| It wasn't very long ago that Attention Deficit | | | | pediatricians, or behavioral neurologists, and sometimes |
| Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) was shrouded in | | | | clinical social workers. |
| mystery. Unless directly affected by it through their | | | | Specialty Can diagnose ADHD Can prescribe |
| children, most parents did not fully understand and | | | | medication, if needed Provides counseling or training |
| certainly could not readily identify something like ADHD. | | | | Psychiatrists Yes Yes Yes |
| Fortunately today parents have greater access to | | | | Psychologists Yes Yes (only in NM & LA) Yes |
| information through schools, community professionals | | | | Pediatricians or Family Physicians Yes Yes No |
| and the World Wide Web. Yet even though the | | | | Neurologists Yes Yes No |
| National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) estimates that | | | | Clinical Social Workers Yes No Yes |
| approximately 2 million children in the United States | | | | (Retrieved from ldonline.org/adhdbasics/diagnosis 3/14 |
| have ADHD (that's roughly 1 child out of every | | | | 2007) |
| classroom of 25-30 students) many parents are still | | | | If you're unsure about who to contact first, you can |
| unsure about how to identify symptoms, who to turn | | | | always start with your family pediatrician or physician. |
| to for diagnosis, and how to work with their school | | | | He or she may or may not be able to do a preliminary |
| once a diagnosis has been made. | | | | assessment; however, they can absolutely make a |
| It's important to understand that ADHD is not a product | | | | referral to the appropriate mental health specialist for |
| of poor parenting. It does not discriminate according to | | | | further exploration and diagnosis. |
| gender, race, or age. It is a very real disorder and | | | | The first step is to collect information and rule out |
| requires proper attention. If not properly diagnosed and | | | | other contributing factors that may affect your child's |
| treated, ADHD may carry serious consequences | | | | behavior. Significant experiences such as a sudden |
| including school failure, problems with relationships, | | | | change in the child's life (i.e. the death of a loved one, |
| family stress and disruption, and depression. With | | | | parents' divorce, etc.), a learning disability that may |
| education and understanding however, parents can | | | | cause underachievement, anxiety or depression, even |
| learn to be an advocate for their ADHD child and help | | | | medical causes such as a middle ear infection that |
| him/her achieve success in the classroom and at | | | | may result in intermittent hearing loss, can cause |
| home. | | | | ADHD-like behaviors in a child. Specialists may also |
| Identifying Symptoms | | | | look to the child's school and medical records, |
| ADHD is not easy to diagnose. The primary | | | | environmental stressors and parental and/or teacher |
| characteristics of ADHD are inattention, hyperactivity, | | | | interaction with the child as other contributing factors to |
| and impulsivity. While many young children can exhibit | | | | the child's erratic behavior. |
| these characteristics to some degree, true ADHD | | | | If after all of the information has been collected and |
| symptoms are significant and present themselves | | | | analyzed against the current DSM-IV-TR and the |
| over the course of several months. According to the | | | | hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention are deemed |
| Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders | | | | significant, and found to be long-standing, an ADHD |
| (DSM-IV-TR) there are three patterns of behavior that | | | | diagnosis may be made. |
| indicate ADHD - being consistently inattentive, being | | | | What Next? |
| hyperactive, and/or being impulsive far more than | | | | As a parent, you are your child's most important |
| others of the same age. Children with ADHD may | | | | advocate. It's critical to know what's expected of your |
| show one or a combination of these behavior patterns. | | | | school, and how to utilize the resources available to |
| It isn't unusual for a child (or even an adult for that | | | | you in your community. Honest and open |
| matter) to have difficulty sitting still, paying attention or | | | | communication with your child's teachers is critical to |
| controlling impulsive behavior from time to time. | | | | his/her success in the classroom - especially if you |
| However, with ADHD these issues are constant and | | | | suspect that your child may have ADHD. Your child's |
| so pervasive that they impact every aspect of their | | | | school is legally obligated to evaluate your child at your |
| lives, including both the home and school environment. | | | | request. The request should be made in writing, and |
| Who Can Diagnose? | | | | should include background information including the |
| If you suspect ADHD may be affecting your child, it's | | | | child's name, your name, the date, and the reason you |
| important to know which individuals can make a proper | | | | are requesting the evaluation. If the school refuses to |
| diagnosis. Specific training in the diagnosis of mental | | | | evaluate your child, there are advocacy groups in |
| disorders, and specifically ADHD is obviously ideal. | | | | every state including the Parent Training and |
| These individuals most often include child psychiatrists | | | | Information (PTI) center and the Protection and |
| and psychologists, developmental/behavioral | | | | Advocacy (P&A) agency. |