ADHD symptoms | ADD ADHD symptoms | ADD ADHD diagnosis

Do the ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER (ADD) causing learning diability?

2009-01-17T09:18:00.000-08:00

When we talk of the term ’learning disability’ then what we generally mean is that it is a perceptual disability like other disabilities such as autism or visual processing disorder, or dyslexia auditory disability. It should not be treated as a learning disability. Anyone who has ADD is perfectly capable of understanding and using the available information. Hence it cannot be considered as a learning disability.

ADD doesn’t really obstruct and limits the learning process although it is combined with all other disabilities most of the time. A small child who is suffering from ADD can take in the information he sees and then he can process it and even keep it in his memory just like normal human beings. The only problem is attracting his attention for long enough so that he may take in the information to begin with.

He has problems in school and also in general but this can’t be treated as a disability of any kind. Once the treatment for his ADD problem starts, his performance in school shoots up. But sometimes, a person who has ADD problem might not be having any difficulty in his education at all. It is different from person to person.

But we must remember that there are other disabilities, especially, in very small pre school children, They might have problems in understanding sounds and words and may have some speech problems too. Those kids who are of reading writing age may experience reading, writings and mathematical and spelling problems. Similarly Dyslexia, which is reading disorder, is very common among children having ADD. But it must be kept in mind that it is not necessary that all the children may have these problems.

Some difficulties may arise in ADD affected children but here there are various ways of improving the situation. Most of them are benefited by a fixed schedule, by having the same time for all the activities. They are weak in remembering things, so routine work helps them. The habit developed by repetition of activity helps them.

Similarly, if you keep things in a fixed place then they find it easier to remember it. They can even be helped by binders and planners for the activities they have to undertake. It helps them in being organized.

In class, if the teacher has an interactive attitude instead of giving a lecture then the child manages to give more attention to the work in hand and his frequency of distractions may go down.
Thus, you must remember that a child, inspire of having this disorder can grow into a successful person.

Day planner is an effective way to manage time for adult with ADHD

2008-11-04T05:04:00.000-08:00

National Resource Center on AD/HD
www.help4adhd.org
This information and resource sheet will discuss:
• Selecting the right day planner
• Effective strategies for using a day planner
• Using a day planner for short– and long–term planning

Adults with ADHD often have difficulties with time management and planning. These difficulties are an example of how ADHD impairs the executive functions of the brain
Executive functions may be described as the brain's higher order cognitive processes that regulate and manage learning activities and behavior. Just as the conductor of an orchestra guides and directs the orchestra, executive functions guide and direct the individual's thoughts and actions1,2. Working memory (holding information that was just seen or heard in memory), organization, and sense of time are three important executive functions central to the brain's ability to manage learning and behavior. Individuals with ADHD have difficulties with these three executive functions, and as a result often have poor time management skills and may be unable to fulfill their responsibilities at work and at home.
One method of addressing time management issues is using a day planner. Effective use of a day planner can assist the adult with ADHD in compensating for deficits in executive functions by helping the individual manage time, remember responsibilities, and remain organized. Many adults with ADHD have had multiple unsuccessful experiences with day planners, leading them to regard the task as one that is highly aversive or even hopeless. Often, they have been unsuccessful using a day planner because they have gone about it in the wrong way. This information and resource sheet will highlight strategies for using a day planner effectively, planning effectively, and following through on commitments.*
This information and resource sheet breaks down the necessary skills into a series of small steps. Each step should be taken one at a time, and practiced for at least one week before beginning the next step. If a particular step takes more than one week to become a regular habit, practice it for 2–3 weeks before beginning the next step. Building in positive reinforcements or rewards may be helpful for successfully learning each step.
Identify a friend or spouse to serve as your "planner coach." Review this information and resource sheet with your coach, and discuss each step before undertaking it. The coach's role is to prompt practice of each step and monitor overall progress. The coach should praise you for your efforts and provide constructive—not critical or harsh—feedback about any mistakes. The coach should also encourage you to reward yourself at the end of the week. The planner coach should be a person who will focus on the positive, praising successes and cheering you on to the next step, and not a person who will criticize failures or imperfect achievement of any of the steps.
1. Select a compatible day planner as your only planning calendar.
At a minimum, a day planner is a device that includes a calendar, space to write "to–do" lists, and space to write telephone numbers, addresses, and other basic identifying/reference information. It can be a paper–and–pencil model, as with Franklin Planner, Day Timer, or Planner Pad brands. It can be a fancy electronic organizer such as a Palm Pilot, or it can be time management software on a laptop or desktop computer. Electronic organizers have a number of advantages. They are compact; they provide audible reminders that can serve as memory management aides; they can sort, organize, and store more information more efficiently than paper and pencil planners; and they can easily exchange information with office and home computers.
If you are a gadget–oriented person who learns new technology easily, pick an electronic organizer. If you are not technology–oriented, pick a paper and pencil model. Go on an outing to an office supply store and carefully review a number of different types of day planners. They come in all sizes, shapes, and colors, with different types of daily, weekly, and monthly views. Carefully inspect the different types of daily, weekly, and monthly pages. Do you schedule many appointments on the hour or half–hour? Then use a clear daily view. Are you making "to do" lists but not scheduling many appointments? Perhaps a weekly view with a lot of space for lists is needed.
Your day planner should be the only planning calendar for everything you do (i.e., work, home, personal). Using separate calendars at home and at the office may become confusing and overwhelming; you will inevitably forget to transfer entries from one calendar to the other and miss appointments or important commitments.
2. Find a single, accessible place to keep the day planner.
After selecting a planner, the next step is to start keeping it in a single, accessible location at home and at work, so you will always know where to find it. The location should be clearly visible from a distance, even in a cluttered room or on a messy desk. Convenient locations might be next to the telephone, on a table near the front door, or on the desk at the office. If the day planner has a strap, it might be hung on a hook next to the front door, above the telephone, or together with the car keys. Carry it to and from work, and practice keeping it in the designated locations for a week.
3. Enter the basics in the day planner.
Gather the most common names, addresses, and phone numbers you use. Enter them into the planner in the alphabetical name/address section. Consider what vital information might be helpful to have in the planner, such as insurance policy numbers, computer passwords, equipment serial numbers, and birthdays and anniversaries, and enter this information in the designated spaces.
4. Carry the day planner at all times.
Now that there is some information in your planner, you should carry it with you at all times. Many people claim that they have carried their planner with them at all times, but then they "forget" the great idea they thought of while shopping. "At all times" means whenever you leave the car to go into a store or whenever you leave your desk to attend a meeting.
5. Refer to the day planner regularly.
Many adults with ADHD write things in their planners but rarely look at what they wrote, relying instead on memory, with disastrous consequences. Before you can use the planner for a calendar or "to do" lists, you need to develop the habit of checking it regularly. Start by checking the planner a minimum of three times per day—once in the morning to plan/review the day's upcoming events, once in the middle of the day to make any mid–course corrections and refresh your memory about the remaining day's events, and once in the evening, to plan/review the next day's events.
There are several ways to remember to check your planner. First, alarm wrist watches or alarms for an electronic planner can be set to go off at regular intervals when you wish to check your planner. Second, you could associate checking your planner with habitual activities that are done at approximately the same time each day, e.g. eating meals, getting dressed in the morning or ready for bed at night, or entering or exiting the office. Third, leaving reminder notes in strategic locations (on the desk in the office, on the mirror in the bathroom, on the dashboard or door handle of the car) can be helpful in reminding you to look at the planner.
6. Use the day planner as your calendar for everything.
You are now ready to use your planner as a calendar. On scrap paper, make a list of all appointments scheduled at any time in the future. Then, write these appointments in the appropriate time slots on the pages of the planner for the particular days and months. Review the scheduled appointments for that day each time you check the planner. During the day, write in any additional appointments as soon as you schedule them.
Using different color pens for writing different types of things on your calendar (e.g. red for appointments, blue for work activities, and green for family events) permits you to recognize different types of events as your eye scans the page. For a very busy family, use different colors for each family member's activities.
7. Use your planner as a "brain dump" to capture your ideas.
Adults with ADHD experience a constant stream of ideas flooding their minds. They often become frustrated because they cannot remember these ideas when they need them. Using the day planner as a "brain dump" avoids this dilemma. With your planner with you at all times, practice writing down any ideas you want to capture as they occur to you. Write these down either on blank, lined planner pages or in the section of the planner for that day's "to do" list. If you find that many of your important ideas come at times when it is impossible to write them down (e.g. in the shower, while driving), consider carrying a small, digital recorder. Dictate your ideas into the recorder and transcribe them to your planner later that day. Some hand–held computers and pocket PCs may have built–in digital recorders.
8. Construct a daily "to do" list and refer to it often.
Only after you experience success using your planner as a calendar should you start making a daily "to do" list. Most planners have a place adjoining the calendar for each day for "to do" lists. During the first review of your planner in the morning, make a list of everything that needs to get done that day. Use your "brain dump" notes to help you make the list. Keep the list relatively short, e.g. 5–8 items, so that you can experience success completing all of the items. Be realistic about what can be accomplished in one day, and remember to schedule some "me time," by listing a personal activity or time as one item. List specific actions, rather than vague concepts. For example, "buy my wife flowers" would be a more specific item than "be nice to my wife."
Examine the list and assign the items to particular dates and times in the day planner. Try to complete them as scheduled, referring to the list often. Check off any completed items and review remaining uncompleted items.
At the end of the day, examine the list. Congratulate yourself if you completed all of the items on the list. Do not berate yourself if you did not complete all of the items. If there were only a few unfinished items, move them forward to the next day's list. However, if you have many unfinished items, consider whether you have unrealistic expectations for how much can be done. Analyze the uncompleted items and what got in the way of completing everything on your list (phone calls, other interruptions, not enough time, not having everything you need to accomplish the task, unexpected crises). Thinking in these terms will help you become more realistic about what can be accomplished in a day. Either scale back expectations or find other approaches to completing tasks, such as delegating, streamlining, or eliminating tasks.
9. Prioritize your "to–do" list and act in accordance with your priorities.
There are many ways to prioritize a "to do" list. One way is to number all of the items on the list in order of decreasing priority. Another way is to classify items into one of three categories: "Essential," "Important," and "Do only if I have extra time." Pick the method that best fits your style, and begin prioritizing your daily "to do" list.
As you go through the day, perform the items on the "to do" list in order of decreasing priority. Adults with ADHD are often tempted to ignore the priorities and may need strategies to keep themselves on track. Set the alarms on your wristwatch, electronic planner, computer task management software, or beeper to go off at regular intervals as a signal to check whether you are on task following your priorities. Use self–talk to help avoid distractions. Train yourself to repeat reminders such as "I have to keep from getting distracted," "I have to stick with my priorities," and "Don't switch now, I am almost done." Also, make sure that you are taking an effective dose of medication that lasts throughout the day. See the information and resource sheet on medication for more information about determining an effective dose (coming soon.
10. Conduct a daily planning session.
By the time you have completed the first eight steps, you will be conducting "ad hoc" daily planning sessions where you construct and prioritize your daily "to do" list. It is time to formalize this process as "the daily planning session." Consider the time for constructing and prioritizing lists as a daily planning session. The goal of this session is to plan the upcoming day's activities and develop a plan of attack to carry them out. In addition to listing priorities and reviewing schedules, the planning session is the time to consider exactly how each task will be accomplished. What materials will be needed? What individuals will have to be consulted? What obstacles are likely to be encountered? How can these obstacles be overcome? Asking and answering these questions will facilitate the process of prioritizing the items on your "to do" list. The planning session will provide a mental map that guides you in carrying out the tasks on your list.
When you have reached this point in the program, congratulate yourself! You have mastered the basic steps of using a day planner to manage time! Continue to follow these steps. As they become habitual, consider trying the last step, which bridges the gap between short–term and long–term planning, but understand that it is more challenging and may require the assistance of an ADHD coach or a therapist.
11. Generate a list of long–term goals and break the long–term goals into small, manageable chunks, allocating these chunks to monthly and weekly planning sessions.
First, generate a list of all long–term goals. These are broad goals to be accomplished over many months and years. Then, take one goal at a time and break it down into small chunks or sub–goals that might be accomplished on a monthly basis. Assign one sub–goal to each month of the year. At the beginning of the month, conduct a monthly planning session where you decide how to accomplish the sub–goal over the course of the month. Assign various tasks to each week of the month. At the beginning of each week, conduct a weekly planning session where you decide how to assign aspects of that week's sub–goal to the daily task lists for the entire week. During each daily planning session, plan the details of the assigned task that will be performed that day.
Summary
In this information and resource sheet, we have outlined a step–by–step approach for learning to use a day planner to manage time effectively and "boost" inherently inefficient executive functions in adults with ADHD. Follow each step for at least one week, reward yourself at the end of the week for practicing the day planner skills, and identify a friend as a planner coach to provide support and encouragement for your efforts.
Some adults with ADHD may find that even the step–by–step approach outlined here is difficult to follow. If you find that you cannot adhere to the guidelines given here, don't give up. You may need to have the learning process broken down into even smaller steps. You may need assistance overcoming emotional barriers based upon a lifetime of failure experiences before you can successfully use a day planner. You may need strong support systems and the guidance of a trained professional. Consult a professional, such as an ADHD coach or a therapist familiar with adult ADHD, and show them this information and resource sheet. The professional will be able to tailor the steps to your particular situation so that you can experience success managing time through the use of a day planner. See the information and resource sheet on coaching for more information about selecting an appropriate coach.

ADD ADHD Screening test for Adult

2008-08-12T05:56:00.000-07:00

These links below are test for an adult if you are curious about yourself to indication of ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) and ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) however this is ony online free test i suggest if you are unsure about the test result then meet real health mentor for more clear explanation, oke just clik links below to find out the test :

ADD ADHD online test for adult

other test

Another ADD ADHD online test for adult

thanks for those who provide this free test online

check this for ADD ADHD online test for your Child

ADD ADHD Screening test for child

2008-08-12T05:40:00.000-07:00

Below is link to online screening test tool for parents who want to know if their child might be has some indication to ADD ADHD, but once more this is only a test if you are doubt and unsure i suggest that you go to an expert health mentor, thanks to newideas.net, alright then please click here if you want to take the test : adhd-online-test-screening

check this for ADD ADHD test for Adult

The Signs and Symptoms Of Attention Deficit Disorder

2008-08-04T19:22:00.000-07:00

Diagnosis is difficult in cases of ADD because signs vary from child to child. The symptoms of the disorder may or may not be obvious.

First of all you must be clear that just because your child is hyperactive, he is not suffering from ADD. It is true that more than normal activities are a sign of ADD but not always so.
But, at the same time impulsive behavior, or less than normal attention, or more than normal distraction is a sign of ADD.

Actually, distraction and lack of attention go together. An ADD suffering child will not be able to stick to his work and will not pay much attention to details and may not complete his work. Although most children are like this but those who suffer from ADD show more extremes of this behavior can go on for more than 6 months. Thus his daily work is affected.

Kids having ADD are impulsive too. They may suddenly run away from their desks to see what is happening in the other part of the room. They may even give out answers in the class even if they are not asked. His behavior may be impulsive to such extremes. It is a common trait in all ADD affected children.

These kids attach themselves to everything that is happening. They may become hypersensitive and may not be able to concentrate on anything in particular. Hence their grades are lower than usual even if they don’t really have difficulties in learning anything because they don’t complete their tasks. Their attention span is so short that they are incapable of completing the work allotted to them.

There is difference in behavior among the two sexes also. Boys are more active and girls are less attentive in the class. It is difficult to manage both of them and both may be unruly in behavior or aggressive and may be even abusive. Thus it becomes very difficult to control them.

But all kids differ from each other. You will never find two similar kids. Only because your child is more aggressive than others don’t jump to the conclusion that he has ADD. Only a physician or a specialist can diagonise ADD.

How to Diagnose ADD (ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER) ?

2008-08-04T18:51:00.000-07:00

Assessing whether a certain individual is suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder or not is far harder than it appears to laymen like ourselves. This is because, not only does it’s symptoms largely overlap those of hyperthyroidism etc. they are also largely exhibited by ‘normal’ human beings some time or the other every single day. Therefore the first important step towards diagnosing the disease is to consult a trained health care provider regarding it.

Given that the defining factors of Attention Deficit Disorder is still quite musty and vague diagnosing the problem is difficult since nothing is strictly within or outside the peripheries of the disease. And although various organizations like The American Pediatrics Clinical Practice for instance, have tried to provide certain guidelines in order to recognize the disease most are still quite unsure regarding the reliability of such methods. Of course doctors have in the past tried MRI (or magnetic resonance imagery) to analyze their patient’s brains in order to detect any possible signs of ADD, but most medical practitioners do not recommend this any more. Thus diagnosis is now primarily based on the reports of those close to the patient, who see, talk, work or live with him/her everyday and have thereby come to know the patients habits closely. A number of people suffering from ADD also realize their problem with time, especially as they grow older and consult doctors regarding it.

The guideline provided by the American Academy of pediatrics requires medical personnel to look into the child’s behavior in more than one place before reaching a conclusion regarding whether or not the child is suffering from ADD. Thus the doctor is expected to consult various ‘witnesses’ regarding the behavior of his patient in say his school, his home, at the playground, at his Grandma’s place etc. and thereby ensure that his diagnosis is not based on the child’s behavior at a certain specific place. This is to know for sure that the problem in hand is intrinsic and is consistent everywhere and not specifically due to some factors at a particular place. The guideline also requires the physician to use an “explicit criteria for the diagnosis using the DS-IV-TR”.

When approaching a doctor for cure therefore make sure that he/she follows these directions set by the Academy closely before diagnosing the problem. Remember a problem such as ADD might not be as difficult to cure as to diagnose, in fact proper diagnosis might be the first step towards a satisfactory cure.

ADD is an underestimated disease which is seen in varying degrees amongst many youngsters around us and while we may choose to ignore it and deny it’s presence it’s a plague which will follow your little one right till he shuts his eyes for good. Therefore recognize your child’s disease today and take him to a doctor for the right diagnosis and a proper cure.

ADHD symptoms diagnosis

2008-06-13T18:52:00.000-07:00

WHAT IS IT LIKE TO LIVE WITH ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER (ADD)?

2008-06-13T03:53:00.000-07:00

Live with ADD, Life ahead may be easy for a child, a teenager, or even an adult diagnosed with ADD. For somebody, just diagnosed with ADD, predicting the life in future might not be easy, as one may not know how the symptoms would continue to remain and how the problem would be affected by age. However, thankfully, as time moves on, one starts to understand how to deal with ADD more efficiently, so that it causes fewer troubles in life.

Children with ADD are usually unmindful, reckless, or may get distracted easily or may show too much of goings-on. Also, the symptoms remain mostly the same even in other age groups. However, dealing with these symptoms does improve significantly, as one gets older.

The affect ADD can have on your life is largely determined by the medication you choose for treating the disorder. You may wish to consult the doctor to give you an advice on the future effects of taking stimulants, and also the implications of other medicines. Medicines are useful in dealing with ADD, though you can also try a behavior therapy too.

There are some characteristic traits, typical of ADD that you should prepare for in your life. These may be difficulties in being attentive to details, problem in remaining still for any span of time, being fidgety, or problem in being able to stay through and complete a given task.

Nevertheless, you can do a number of things in order to deal with the behavior typically related to ADD. To become more orderly and more managed in keeping things, an organizer can prove to be quite useful. For this, you can choose from anything like the effective book calendars to the digital organizers that are quite technologically sophisticated, to personal assistants. These will keep you well ordered, provided you are well trained to use these devices so that they can remember your important information and schedules.

These routines and schedules should be used to their maximum. You will naturally be inclined to forget and be careless. So by using a proper device you will tend to behave more unlike your nature and thus make lesser mistakes. So, it is always better to use automation.

You may also wish to be a part of groups, for support, or may at least want the company of the ones like you. You may feel the need for someone to confide in, who can understand you situation well. A person with ADD could be a perfect companion since they may be able to connect with you better than any friend or a family member, since they can support you only to a limit.

AN INTRODUCTION TO ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER

2008-06-13T03:36:00.000-07:00

ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder has many manifestations and there are more than five kinds of ADHD. It is a medical condition that is carried in the genes, resulting in certain disorders in the nervous system.

The DSM-IV Diagnostic Manual reports that any single form or “type” of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder could be categorized under the diagnostic chapter of ADHD. This central list is then broken into ADHD Impulsive-Hyperactive Type, ADHD Inattentive Type, or ADHD Combined Type. Sometime ago, the words attention deficit disorder “without” or “with” hyperactivity were also generally used. Not only does the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity can take various forms, but also there could be so many combinations that different kids could show different symptoms.

It generally happens that Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder affects more than three or four parts of the brain. This causes many singular “profiles” or “styles” of children and sometimes even adults with ADHD or ADD.

The various styles influence actions in the following four spheres:

• Number one, inability to attend.
• Number two, difficulties in Impulse Control.
• Number three, problems with motor restlessness or hyperactivity.
• Number four, a condition which is yet to be declared “officially” in the manuals of diagnosis, but should be – that condition is being bored quickly.

To mention a few more crucial aspects of this condition:

1. This disorder is observable in the majority of circumstances, both in school and also home. If the child shows the symptoms only in his or her home, then possibilities like depression of the child, or deliberately being unruly with the parents, cannot be entirely ruled out.

2. Another thing is that the disorder could be noticed before the child crosses seven years of age. Because Attention deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is caused due to neurological problems, it could be either from an injury to the head, or could have been carried in the genes itself. The problem takes a firm grip and creates real adjustment issues with the increase in school activities and task. But by the age of seven the symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder could be noticed with a little scrutiny.

Then it would be good if we also have pay attention of this ADD/ADHD.

AN INTRODUCTION TO ADD (ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER)

2008-06-12T03:15:00.000-07:00

What is ADD? One of the most wrongly diagnosed and wrongly understood neurological conditions in the world is Attention Deficit Disorder or more commonly known with its acronym of ADD. The reality is that the majority of people lacks a proper understanding of the disorder, and also would not be able to identify it if they met a person with ADD. This article, and there is more to follow, intends to give you information about ADD, the meaning of the disorder, the methods by which it is diagnosed, the various treatments, and some topics regarding the issue. And let’s hope that this would be a valuable tool by which your knowledge and ability to understand the disorder will increase.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or shortly ADHD/ADD, is a problem where the individual who is affected by it fails to be attentive for a long period of time. Motor restlessness and impulsive behavior are other indications of the disorder. Reports suggest that approximately 4.4% of all adults possess some degree of ADD.

ADD is understood as a disorder of the neurobiological type caused in brain by a glitch in the dopamine neurotransmitter systems. Genes play a huge part in maximum cases. There is 30% chance for a child to have ADD if a parent or near kith and kin has the disorder. In cases of twin children, if one of the pair has ADD, the other’s chances of being struck by the disease increases by 50%. At one time the belief was held that ADD could be caused by poor nutrition, but it has been dismissed now as a myth. Similarly, allergies, drugs or bad parenting could be cut off from the list. Deep head trauma, fetal alcohol syndrome, intoxication through lead, and thyroid irregularities, are some of the other medical conditions showing symptoms like ADD. Hence it is advised that the other possibilities are rules out completely before the person could be said to have ADD for sure.

Having ADD means that an individual having it is not getting sufficient neuro-chemicals. Said in simpler terms it signifies that proper stimulation of the brain is missing, as a result of which the brain attempts to find methods by which the release of the chemicals can be increased. People with ADD try to stimulate their brains with things like physical activities, movements, and always doing things that stimulate or are stimulating. This is not a conscious decision on the parts of the people with ADD. They really cannot help themselves and it becomes a reflex action and they act in a hyperactive manner.

The difficulty caused by this is that individuals who suffer from ADD, when face a circumstance that do not stimulate them, like school work, try to put their attention on something that is stimulating to them. Of course the school work is completely hampered by this, and the child cannot perform well in his or her studies. I can narrate a story here told to me by a friend. This incident happened when knowledge about the disease was poor. There was a child who would suddenly get up on his desk when the class is still commencing, and would begin to tell jokes. In the beginning people thought that he was trying to be funny and consciously disturb the others. But over time it came to be known that the child had ADD, and his actions were beyond his control.

Legal issue also crop up when ADD causes people to take dangerous chances with themselves and end up doing careless things to stimulate themselves. Then Personal relationships and the ability to be permanently employed also become cause of concern for people with ADD.