ADHD | Child psychiatrist in Pune | Dr. Sonia Malhotra M.D.

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder)

"Is my child naughty or has a problem?"

It is often a problem to recognise whether a kid is naughty or in problem. To recognise your kids problem, here are some RED FLAG SIGNS:

If your kid does not finish even 1 play activity and switches to next, then next, it is something! (Eg: switching tv channels in seconds, changing games on tab or mobile etc)
If your kid doesnot wait for his/her turn while playing or talking and interrupts im between even on stopping....!
If your kid's hyperactivity doesnt let him/her complete even the activities of their liking like watching tv or coloring...!
If your child engages in dangerous play like cutting, biting, breaking objects etc without knowing what he/she is doing (exploratory play is not included)
If the problematic behavior has begun after the age of 5-7 years only

"Why do kids have ADHD?"

ADHD is a brain disorder where the wiring between activity controlling centres of the brain and activity producing centres of the brain have got disrupted. This loss of control is producing the following behaviors in a child with ADHD:

1.Hyperactivity- running all over the place, unable to sit quietly in class or other places, unable to follow social decorum, runs away middle of a task.
2. Inattention- making silly mistakes while doing homework/classwork, unable to follow multistep commands, forgets easily, misplaces day to day thing like eraser, sharpener etc.
3. Impulsivity- speaks between two people, cant wait for his/her turn while answering questions or during play, throws objects, eats limitlessly, engages in dangerous play etc.

Is it treatable?

ADHD is very much treatable. There is an option of using medicines and psychological method (mainly cognitive exercises).

1. Medicines are good for kids who have moderate to severe ADHD. They cannot comply with cognitive exercises until controlled with medicines.
2. Cognitive exercises like attention enhancing tasks, assertiveness training, anger management works well with these kids. Particularly, attention enhancing tasks work well with kids who have mild to moderate severity of the disorder.

When done in long term, these tasks also help in gradually withdrawing the medicines in these children.

Kids are never medicated with the aim of making them dependent on treatment or turning them into zombies. They are our future. And FUTURE NEEDS CAREFUL HANDLING.