Do Any of You Have Experience or Knowledge Concerning ADD?

I have 3 nephews with ADD. I agree that it is overdiagnosed today -- due to parents not asking their kids to concentrate on anything (like any skill, concentration CAN be learned). That said, don't let your doctor go for an easy diagnosis. Make him discuss it with you, and if he does say she has ADD, make sure you get him to explain WHY he gave that diagnosis. What are the symptoms that he thinks fit? Could they be related to something else? (in my nephew's cases the ADD is a side effect of a rare genetic disorder that they all share) Are there any solutions you should try first (like diet or behaviour modification) before medication?
ADD and drugs are an easy fix for doctors to diagnose, but unless that is the real cause of your daughters issues that diagnosis won't help. Good luck to you!

Just had to add -- there's been a new study released recently (that I just read about today) that links ADD relief to recess. Does your daughter's school have recess so she has breaks to "get the wiggles out"?

I am in the exact same boat as you with my 7 year old, his problem is also lack of focus, insomnia, and a few other things, make sure that they do some blood work first to rule out thyroid and a few other things that present themselves a lot like ADD/ADHD. I was hooping that last years issues would not be the same but I have already heard from his teacher that he is really struggling, not from a lack of knowledge, if she can get him to stay on task he can do the work but that is very rare to keep him on task, I trust this teacher she has had many of my other kids. We have our appt towards the end of the months for the ADD/ADHD eval, I wished it wasn't so, but I have a brother who has it and a few nephews so it is a good possibility.

I have been a teacher for 15 years and although I have had many parents who think their child is ADD, I would say that I have had three students who were truly ADD. One thing I have learned in speaking with our pediatrician is that the majority of children with ADD have some sort of an obsession, so to speak, that they just can't seem to leave alone. For one child is was pencils and he was constantly biting, or picking, or shredding pencils--I mean constantly. For another it was hair, and she always had her fingers in her hair, and braiding and un-braiding, and pulling--you name it. In the classroom we make adjustments. They need a quiet place in the room or in another part of the building where they can go when it really gets overwhelming for them in the classroom. I have also used squishy balls for them to hold when they need to be able to sit and concentrate. For one child we used a giant exercise ball as his chair. It was amazing how the quality of his work changed! It was something for him to manipulate while he was working. I know the frightening part is you automatically think about meds, but honestly there are so many things to try before you even consider that. Hopefully your doctor will give you evn more suggestions of things to try. Even if your Doc says "no, this isn't ADD" You might have your teacher try some of these things anyway. Remember, even if your child is ADD, you are her greatest advocate and you need to do what is in her best interest. Sometimes I think we get too caught up in the labels. Good luck

Dr. Miller in Parker is my nephew's pediatric neurologist. His phone number is ###-###-####. My sister has been to COUNTLESS Doctors before him and this one is awesome. He's in Parker, but well worth the trip (I'm not sure where you live), as far as personal experiences, my own children do not have ADD or ADHD but my sister has struggled with her son for 4 years. If it is really ADD, which is very commonly misdiagnosed these days, medications do work, and if medicated properly, they will not lose any of their awesome personality that has been a problem in the past with my sister. As far as your daughter's teacher goes, it is great that she is willing to work with you, as this has also been a problem for my sister. She has had to transfer my nephew to different schools in the past. I could write a novel about her experiences but if you have any specific questions you'd like to ask her I could forward you her email address and she can tell you personally what she has been through, and help you to avoid the struggles she has endured since my nephew was diagnosed.

S., I am currently in school for early childhood education and this topic has come up a lot. I am wondering if your child is bored in school. There are many type of learners in school some are hands on learners, some are auditory and some are visual and teachers need to modify there lessons according to each childs learning style. Does the teacher at your childs school accomidate her needs? Some studetns just can't sit and do an worksheets these students are refered to as hands on learners where they learn best through activities where that draw, talk,build, etc.
I hope this gives you another avenue to explore before medication is used.

I do know that some try diet to help with the ADD. Some of the problems today have to do with a lot of refined foods in our diet. Try and cut out sugar, flour and dairy and see if that helps. Also, try no chemicals in meats and or red dye of any kind. Or dyes at all in foods.

Vitamine Cottage has a free nutitionist at there stores but you need to make an appointment
C. B

I am an adult who has ADD, and I went undiagnosed through childhood (I am 35, and I think when I was a kid, it wasn't recognized as it is today). As a result, I did poorly in school, and was always in trouble for not paying attention and not staying in my seat during class. Over time, I was able to "control" my ADD, which simply means by the time I was finished with highschool, I had mastered the skill of being able to pretend that I was listening. I probably appeared to be a great listener--I would keep my eyes on the teacher, and appeared to be taking notes--but what I was really doing was daydreaming and drawing doodles in my notebook. I absorbed very little of what my teachers were saying. I somehow made it through college, but did awful in grad school...which was when my ADD was diagnosed. I took medication, which helped some, but I wish that someone had diagnosed me as a child so I could have learned how to LEARN. If your daughter does indeed have ADD, do EVERYTHING you can to help her. I am sure that the teachers at her school have methods for helping ADD kids to learn properly. I suspect that my 4 year old daughter may have ADD, and if it turns out that she does, I will be her biggest advocate.
Good luck with your daughter!

I do not have personal experience. My friends teacher actually recommended ADD drugs because her daughter has some sensory issues and doesn't stay focused, though they haven't labeled her ADD. Doling out drugs to young kids makes me nervous. I mean didn't we all have hyper/unfocused children in our classes when were young? It is great medical research has given things a name, but without extensive research it is a scary path. I understood from watching programs on the subject that a brain scan is the ultimate way to determine ADD, with testing and seeing what parts of the brain are doing what they should. I am sure you are very intelligent and sound very concerned and will ask all the right questions.
Helping a child early on will save him years of frustration down the road. I too heard that diet has a lot to do with helping. My friend in California is a teacher and has a son that is 11 and he had years of trouble in school. Two years ago her family and counselors agreed and started her son on meds, he did improve. Then over the summer did a very rigid and strict diet plan with him and he was able to completely get off the drugs. Now the school has labeled him as gifted and he was tested, they found in fact he was bored in class which caused him to not stay focused and not ADHD. That is scary to me. Children lose focus for so many reasons. Boredom is a sign of them being more advanced and the work isn't challenging enough. Dyslexia can cause a lot of the same issues as ADD and gets misdiagnosed too. Even vision problems can cause issues with not being able to focus and concentrate.
I hope you find your answers, get it resolved for you and your family so your daughter feels like she is where she needs to be academically.

My mom works with ADD kids with great success without drugs. She would be able to tell you right away if her program would help your daughter or not. She's pretty close to you. I could give you her contact information if you're interested.

check msn.com today...great info on how a lot of these busy kids can avoid meds with more exercise