Many people with ADHD have the condition for a long time before they are diagnosed since it has been there all along. In many cases, people have a lot of symptoms in childhood. But the stress it adds to life, and the symptoms can change with age.
That’s just an example; you might still be just as hyperactive as when you were a child. However, your symptoms probably also affect your quality of life now, so managing them is important.
There are difficulties in paying attention, controlling, and staying organized that can interfere with a person’s work, relationships, and self-esteem.
We have some excellent treatments. It treats kids with ADHD, but it also helps adults who have it. It is a combination of medicine, behavioral strategies, life skills training, and therapy for most people. This type of treatment is known as multimodal.
A helpful medicine when you were a child may work differently as an adult due to changes in your brain, body, and symptoms. Additionally, your skills to stay organized and manage your time might change. Finally, you may need treatment for other issues such as depression or anxiety.
To get the most from any treatment, knowing what ADHD affects you is helpful. For example, does it make it difficult to keep up with deadlines at work? If you struggle in relationships with your spouse or child, you should go for care specifically tailored to your needs. When you’ve experienced this phenomenon for a few days, you’ll be able to tell if it’s working.
Treatment for Adults
Drugs are an excellent treatment for ADHD, but what works at first may not be the best solution over time. Aside from many drugs being available for both children and adults with ADHD, clonidine, guanfacine, and modafinil are not heavily researched for adults and are not frequently prescribed for them.
Stimulants
Stimulants are usually the first treatment for ADHD, and they tend to work best. First, you start on a low dose and gradually increase it until you reach a dose that relieves your symptoms without too many side effects.
Many adults find that long-acting stimulants work best. They last for about 10-14 hours, so you only have to remember to take one or two pills each day.
Stimulants work, but they’re not for everyone. Some people don’t like the side effects. You may want to stay clear of stimulants if you have a condition like
- Bipolar disorder
- Anxiety
- Blood pressure of 140 or higher
- Severe weight loss due
- Drug over use issues
- Tourette’s syndrome
Non-stimulant
Non-stimulants are another option when stimulants are unavailable. This was the first non-stimulant drug approved just for ADHD. The full effects don’t occur as quickly as with stimulants, but some people find it quite helpful.
The standard procedure starts with a low dosage and raises it periodically to find the appropriate balance. Side effects are common with stimulants and may include difficulty with sleep, loss of sexual desire, and nausea.
Can Talk Therapy Help?
Yes. Getting help from a therapist, you and your family can learn more about how ADHD affects people and the strategies to deal with its many consequences.
Two of the common types of talk therapy for ADHD are:
Cognitive-behavioral therapy: This teaches you to alter your thoughts and actions to feel more in control of your life. Talk therapy is used to help overcome many obstacles a person faces at school, at work, and in their relationships. It can also be used to address substance abuse and depression.
Marriage counseling and family therapy: You and your family members learn how to communicate better and identify issues that may cause problems. In addition, the counseling may help friends and family understand that it is not simply about being messy or forgetful.
Treatment for Children
The AAP has determined that the best course of treatment for children under six who have ADHD is parent training in behavior management before they’re medicated.
For children six years of age and older, the American Academy of Pediatrics’s new guidelines recommend medications and therapy together — behavior therapy and parent training for kids up to age 12, and various forms of therapy and training for teenagers. Schools can be involved as well.
In a good treatment plan, close monitoring will determine whether the treatment benefits the child’s behavior and if changes need to be made.
Children Who are not Older Than Six Years of Age
For a young child with ADHD, behavior therapy is often the first line of treatment before drug intervention.
Parenting training for behavior management includes providing parents with the skills and strategies to help their children. Training in parenting behaviors can work and medication for children with ADHD.
Children of all ages can experience negative side effects when using ADHD medications, but those of younger children are more frequent. There has been a very little long-term study on the effects of ADHD medications on young children.
School-aged Children and Teens
The AAP recommends combining drug treatment with behavior therapy for children age six or older. The following types of behavior therapy are also effective
- Specialized workshops on improving parenting in terms of behavior management.
- Psychological interventions in the classroom.
- Interventions, such as among peers, focus on behavior.
- Facilitation and time management training.
Typically, it’s a good idea to try a few different approaches in therapy, as this could depend on the needs of the individual child and their family.
Tips for parents
Following are a few suggestions that may be helpful with your child’s behavior.
Follow a routine. Pick the same schedule each day, from when you wake up to when you go to bed. For example, encourage your child to put school bags, clothing, and toys in the same place every day so that they won’t lose them.
Keep distractions to a minimum. Turn off the TV, minimize noise, and create a tidy space when your child is doing homework. Some children with ADHD may perform better when moving or when the background noise is audible. Try to see what your child does best.
Limit choices. To prevent the child from feeling overwhelmed or overstimulated, offer a few choices instead of many. For example, tell them to pick out this outfit or that one, this meal or that one, or this toy.
Be clear and specific. Please communicate with your child by stating what you think and feel about what they said. As an example, please describe what you understand about the sentiment expressed in their statement.
Contact Davenport Psychology today for help with ADHD