ADHD Questions & Advice

Hi J.,

My daughter was diagnosed with ADHD. I actually detoxed my home, removing all the synthetic chemicals, and her diagnosis was removed. I did start her on an absorbable multivitamin also. I believe diet has a lot to do with things because there are so many chemicals in processed and fast foods. Synthetic chemicals stimulate and agitate and anyone who is prone to these types of things can get out of control. My daughter's schoolwork improved immediately too. She went from being extremely behind to being on grade level within 8 weeks.

If you're interested, I can walk you through what I did. Detoxing can be simple and inexpensive. It was the way I did it.

Don't lose hope!

M.

There are MANY causes for ADHD symptoms and sometimes it is a food allergy. In order to find out you should have your 7-year old tested for food allergies. But if that comes out inconclusive you could try several things.

1. Eliminate sugar. Some children with ADHD symptoms have a candida overgrowth. Does your 7-year old crave sugar, pastas, bread and fruits? A low sugar, low carb diet along with a good probiotic can help with a candida overgrowth. Give it about a month and see if you see results.

If not, then try an elimination diet. Eliminate the food for about 2-4 weeks and see if you see an improvement. Usually it takes about 4 days for a food to get out of the system. Eliminate the foods ONE at a time. Also, keep a food diary.

2. Eliminate wheat and gluten.

3. Eliminate dairy.

4. Eliminate eggs.

5. Eliminate soy.

6. Eliminate nut products

Your 7-year old could be allergic to many things, including preservatives, dyes, etc. It may take a while, but would be worth it. Try to buy organic when you can, many children are sensitive to pesticides and additives and such.

Consult a homeopathic doctor and consider chelation or a detox. But only do it under the care of a homeopathic doctor.

Also, try eliminating toxins in your home. Get all-natural household cleaners. Many companies sell them, or just use vinegar and water. Switch to an all-natural soap and all-natural lotion.

There are many alternative methods. Congratulations on stopping the medications, they mask the issue instead of solving it. Plus they are dangerous.

HUGS and good luck!

Check out ADDitude magazine and CHADD for the factual information about ADHD. They can tell you more about the alternative treatment options. Unfortunately, there is A LOT of misinformation out there. Diet, vitamins and cleaning products do not affect ADHD. CHADD's latest issue of Attention has a great article from a leading physician involved with ADHD discussing the commonly perpetuated myths about ADHD.

Exercise can definitely help but won't be a long term solution unless your child runs all day long (and with ADHD, they often do that!).

What is your child's psychiatrist recommending? Honestly, the safest approach is to listen to a doctor experienced in dealing with this condition. If yours isn't providing you with good information about why the medications didn't work (which can actually be a big signal that it's not ADHD but something else), then seek a second medical opinion. I wouldn't necessarily follow the advice of anyone on a general mom board -- esp. those without first-hand experience with ADHD or the right medical degree.

A friend of mine raves about The Clements Clinic where Dr. Clements uses brain scan technology to not only confirm her daughters ADHD but also told them the specific type she had and then formulated a plan which included a natural medication and one Rx.....she speaks so highly I had to share.

I also personally use Dr. Chalmers for various issues and he can help focus on all natural methods to help (ridding toxins, building immune system, improving digestion, etc.)....he will do a free consult and tell you what he does. Every issue I have brought to him he has helped me with! I trust this office. http://chalmerswellness.com

Hang in there.......keep searching until you feel it is right. That motherly instinct is so powerful!!!

I agree with the three answers already offered. They contain valid information, so I won't repeat it. To build on what's been said, there are a couple of things I can ADD (pun intended):

Regardless of the underlying cause of the ADHD symptoms, regular aerobic exercise will help clear the brain fog and improve focus. Blueberries, eaten fresh and raw (not cooked in pies or muffins) will improve focus, memory and ability to prioritize. Essential fatty acids (krill oil and chia seeds are good sources) help brain functions on all levels.

Water (filtered fresh water which retains oxygen and minerals) in adequate quantities will help regulate energy levels and emotional awareness. Adequate, undisturbed sleep is a must. In fact, sleep deprivation symptoms are quite similar to ADHD symptoms. Adequate regular sleep and water together will improve emotional intelligence, so be sure to keep your ADHD child well-supplied with good-quality water and remind her to drink it until it becomes a habit. Make sure she gets the right amount of sleep for her age, even though lots of ADHD people like to stay up late.

Now for cures:
+ As said before, detoxing will cure chemical and mineral toxicity which is mimicking ADHD, and will help nearly everyone at least a little bit.
+ Dietary restrictions can help with blood sugar and energy levels, as well as with candida overgrowth and unhealthy bacteria reduction.
+ Oxygen therapy can help the brain complete its unfinished business of developing the patience-and-decision-making portion of the brain where impulse control is under-regulated in the genuine ADHD brain. Research HBOT (hyperbaric oxygen therapy) and push for a prescription (the FDA has declared oxygen to be a drug and therefore a prescription is required).
+ Biofeedback programs have been developed especially for ADHD. They help the ADHD person develop the under-developed parts of the brain.

Both biofeedback and HBOT can be cures rather than treatments, and both require several visits in which to work because they address the cause rather than the symptoms. Brain development takes time, so if you explore these alternatives, be prepared to invest some time. The results are permanent, and well worth it.

;

Nothing cures true adhd... aka nothing will ever "work" (even meds are just temporary)... although many MANY things help with the downsides. Which is a thing to remember. adhd isn't JUST downsides.

But back to your actual Q. We don't do feingold, particularly, because that's how my family has always eaten (aka no or minimal processed foods/ additives/ colors/ etc). And adhd is all throughout my family.

Fiengold really helps with people who AREN'T adhd, but have a sensitivity mimicking adhd. It also helps people who are both adhd AND have a sensitivity to artificial coloring/ additives. But it's not something that helps adhd in and of itself. It's a human thing, not an adhd thing.

To know, maybe 1/3 of the people I know with ADHD don't use Rx's. BUT everyone I know who doens't Rx, DOES drink coffee/tea/caffienated soda, and a great number either smoke or use the patch or gum. Aka self medicating. My son and I are two of them. (I drink coke & espresso... he drinks espresso/mochas).

If you really want to see lasting effects in behavior... you need to start looking up "coping mechanisms". These are things like

- taking a 5-15 minute 'break' between activities in order to mentally shift gears;

- learning how to step back from your emotions & monitor them (omg... such a huge looooooong process... emotions don't gradually wear down in adhd people, they come on full force and stay on full force)

- patterns patterns patterns patterns (this is a really complex topic. Just for example... I always put my keys down 3 feet inside the door. But that could be the couch, the table, the floor, up on a shelf... ANYWHERE within 3 feet of the door. Walking 5 feet to hang my keys up on the hook does NOT work... and I end up searching for my keys each and every single time I set them down. So I moved the durn hook. Now my keys are there at least 80% of the time. Yeah. But better than 2% of the time. Look where the backpack gets thrown when your son comes in. That has just become it's home. Instead of beating your head against a brick wall... figure our what happens naturally and run with it. BUT that's only the tip of the iceberg with adhd patterns. For more... well.. I don't have time to write any more of a book than I already am. But at least 1/2 of what is involved with adhd coping mechanisms has to do with patterns).

- MINIMAL NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT. We respond really reeeeeally badly to it. Because we end up focusing on the punishment instead of WHY we're being punished. So we get all wrapped up in the wrong thing. Can't help it. Positive reinforcement will get results 9 times out of 10... but negative reinforcement just prolongs the problem and creates even more problems unless it's handled really, really carefully.

- To increase responsibility, INCREASE number of tasks. Yep. Backwards of what you'd do with a normal kid. But it's a percentage thing. An adhd kid might only get 30% correct. But they'll get 30% correct whether you give them 3 things to do or 15 things to do. As they get older the percentage of "correct" things goes up. By 17 I was getting about 85% of what I do done well. The percentage has stayed the same. But I do a lot... and that keeps me successful. All of which is backwards. Ordinarilly you would give a child fewer responsibilites and keep adding more as the prove themselves. When things start slipping through the cracks, you back off. But with adhd, things will ALWAYS slip through the cracks. So instead you just increase the amount of responsibility until the percentage works.

- Playing music helps us concentrate. As long as the music is NOT boring. If it's boring, then we get bored and nothing happens. Ideally, the music should be familiar (we know every note) and very very energetic. It filters out the world for us and provides the speed to which we should be working.

Anyhow... those are just 5 coping mechs out of thousands.

Here are my 2 standard links for more info

www.additudemag.com
http://www.amazon.com/You-Mean-Lazy-Stupid-Crazy/dp/07432...

The cleaning products you are using may be effecting her as well. You need to look into toxic free products. I would love to share with you what I use. If you are interested email me at ____@____.com.

A. Case
Texas

I used to sell Herbalife; but I don't anymore, so I am not trying to make a sale here!

If there is one product I fully believe in with Herbalife, it is "NRG". It is used to level out energy levels. It is great if you are LOW on energy because it will give you a natural boost. It is also WONDERFUL for ADD/ADHD because it will bring energy levels down... naturally.

There were several ladies who sold Herbalife whose kids had either ADD or ADHD and gave their kids NRG (either a powder or tea) and no other medicine. It worked miracles for them.

In fact, all the moms that had younger kids used the powder form and put it in Jello. That way, when your child is in school, there is no issue about them taking a pill...

I encourage all parents to at least TRY the NRG from Herbalife if their kids have ADD/ADHD. It is 100% natural, and does not zombie them out like other meds.

I don't know about te diet but I have a friend whose son has ADHD and none of the medications that they used have worked. His pediatric pyschologist/psychiatrist prescribed a low dose of Tenex. It is a blood pressure medication but it helps eliminate the anxiety experenced in people with ADHD. He says his son has never been better since he started taking this medication. Good luck

When my youngest was 3 his daycare wanted me to get him tested for ADHD. I for one could not afford it and two was not going to put a 3 year old on meds. That was too young to me. We started with his diet. We took most sugars out. And if he got sugar we were told to make sure he had carbs or protein in him cause even the sugar that comes from carbs breaks down slower. We also took out red, blue and yellow dies from his food and drink when possible. He did so much better after that.

Good luck with what ever you decide to do and God bless!!

Praying that you find something that works for you and your daughter.

We are in the process of going green (cleaning), organic, and non processed. It has made a huge difference in my oldest, and myself who have problems with concentration and focus. We have not been officially diagnosed with ADD/ADHD. We have cut out about 90% of sugar, and all HFCS. We limit our carb intake and try hard to make sure that the one we eat are complex. We also stay away from GMOs. I started this because I have one with Down Syndrome, and one with type 1, but it has been beneficial to all. Hope that this is helpful.

Diet is DEFINATELY important!! so, what, eating sugar and anything you want won't affect you???! Absolutely!!! Diet is very very improtant. Here is a program, not sure how much it cost, but its probably no more than you have already spent on medication. http://blockcenter.com/ADD_ADHD/Breaking_Free_ADHD.html or just go to www.blockcenter.com you can just get her book to start with "No More ADHD". hope this helps!! And YOU CAN DO IT!!!

I agree with getting the chemicals out of your home. A good vitamin (you won't find good ones at Walmart. The health food stores yes, I shop online for mine) And here is the thing IT MAY NOT BE ADHD!! It could be bipolar or anxiety. Yes anxiety can cause ADHD symptoms. I have twins & they still struggle today with what was diagnosed as ADHD, later to be bipolar. They both have high anxiety issues too. I have been reading alot about these kids & issues in the years & man I wish I could have known these things when my kids were younger. Check out http://www.additudemag.com/index.html It has alot of info on other problems as well as ADD & ADHD.