (clothes, school work, toys, etc.)
• Difficulty following instructions

Signs of the hyper-impulsive types are:

• Difficulty waiting their turn for something
• Problems interrupting and intruding
• Running and climbing excessively
• Fidgeting
• Trouble remaining seated
• Being an excessive talker
• Having trouble playing quietly

Then there is the combined type ADHD which is more common.

For those that think just because my kid acts out I went and had him medicated to be more easily controlled, they need to know that certain guidelines ARE followed in diagnosing someone with this condition.