Childhood Disorders
AD/HD
What is Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder?
Advice for Parents
Kids are kids. They can be distractible, forgetful, impulsive and fidgety. They often don't listen and sometimes seem to forget what they should be doing the minute after they were told. But at what point should a parent worry about AD/HD?
Children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) can have difficulties with maintaining concentration, organising themselves and impulsivity.
These difficulties affect their ability to complete tasks in the classroom and at home. Quite often, parents and teachers of children with AD/HD feel that the child has a great deal of potential, but is just not able to reach it because they have trouble staying on task and finishing things.
Children with AD/HD can display a variety of behaviours.
Some children display them all and others are predominatly one kind or another.
Inattention, such as:
- Makes careless mistakes
- Has trouble keeping attention on a task
- Often doesn't follow instructions
- Sometimes doesn't seem to listen at all
- Very easily distracted
- Doesn't like and avoids activities that require concentration
- Often loses things
- Is often forgetful about daily things, e.g. brushing teeth, putting shoes on.
Hyperactivity, such as:
- Has difficulty sitting still and often fidgets
- Often gets up from being seated (e.g. in the classroom)
- Often runs about or climbs when it is not appropriate
- Seems to be always on the go, as if "driven by a motor"
- May find it hard to quieten down and go to sleep
Impulsivity, such as:
- Often interrupts
- Has trouble waiting for his/her turn
- Sometimes starts answering a question before the question is finished
- Does things before thinking of the consequences
