Health care provider helpful hints
~ Morris Levinsohn, MD
“I tell the parents or caregiver: you have a great kid, a very creative and innovative kid, you must positively reinforce your kids to help them maximize their potential. Don't believe the 3M's (myths, misconceptions, and media) when it comes to ADHD. Instead believe in the 3C's (comfort, confidence, and conviction) when your child is diagnosed with ADHD to help your child maximize their potential and development. Their kid is not "bad” as this condition is so misunderstood and stigmatized. Your child with ADHD is very creative and innovative and you just need to work with them, to help them be successful in school and in life. Positively reinforce your child and figure out what they like to help them understand how to control themselves. Don't be afraid to include the teachers and therapy, and even medications, to help get your child on track in the classroom and in life and don't be afraid to tell your doctor about any fears or concerns you may have, no matter what they are, and make sure they understand them.”
~ Dr. Derek Brugman Carolina Attention Specialists
Charlotte, North Carolina
“Often when I have a new patient coming in for ADHD, they hang their head low and feel like there is something wrong with them. I will always take some extra time to build them up. I have a poster in my officce that shows a lot of famous people that have ADHD. I tell them that I also have ADHD. Then I tell them there is nothing wrong with your brain. We (those of us with ADHD) have great brains. A lot of the ‘best of the best’ have ADHD. When we are in our niche, we do better than others! Our brains see more, hear more, think more than others and that is a good thing not a bad thing! We just can't turn it off when we need to. It is not true that we cannot focus, in fact we can hyper focus. The real problem is that we cannot filter. When we are excited about something, we hyper focus so well people think you can't be ADHD. When there is something that is not so exciting, even though we are trying, we just cannot turn off those other thoughts, so we get distracted. Medication does not make you better, you are already great! Medication just gives you a better filter so you can filter out those extra thoughts, noises, and impulses.”
~ Henry Hasson, MD Assistant Professor of Neurology and Pediatrics
“Getting a diagnosis of ADHD means your child can benefit from extra support from parents and educators. Get to know your child in a new way by paying attention to when they struggle and how that relates to their diagnosis. Children with ADHD may get easily frustrated, feel targeted or unsuccessful. Map out ways you can support them such as helping them accomplish small tasks one at a time or accompanying them while doing schoolwork and encouraging them to complete it. Give positive feedback and help them understand themselves better.”
~ Dennis B. Alters, MD, DLFAPA
“Some parents are initially skeptical of the ADHD diagnosis since their child will focus only on certain areas. Once it is explained that attention disorders are both episodic and pervasive in different individuals, they become less angry and more accepting of their child. Natural enthusiasm and abilities, variable motivating factors like rewards, even a modest amount of stress of clear completion times can temporarily override the diagnosis for selective activities.”
~ James C. Wiley, MD, FAAP
“I compare ADHD to spotty WiFi in certain brain networks. It's not that your device (your brain) isn't awesome; it's just off line too much of the time. This leads to buffering and makes it harder to stay on track and complete tasks efficiently. It's more frustrating than waiting for your favorite content to stream online.”
~ Emily Thompson, MD
“ADHD encompasses much more than the typically thought of inability to focus or sit still. It can also include being easily frustrated, emotional lability (quickly changing emotions), diffculty making decisions, and/or diffculty with changes in a plan or routine. As a parent of a child with ADHD, patience, a structured routine, and a sense of humor can go a long way.”