My grandson age 12 has just been diagnosed with ADHD, they are putting him on tablets to start with, any advice would be welcome, or, if any of your children have this, how do you cope !!!!!

At least we now know what is causing all the behaviour problems he has.

My husband's step brother has this, he takes ritalin and his mother thinks it has improved his behaviour greatly, but I've also heard that it can supress the appetite so you have to watch for weightloss. My mothers cousin's granddaughter also takes ritalin but she was losing so much weight that her mum keeps her on it for school time only as she feels she can cope with her at home without it. I think that it can make for quite a transformation in behaviour fairly quickly though.

We chose a different route for our Little-Un.  Luckily, the paediatrician was reluctant to give him ritalin as he was so young (3years!) and he had other physical problems which may have been compromised by the ritalin. I had found research suggesting an alternative route and had printed off the info for him to look into. 

Luckily for our son (and us), a combination of dietary changes and fatty acids ( Evening Primrose oil and Fish body oil) has worked wonders.  But heaven help us if we relax a bit and forget them for a few days, his teachers notice within a day or two and it can take a week or two before our lovely boy is back after restarting them    It can take up to 6 weeks to start working at first.

more info here
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/115/5/1360

Hope this helps

Really feel for them, our son is exhausting now, but nothing like he was before he started on the oils ;) 

I encounter a lot of children with ADHD. Fortunately it is more common now so people are a lot more aware of it and people who work directly with children are able to recognise signs and act in the best way.
Are the school aware of what is going on? make sure you have a good sit down chat with his KS4 co ordinators and a member of the leadership team (deputy principal etc). They can work out strategys and you can make them aware of behaviours he shows and teachers can then be informed.
Does he need to take tablets during the day? If so you need to sort out sending a pack of tablets to school and informing them of when he needs to take it.
Ask around, many parents have children with ADHD (even the ones you wouldnt suspect) so find out how other parents cope. There may even be a support group you can join.
You've probably had quite a hard time up until he got diagnosed so be grateful that things are a working progress now and being dealt with.
Good luck :-)

> Fortunately it is more common now

I think you probably did not mean that :-D

My mum was told my brother had this years ago (he's 28 now), he was a nightmare at times (from what I remember when I was young) and the doctors all wanted him put on ritilin....my mum refused as she didn't want him on drugs for life so she did as Dill has said...controlled his by diet.  He couldn't have anything with E numbers...god forbid if anyone gave him orange juice or coke or any kind of sweets!  Now you get alot of foods without artificial preservatives etc so it is easier to control.  You can still tell now at 28 when he has drunk a can of coca cola or had something he shouldn't have.

I think now people know more about it and you can get more advice so that could be helpful if you go down the diet route.

I think alot of kids behaviour can be changed by given them a good diet instead of convenience foods.

Good luck and I hope you get lots of support.

At least we now know what is causing all the behaviour problems he has.


Yes, I think it is a relief isn't it, most parents know something is wrong but it can take an awfully long time to be properly diagnosed. I don't have a child with ADHD myself, but I kind of feel as though I do as one of my close friends son's does who spends an awful lot of time at my home, infact I feel as though I have 3 sons sometimes. :-D I also have quite a few friends whose sons (funny how it is mainly sons) also have varying degrees of ADHD and Autism.

I have noticed for definite that ritalin works, my friend would often break down in tears as her son was just 'naughty' hyperactive and she found him difficult to control as did the school, being a single mother, I think for a long time it was thought that she just could not handle him, he also turned out to be dyslexic too which went un-noticed for a long time. It took a long time for her to have him statemented, eventually she got there, and boy what a difference, with proper help and his tablets he is a well adjusted young man, he can still be a little hypo but nothing like he used to be.

I know it goes against the grain but in this inst I do think that well chosen Playstation, Gamecube, X box games also have been a lifesaver in occupying many of their minds they need something to try and foucs on, which is fun and also bonds them with others.

I know that my friend entered into a private programme to do with sensory uses of the brain and body, gosh I can't remember the name of it, sorry, I'll give her a call later to ask  her, and it really did help too.

ADHD children are hard work, but somehow knowing the cause makes it seem not so hard as everyone suddenly understands and makes allowances.

There are so many support groups around too, I'm sure that there are other parents with the same diagnoses even in the school, it would do your son/daughter good to get involved with any groups going, it always helps if you do not feel alone. :-)

I think regardless of if a child is diagnosed with ADHD, avoiding E numbers is a good idea all round. Anyone who works in a school will tell you what a nightmare it is controlling the kids after break and lunch when they have filled up with rubbish snacks.
I can remember watching Jamie Olivers programme about school dinners when he went to a family home and watched the transformation when he removed rubbish and replaced it with wholesome food. The children were less loud, stopped fighting with each other and the house became much more quiet and "normal"

Isabel: Yes i did mean that :-) For years people suffered and were made to think they had badly behaved children. Now it is more common we are aware that these children have a medical condition & cant help the way they are. Nor are parents made to feel the children are a reflection of bad parenting. I will word it better next time

Just as a mention too, depending on his severity there are actually private 'boarding' schools specifically for ADHD, I've also known success from these schools too, they do cost no doubt, but for some they have really re-focussed the children. :-)

I encounter a lot of children with ADHD. Fortunately it is more common now so people are a lot more aware of it and people who work directly with children are able to recognise signs and act in the best way

Reading all of that comment, I see it as Fredsmum meaning with it being more common people generally have a greater understanding of it and how to best deal with it, rather than just labeling the child as 'bad', rather than it being fourtunate that more children have it.

to the OP, my friend found that, along with what else has been suggested here, finding an active sport or hobby was helpful. It lets the need to be active out, the physical activity helps them. She also found her son didnt want to eat much, but he would take a drink that helped, such as complan or slim fast (yes, odd to use that but it added cals with vits etc and worked with him)

I realise that of course, as I am sure did everyone else. :-)  I just thought her choice of words were quite amusing.

She also found her son didnt want to eat much,

Ahhhh...........I wasn't sure that was a symptom, but perhaps it is, as I can definitely vouch that my friends son also had and acutally still has a very small appetite, as other friends affected sons too, (very strange) perhaps it is also very common. Funnily enough I once served this particular young man up some Sushi, just as a try see as he would waste my big roast dinners, not thinking that he would eat it and it was a food he loved, still does. :-D

Dakkobear, sorry, just noticed your post on ritalin (being a food depressant) that explains the decrease in appetite then, however thinking back he didn't eat very well even before ritalin?

Not sure about before but I do know his mother tried all sorts of things including evening primrose and banning e numbers before using the ritalin and said they didn't work for him ( I have my own opinions on that but the less said the better :-) ) . I know for the other girl I mentioned it was the ritalin that caused the weight issues which is why her mum only used the ritalin for school times (ie didn't give her an evening dose I think).
There is a whole lot of information on the www about Ritalin and its effects, some good opinions and some bad but I think you have to do what is best for the child involved and the circumstances you are in, at least if you have a diagnosis its half the battle. We have a number of students with ADHD and most have a prompter with them to ensure they concentrate on the work at hand so definitely check with the school to see what is available.

Thank you for all the good advice, we have been banging our heads against a brick wall since Darren was 5yrs of age, over the years he has been excluded from school etc for his behaviour.

He is also under a Youth worker (type of scoial worker) that said Darren did not have ADHD, my daughter had great pleasure phoning him yesterday to let him know that he has finally been diagnosed with this problem !!!!!!!  She will be also going to the school after the weeekend holiday to let them know and with pleasure as well as he is on a part time timetable for his behaviour.

I have had him with me today and have ignored the jumping about, restlessness etc, where I would normally have told him "to sit at peace" 

One thing he is good at is Muay Thai Boxing and normal Boxing he does go there every week.  Also had had over the years playstations etc.

I will be starting him on the tablets tomorrow they are called "Concerta XL" is this Ritalin? he is on a low dosage for 10 days only 1 a day, then onto a stronger dose after that,  he does not have a good appetite anyway.

Darren also loves the dogs and is good with them, so I will probably take him with me to training classes and see if he is any good training the puppy.

I will be looking for groups in our area as well, my daughter has also been told that she could be entitled to some extra benefits for him, so will look into that as well.

Its a minefield and we have a lot to learn, as I am typing this I can hear him jumping about the living room LOL!!!!  At least we know whats wrong now and can make allowances for some of the behaviour instead of thinking that he just would not listen and caused distruption wherever he went with us, even at the caravan park, we have even stopped him going there because of his behaviour, so will be speaking to the workers we know to let them know what is wrong with him.

My daughter does not have a computer but also says thanks to you all.

I knew champdoggers would help once again. Bless you all.

> Concerta XL" is this Ritalin

Same active ingredient methylphenidate apparently.

Some info here and here

Hope he improves soon
M x

My son has that and I refused to put him on any drugs- even when the school tried to get me to I told them flat out NO! My husband when he was younger was put on ritalin and he said it screwed him up and would never do the same to our child.  He said its like you seem normal when actually inside your yelling. With my son I felt he needs to be kept busy and learn self control and discipline so I put him in Taekwon-Do which he goes 3 nights a week and I found this to be the best thing I could ever do for him. It taught him how to have self control, patience, and discipline- the school noticed a big difference after a month of this, he has been in it since he was 10yrs old and he is now 13yrs old. Iam not one for wanting to give my child drugs so they can behave properly in school instead I feel you have to find what works for your child. He could never sit still and thankfully for the school he's in now- 3rd school found things to keep him busy where he was up doing things and not always stuck in his desk...

I have also heard Omega 3-6 helps with A.D.H.D as well.

I know other people feel differently about this but each to their own- do what you find works best for you and your child :-)

One of the things they did in my sons school was ask him to make a list of what he should do in class and this he kept on his desk as a reminder for himself.
-Always put up hand when you want to speak
-Never interupt when someone is speaking
-ect ect and this seemed to help as well cause he made the list himself.

I was also told to avoid colored stuff like ketchup, certain juices, chocolate ect and well I never did cause your only a kid once, but he was alot of work up until we put him taekwon-do.

>Reading all of that comment, I see it as Fredsmum meaning with it being more common people generally have a greater understanding of it and how to best deal with it, rather than just labeling the child as 'bad', rather than it being fourtunate that more children have it.

Not fotunate it is more common but fortunate that it is more frequently recognised and diagnosed?

Know a lady who has 4 of 5 children with ADHD.  3 of the children are on ritalin with the 4th (a girl) not be so severely affected.  One thing she said that struck me was that one of her sons  gets bouts of depression.  He gets very upset because he knows his behaviour isn't right and it wants to be a good boy but just can't behave as everyone wants him to.

Consistency and patience in abundance seems to be key to helping these children (and consequently the family). The lady I know said that she knows when she gives an instruction she has to keep following it up because the child quickly gets distracted and forgets.  Following up the instruction patiently until the child completes the task and then praising their completion rather than criticising their failings helps to train the child to the desired behaviour.