ADHD
We all have those moments in life when the sugar content in our bodies is above normal and our inner hyperactive child takes over. This brief loss of control over our actions, thoughts and words can be the cause for a lot of laughter and fun times, but for some families, hyperactivity is anything but fun. Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, or ADHD, affects many children and families across Canada and around the world. Although it is disregarded as a major issue by the Canadian society, parents of children with ADHD or other behavioural problems would beg to differ. Raising a child with ADHD is definitely much more challenging and frustrating than raising a 'normal' child. Frustration and conflict become familiar emotions felt by both parents and children in any household, but with the added stressed that come with ADHD, parents and their children trying to work together as a family becomes much more difficult. There are many ways in which a family is affected by ADHD, but in order to understand these complications one must first have some background information on ADHD. Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) is a "neurobiological condition characterized by developmentally inappropriate levels of attention, concent
The biggest problem that arises with other siblings is that not enough attention is being given to them because they are not the ones who need the attention. " (Hickmann, 2005) Other more common and obvious signs of ADHD would be bad marks in school and inability to get along well with other children. ) and this demonstrates very poor communication between spouses. Understanding the emotions that your child feels is always the best way to strengthen the relationship and keep up communication amongst the family. The parents must establish clear rules, limits and expectations for the child and as children with ADHD learn better visually rather than orally it is a good idea to use charts and lists to remind them of the rules that are being set out. This problem is known at the Flashlight Effect: "the challenging child receives most of the attention, meaning the other children escape scrutiny. In families with a child who has ADHD there is "more conflict, depression among all family members, communication and problem solving deficits, confusion and stress than other families. Not only does ADHD cause problems between parents and their kids, but it can also cause some serious conflict between the husband and wife. Children with ADHD can find life to be very frustrating, especially when they reach an age where they begin to realize that each person is unique. Communication becomes very weak between the husband and wife and there in some cases there is a "burdensome feeling of shouldering all responsibility" (Heininger & Weiss, 2001, p. " (Hait, 2004) Even though ADHD is very common and had been the focus of many studies for a number of years, scientist and doctors have still not determined a specific cause for the problem. It is obvious that ADHD causes many problems for the child who has it, but it also causes tension, conflict and other problems for the people who are involved in their lives. It is believed by many people outside of 'ADHD Families' that the hyperactive child is the result of bad parenting, and because of this stereotype the parents of the ADHD child begin to believe that this is the truth. " (Hait, 2004) Put into more simple terms, ADHD causes a child to become very hyper which impairs their ability to focus, learn, and communicate with others in a proper and positive manner.
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