Living with an ADHD Child: Catching the Signs Early

Watertown— For children with learning disabilities, school settings and learning can be a very unpleasant experience. If a child with a learning disability is not diagnosed early, the struggle in school can reinforce their dislike for school, potentially affecting them as adults.

ABC50 spoke with Director and Owner of ADHD Educational Services, Deborah A. Cavallario who spoke about her own personal experiences with ADHD. Cavallario has ADHD herself and also a son who suffered from ADHD, which was her motivation for opening up a business geared towards helping parents that have children with ADHD. Cavallario stated that the military community and lower income families are her main focus, military families that move around can be a challenge for an ADHD child. “Military families don’t keep the same Doctor. The child’s Doctor changes, friends, school, support system. It is difficult for the child to bond with a Doctor and having a stable family Doctor is key.”

Cavallario has been running ADHD Educational Services for 12 years, working with local schools. Mrs. Cavallario has several programs that are designed to help children with ADHD.

Truency Intervention Program ( TIP ) The Truency Intervention Program addresses early truancy issues through prevention and intervention services. The program's goal is to improve and increase student attendance and academic achievement. Parents will stay informed of current truancy laws and how those laws may affect their family.
 
The Parental Involvement Program ( PIP) creates a comprehensive partnership between educators and parents. Discusses academic and behavioral assessments in home visits or community organizations. Puts in place opportunities for educators to encourage and assist parents in helping their childen with their school work etc.
 
The Homework Assistance with Parental Intervention (HAPI) assists students with their homework by teaching the skills necessary to complete assignments. The program is designed to create a positive bond between the educational community and the family unit to promote the academic success and self confidence of the child.
 

Mrs. Cavallario stressed the importance of at least, getting children to get a proper diagnosis and treating ADHD early. According to learningrx.com, the ramifications of untreated learning disabilities can have lasting ramifications:

“Research shows that some types of learning disabilities that affect adults were left untreated when they were children. Many adults with learning disabilities never received proper treatment when they were in school. Schools may not have been equipped with the proper training to help children with learning disabilities. Parents may have been overwhelmed and unable to deal with a learning disabled child.”

ADD/ADHD in children has been the biggest misunderstood disability. According to Child Mind Institute, Steven Kuntz PHD, ABPP is “one of the nation’s leading clinicians in the treatment of children’s behavioral problems and disorders, particularly attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and the social anxiety disorder selective mutism (SM).”

According to Doctor Kuntz, he has seen adults whose untreated ADD/ADHD in their childhood caused havoc in their adult lives:

“Decades of research have shown us that kids with untreated ADHD—not to speak of anxiety, depression and other very treatable conditions—struggle just to become productive citizens. These kids have a harder time holding jobs, staying married, raising children and even keeping out of jail. As long as we continue to deprive our youth of the mental health care they need, we are sabotaging our own future as well as theirs.”

Doctor Kuntz went on to express that some parents have a passive attitude towards ADD/ADHD assuming their child/children will “grow out” of a psychiatric illness without any help. Doctor Kuntz goes on to explain:

“But many kids with ADHD, and other conditions, just find their problems compounding as they get older. And they are less and less responsive to treatment. Kids with untreated ADHD often become adults with untreated ADHD, and with that comes a whole host of adult-sized problems.”

According to the center for disease control ADHD statistic, which came out August 16, 2012- every year approximately 8.4 percent of children are diagnosed with ADHD between the ages of 3-17. Amongst those diagnosed each year, 11.2 percent are boys whereas only 5.5 percent are girls. The total amount of diagnosed ADHD between the ages of 3-17 is at a whopping 5.2 million and out of that figure, 1.21 percent is within the United States. Caucasian children have the highest rate of ADHD at 7.6 percent, which is roughly 3.6 million. The state of Alabama has the highest rate of diagnosed children with ADHD at 11.1 percent, while Colorado has the lowest percent at a mere 5 percent.

ABC50 spoke with one local parent Carey Flores, military wife and mother of 2 children, Mrs. Flores four year old son Noah has been recently diagnosed with ADHD. Mrs. Flores was concerned about her son after noticing some warning signs when she enrolled Noah into Pre-K. “When we got him into Pre-K, he just became out of control. His focus was very disruptive.” Mrs. Flores is currently treating Noah at Benchmark Services and is glad that she and her husband are involving themselves with Noah’s growth. They have enrolled Noah in to martial arts class, hoping that an organic approach such as keeping him active in sports will be an alternative to medications.

BEHAVIORAL RATING SCALE

Teacher: _________________________ Student’s Name: _________________________

Date: _________________________      Grade: _________________________________

RATING SCALE

0 – not at all        1 – just a little       2- pretty much       3 – very much

ADHD Educational Services/HAPI

This is NOT an instrument of evaluation ONLY one of classroom observation!

Psych Central has an online ADHD pre-screening test, as well as other screenings online like Every Day Health. These screenings are geared towards adults. Whether you are a concerned parent with a potential child that may have ADHD or an adult that may have ADD/ADHD- online screenings are not as reliable as getting a proper diagnosis from a Doctor. There are treatment plans available, not all parents choose to medicate their child. If you suspect your child has ADD/ADHD, you should see your doctor and research the proper path to take with your child.