ADD/ADHD: What is Treatment?
“What do parents do when they find that their child might be diagnosed?”
Please allow me to take you back to what Dr. Ned Hallowell said in his article that I quoted a few days ago:
“What is the treatment all about? Treatment is anything that turns down the noise.”
Treatment of ADD/ADHD must be something that will “turn down the noise” for your child. In other words, using the comparison of driving a car in a bad rainstorm with bad windshield wipers; treatment is anything that will clear the windshield!
An Addition to Dr. Hallowell's Wisdom
For some, Dr. Hallowell says that diagnosis will turn down the noise. To this I wish to add that the manner in which the diagnosis is used MAY turn down the noise; but... in many of the cases I have seen the diagnosis that the diagnosis of ADD/ADHD is not properly handled. In those cases I have actually seen the diagnosis "increase the noise" simply because of the reactions of the parents and educational professionals!
An Increase in the Noise!
Many parents (and many others) use the diagnosis to inadvertently “turn up the noise” because they react in such an irrational fashion. As I saw it, far too many parents compounded the child’s difficulties because their approach was to try to make the child like every other child! Kids with ADD are wired differently!
They can focus on more than one thing at a time. They have increased awareness and ability to concentrate… But, for a shorter time. They need skills to use their unique ability.
Getting new windshield wipers makes it easier to see, but it does not teach anyone how to drive a car. “Getting rid of the noise” may make life easier for your child if it is handled properly, but it still does not teach them to accomplish tasks effectively. You must find ways to teach them to accomplish tasks that work for them once you make he diagnosis.
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