by Jennifer Shakeel

You know that your child has Attention Deficit Disorder, and dealing with that diagnosis on a daily basis is sometimes hard enough. What you may not realize is that with Attention Deficit Disorder, your child is also at a greater risk of having low self esteem. We all remember what is was like as a kid, kids can be mean and you are constantly wanting to measure up to the kids around you. Your child…my child is not like all of the other kids. They have ADHD and making sure that they have a strong sense of self and a good self image is extremely important.

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by Jennifer Shakeel

The purpose of this article is to let you know that the fact your child has ADD/ADHD has nothing to do with your parenting skills. ADD/ADHD is not a result of good or bad child rearing skills. I say this because I know you wonder, just as I did, “What did I do wrong that my poor child has to suffer with this?”

Some of you may wonder if ADD/ADHD is genetic. The answer to that question is yes it can be. There are many different reasons a child develops ADD/ADHD, we are going to look at the genetic reasons. You need to know that there are many experts in the field that believe ADHD has a very strong genetic basis. They also believe that genetics plays a big role in most cases of ADHD. It appears to be more common amongst people that have a close family relative that has ADHD.

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by Jennifer Shakeel

Imagine standing in an open field and having thousands of bees and flies surrounding you while loud music and hundreds of lights flashing all around you. What do you feel like now? Overwhelmed, unable to focus, nervous… you may be throwing your arms to swat away the bugs, trying to plug your ears to escape the noise or cover your eyes to get away from the flashing lights. That is what it is like inside your child with ADD/ADHD. While you are trying to escape all of those sensory triggers your child is trying to pay attention to each and every one of them all at the same time.

Understanding what it is like for your child with ADD/ADHD can make all the difference in whether parenting is a frustrating and draining experience or an amazing and exciting experience. I am a parent of a child that has ADD/ADHD and while it has been a long road, it has been a rewarding and exciting one despite the perception of the world around us.

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by Michelle Donaghey

“Would you please look at me? Did you hear what I just told you?”
It seemed every time that I talked to my son, Patrick, he just did not listen. And not the typical child tune-out behavior, but a kind of spaced-out looking and listening type I just did not understand until his teacher told me she thought he had an attention deficit disorder.
Instead of immediately running to a specialist, I waited for a change. He was in first grade when I first learned of ADD. At that time, I immediately thought of the ADD drug, Ritalin, and thought there would be “no way” I would put him on medication. Instead, I tried a natural approach I read about called the”Feingold Diet.” The additive free diet did not allow ANY sort of dyes or preservatives or wheat and is totally natural- try it for a week and you will find it nearly impossible- it didn’t work for Patrick either. In fact according to CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) dozens of studies published in journals over the past 15 years have not found support of this diet. So, I put ADD out of my mind and ignored any sort of problems occurring at school and home. Patrick is now in the third grade and I am finally going to have him evaluated by a professional after dragging my heels thinking he would outgrow this somehow.

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