Table of Contents
Attention deficit disorder is a complex neuro-biological disorder that contains a dysfunction of the neurotransmitters sending messages between the brain cells. Lately, there has been a significant rise in the commonness of the diagnosis, especially in kids, and according to data about 10% of adults in Israel and 4-10% of kids suffer from it and rising. The estimation is that the undiagnosed people with attention deficit disorders is even larger.
ADD- attention deficit disorder –
ADHD- hyperactivity and impulsivity –
A combination of the two above –
A difficulty in maintaining attention for a long time –
Being easily distracted –
A lack of attention and mistakes in school or work –
A difficulty to follow instructions –
Wasting time needlessly –
A difficulty in organization –
Avoidance and procrastination –
A tendency to lose objects –
Restlessness –
Hypermotility –
Trouble sitting still –
Intensive and nonstop talking –
Difficulty to wait in line –
A tendency to harass others [mainly in kids] –
Due to the symptoms listed above, it is easy to understand why attention deficit disorders are a challenging problem, mainly children with ADD, that has an enviormental consequences, whether it is personall, socially or in the family.
Kids with ADD often suffer from social difficulties, the trouble concetrating leads them to search for other things to do and channel the restlesness towards doing things at the wrong times, often expressed in disturbing other kids. They can tend to bothering other kids, and reeceive anger, insults, rejection, and often get into conflicts.
The restlesness for ADD patients leads to being reprimanded by the school staff, being removed from class and more – and as a result – inabillity to study the mateiril that they find had studying to begin with.
The teachers find it hard to handle a kid that is unable to sit still, or is day dreaming and in fact not studying.
While in a test, kids with the disorder have trouble with time management and as a result do not finish the test on time.
Family wise, dealing with kids with ADD is complicated and highly frustrating. The parents often do not understand the kid’s struggles, the siblings find it hard to be tolerant and there is an over obsession around the kid with “the problem”.
It is very common to have stress and arguments in families that have a kid with ADD.
Perhaps the most problematic expression of ADD, is developing a sense of low self-esteem.
The family stress, social conflicts and trouble in school may cause the kid to feel a great frustration and have low self-value.
In his own eyes, he can come across as a bully, lazy and slow witted – while all those things are false. Low self-esteem can lead to rejection, seclusion and distancing from society.
Attention deficit disorder is often accompanied by a sense of loneliness and being misunderstood – and as a result – depression.
Attention deficit disorders in preschoolers may cause parents a great frustration and misunderstanding of the struggles, and the problem is especially big due to the disorders being, usually, undiagnosed.
Many times attention deficit disorder symptoms appear even in infancy, and can lead to the parents struggling to manage with the new born, such as restlessness, sleeping troubles, nervous temper and difficulty to adjust to changes. It is also common for a motoric difficulty and regulation issues to appear in children with attention deficit disorders.
In fact, according to existing data, there is a major overlap between regulation and attention deficit disorders.
Dealing with a 3-year-old kid with ADD can include refusing to touch new materials, fears, trouble falling asleep at night and a discontinuous sleep.
This leads to major frustration with parents that raise a kid with ADD for the first time, and maybe are used to a more “normal” kid in previous kids.
The chemical imbalance and over sensitivity that accompanies attention deficit disorder, cause the kid to awake from every little noise, multiple times.
For young kids with attention deficit disorders, it is common to have a difficulty to listen to instructions and listen, which leads to parents suspecting hearing problems.
But if the hearing tests are found normal, it could simply be a high level of distraction, that comes naturally with ADD.
So, it is common to find a 5-year-old kid with ADD that will refuse to stay alone in birthdays, while his friends do it effortlessly, or a 6-year-old that will have troubles adjusting to first grade and often react in a way that is not suitable for his age.
Kids with ADD that also includes hyperactivity often tend to have tantrums and out bursts in a non-proportional manner, and experience negative reactions from society and family as a result.
Attention deficit disorders is not a problem that only effects school.
As listed above, managing kids with ADD includes many different aspects and have expressions in a variety of life areas.
It is now known that the functional difficulty leads to avoidance and can cause a few different psychiatric disorders, such as depression.
Neglecting the problem and not diagnosing it can contribute to the circle of functional difficulty, low self esteem and social distancing.
In Israel ADD diagnostician is done by children’s neurologist, child psychiatrist or a pediatrician.
The earlier the kids are diagnosed, the easier it will be to manage the situation and find solutions.
Many times, the diagnosis of ADD brings about a sense of relief, for both parents and kids, since there is finally “a name” for the problem – and a way to solve it.
Treating kids with ADD should be built as a comprehensive program the includes examining the lifestyle, sporting activity, sleep balance and healthy diet.
There are a variety of medications to treat ADD, but their side effects and selective efficiency cause many people to look for alternative solutions.
It is important to know that ADD is treatable without Ritalin, in a simple and scientifically proven method call Neurofeedback. Within this method, the kid learns to control his brain activity, to navigate it, to avoid unwanted actions and to tend to positive ones.
Neurofeedback therapy is noninvasive, non-medicinal, safe and has been proven for many years. Furthermore, Neurofeedback therapy can also be done from home. Thanks to the technology, a patients can have sessions at home, or even during vacation.
In the BrainGames institute, we have a vast experience in treating attention deficit disorders without medication. With a proven success rate over the years, even after the therapy is done. We know how challenging and frustrating can be handling kids with ADD and provide a full support system for the parents and kids, to lead to a better and happier life. Do not hesitate – it can be a life changing step.
EM Haderech Institute
Areas of care
Areas of care