Parents of Children with ADHD Support Group

I have been researching the reasons and there is no definite reason. Some experts think the children are lacking B vitamins and amino acids and need a high protein diet. All of which I have been trying for about a week and I see a little difference in my sons ability to focus at home but his behavior is still not great at school. Some studies have shown that there is a part of the brain that reacts differently in children with ADHD.

I have found an abundance of reasearch that points to the following, which I think fits the symptoms of ADHD very well. As to the vitamin deficiency, my kids grew up eating vegetables and meats we grew ourselves, all unprocesses or minimally processed, and my son still had classic ADHD. I tried the supplements and herbals and nothing helped.
The following theory fits better, in my mind.

I thought this had been proven, but perhaps not...

The brain functions differently. It is considered and listed now with a very slight autism. What happens is this:

These kids are usually extremely intelligent with very high IQs. They take in information through many senses. Many more than the average person. You and I might have one or two ways that we principally take in information. For example, I CANNOT seem to learn in a lecture class. I DO NOT process information that way. I am visual and olfactory learner. My son, on the other hand, was a very strong learner in 5 out of 7 classifications of learning styles!

So, while they have all of this huge amount of information coming in, there is a difference in the way their electric paths operate. They cannot distinquish and separate the important from the trivial like we do. When we take in information, our brain says "that's trivial....dismiss it" or "hmmm, I might need that later, file it", or "HEY!! THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT! KEEP IT HANDY!" Their brains evidently get these messages all mixed up. Because they take in such HUGE amounts of information, they have trouble sorting the trivial from the important, so some of the important things get filed under "trivial" and some of the "trivial" get filed under "most important". Their brain waves go all over the place. That is the main reason they can and do miss steps of instructions, if you tell them 3 things to do, they will only remember 2, etc. That is also why they struggle so mightily in school, and it only gets worse as the schoolwork gets harder and has more steps to go through, whether it is math or grammar, or whatever.

NOW, there may be things they take a great interest in, say science. Everything scientific, then, gets filed under "very important". EVERYTHING. That would account for the child prodigies who excel in science or music or math but have 0 social skills. That would also account for why they can sit and watch a movie and not hear ANYTHING else going on around them, even if a fire alarm is going off. All other information, besides the movie, is filed under "trivial".

It is not something they chose to do, it is just something their brain does. They CAN learn some coping mechanisms, but it usually comes down to breaking things down so their brain processes it step by step and doesn't accidentally file an important piece of information in the wrong place. It is also something they can learn better by hands-on activities and experimentation. Because they will zone in on what they are doing and it won't be filed under "trivial".

This is really a drastically simplified and utterly generalized version of what I understand of studies through the last 10 years or so. None of this information was available when my son was growing up, although those of us with classis ADHD kids KNEW a lot of it! :)

I hope this helps a little. I'm sure if you cruise the net you will be able to find more scientific articles on what actually happens in the brain. Actually, that is what the meds are aimed at doing - managing the brain waves so they can be processed correctly. It is probably why it makes most of the kids feel a little "funky". I take a very mild seizure med for my migraines, and it does, at higher doses, make me feel "woozy" or "out of it". I can't remember very quickly, etc. I would imagine it is something very similar.

I hope this helps a little bit. If I come across an article that explains it better, I'll forward it. Unfortunately, I am very busy this and next week.

my daughter is 8 years old.. and teachers and daycare instructors began to talk to me about medicating her for her obvious ADHD when she was 3 years old. I, myslef struggle with the disorder and did not grow up taking medications.. luckily I was raised in a school system with accelerated classes and a group of kids who were very similar to me... so the teaching styles were somewhat adjusted. Anyways... I became very defensive when anyone approached me about putting my daughter on medication. Her father has an addiction to perscription medications and the thoughts of putting her on any medications at such a young age where terrifying to me. Two things happened. .. 1. In my last semester of college, my instructors whom I admired and respected approached me about my difficulties and how they felt stronlgy that medication would benefit me. They encouarged me to at least try meds for my state exams... so I did and I found that all of my preconceptions about the effects of the medications were not so accurate and I was able to see how much they help me.. when i need them. 2.In 1st grade, my daughter became so frustrated she began to cry saying "I just can't concentrate" and then drew all over her paper with a crayon before putting her head down on her desk to cry more. I figured it was at that point that I had to do something.. so I talked to her Dr and we started her on a low dose of Focalin.. she is still taking that same med and same dose.. and it has helped her so very much. She doesn't become upset with herself over not being able to do the things she knows she is supposed to do... I know how frustrating it is to feel out of control to be able to make it from thought a to b. It's horrible. I thought sharing my story might help in some way.. but everyone's story is different. Take from it what you can.