Worried About ADD/ADHD

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Agree that it is way to early to even consider. Something to think about: My son was diagnosed with ADD in 2nd grade. As a 3/4 year old toddler, he WOULD often hyper-focus on things he loved and was scatter-brained about other things. There was no consistency.

Wendy, It's ok. Your little one is normal. Let me remind you and all those who posted though that ADD/HD CANNOT be diagnosed until the LATE elementary school years. 3rd grade they might be able to diagnose it, but that's about the earliest I've heard. My husband who is now 27 still has ADD. He's not taking meds for it which is good. Let you little one play on her own for a bit. Sometimes they need that. At this age, their minds are sponges and they are exploring everything, but they can only do so much at a time. Relax, you're doing fine.

Mom, she's not even two yet. Their attention span is the same length as their age... 1.5 mintues roughly. Relax and enjoy the ride. Too soon you'll WISH she could move on from some silly boy that has had her attention for WAYYY to long. LOL...

Hi Wendy. I agree that this is normal behavior for a 22-month old. Try giving her more time to play by herself, maybe when she wakes up in the morning, give her 15 minutes of talking and playing alone in her room. Toddlers also thrive on structure, so maybe try to get a daily routine broken up in 20-30 minute increments. We get up, eat breakfast, get dressed, take the dog on a walk, either go to preschool or a play date, run a couple errands, eat lunch and watch a tv show, take a nap, take the dog out again, maybe another play date or errands, do a few chores together, cook dinner, read and play in his room until Daddy comes home, brush teeth, bath & bed. With every little task, there's also a routine: we're going out, so we need to get the dog's leash and bag, put on our coats, boots and mittens, lock the door, etc. I tell him each step as we're about to do it. It gets him prepared and focused. Hope this helps.

hi wendy,
you sound like a wonderful involved creative mom! what a lucky little girl you have.
that being said, maybe it would be something to consider to let her entertain herself sometimes. it's only very recent in evolutionary terms that parents have felt (or had the leisure!) to keep children 'intellectually stimulated' as much as we do. kids need a lot of down time to dream, and yes, to get bored. boredom is an excellent creativity stimulator. follow her lead and find a sweet rhythm of busy-ness and quiet and i'll bet you soon see that certain things really do hold her fascination for longer and longer periods.
:) khairete
S.

Elizabeth D. below is mistaken. ADD/ADHD can indeed be diagnosed before school age, and in fact, it needs to be diagnosed as early as possible so parents can learn the best ways to channel the excess energy, or redirect inapropriate behaviors long before they show up in official school settings. There are behavioral analysis charts that ask a series of questions, and your answers can indicate a strong possibility of ADD/ADHD (called NICHQ Vanderbilt Assessment Scale-Parent Informant charts). I discovered first hand that boys in particular, who tend to be ADHD, the earliest behaviors are not always inability to focus, but can be inability to slow down (i.e. runs like a top), impulsivity and a tendency to lash out by hitting, biting or throwing things. Also extreme difficulty settling down to fall asleep. Mine stopped napping regularly at age 2.5 despite my best efforts. Girls do tend to have more of the ADD and not as much of hyperactivity, but this is only generalities. Having said all this, a short attention span is definitely typical of a 22 month old child with or without ADD. Don't fret, just let her have freedom to move from one thing to another as much as you can stand, and just keep an eye out as time goes by for more typical ADD/ADHD behaviors. Talk to your pediatrician if you still have concerns. Sounds like you are doing a great job!!!

It sounds very normal to me. At that age their brains are going a mile a minute; there is so much fun and interesting stuff going on!!! :)
She sounds like a completely normal almost two year old. Good job, momma!

I don't know if it's normal or not but my son was the same way. But he also was diagnosed with ADHD. It's not bad to have ADHD to be honest with you. My son picks up things super quickly and his brain goes on to the next thing. Frustrating at times because I may want to go in depth about something but its just the way he is. He is a good kid who just can't focus on one thing to save his life. But he can hyperfocus on a thing he is totally interested in just not much else:-) LOL. But even now he'll be playing a video game running around the basement with the controller in his hand. He can't just sit and watch TV he has to be playing, running around and watching TV. But back to your question of is it normal? But what is normal. Every kid has their quirks, even ones without ADHD. And ADHD can be a gift in some ways. They have boundless energy, lots of curiousity, are very passionate. Schools deal with ADHD kids very well. Don't be worried about her having ADHD. If she's happy and healthy don't stress about it. There are a lot of other things to worry about. Good luck.

Could you be overstimulating her? I think you have nothing to worry about. The attention span of a 2 year-old is extremely short.

Sure, all of the answers you have gotten are correct....having said that, I knew that something wasn't right with my son at a VERY early age. He was officially diagnosed with ADHD at 5. Now, your child may be just fine, and completely within normal range of activity level BUT without overreacting, because there is nothing you can do about it for quite some time, and it doesn't REALLY start to interfere until school, just get creative! Guide all of that energy in the right direction as much as you can.
I just know that SO many people disregarded my concerns about my son, and it is extremely frustrating. Us moms know our kids, and I wish people would not disregard another moms innate maternal instincts so quickly.
Good luck!

Oh that's totally normal. They should not even consider diagnosing ADD/ADHD in a child less than 5 years of age because it's too easy to have the symptoms of ADD/ADHD confused with normal toddler behaviors. I wouldn't worry about it at all. If ADD/ADHD runs in your family you may want to consider a screening at around 4 yrs of age if her attention span hasn't improved.

Very normal indeed. her attention span will grow as she gets older and finds things to hold her focus more.

A child has the attention span of his or her age so your child is 1 almost 2 so she has a 1 to 2 minute attention span. Please don't concern yourself with ADD or ADHD as you won't really see this until school age. I have a daughter with ADD and she didn't really show signs until 4 years old and was in preschool. Enjoy her energy! I understand I have a 2 and a half year old son and his talking exhaust me!