There is more to treating attention deficit disorder than only visiting the doctor and taking medicine. There are several techniques to deal with the difficulties presented by ADHD and live a more tranquil, productive life for you or your child.
Many of the symptoms of your ADHD
Self-managed if you have the necessary assistance and resources. Healthy lifestyle choices and other self-help strategies may allow you to take a lower amount of medicine, even if you elect to take it.
Engage in regular exercise
One of the finest techniques to minimize ADHD symptoms is to exercise. Dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin levels in the brain are elevated by physical activity; these chemicals have an impact on attention and focus. Try going on a stroll, skating, hiking, dancing, or partaking in your favored activity. Urge your kids to go outside and play instead of playing computer games.
Consume a balanced diet
Diet impacts mood, energy levels, and symptoms, but it does not cause ADHD. Establish regular meal and snack times. Increase the quantity of omega-3 fatty acids in your diet and make sure you get appropriate magnesium, iron, and zinc.
Make sure you get enough rest. The symptoms of ADHD can considerably improve with continuous, high-quality sleep. Make tiny alterations to your day routine to increase your quality of sleep at night. Establish and adhere to a nocturnal regimen. Steer clear of coffee later in the day.
Retain a happy disposition
Your strongest tools for tackling ADHD are common sense and an optimistic perspective. It is more possible that you will be able to relate to your child’s needs or your own when you are in a positive state of mind.
Consider counselling
Experts in ADHD can aid you or your child in building new coping methods and helping to break troublesome routines. While some therapies concentrate on helping patients moderate their impulsive behaviours, stress, and anger, others emphasise time management, organising strategies, and goal tenacity.
Speak to a Licensed Therapist
BetterHelp is an online counselling programme that connects you with professional, licenced therapists that specialise in treating anxiety, depression, relationships, and other concerns. After completing the evaluation, you can find a therapist in as short as 48 hours.
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Guidelines for taking ADHD medication
It’s vital to take prescription medicines exactly as advised if you choose to treat ADHD. You can decrease risks and unwanted effects while maximising the effectiveness of your ADHD medication by sticking to your doctor’s and chemist’s instructions. The following suggestions are for safe use:
Find out more about the prescribed medicine
Do as much research as you can on the ADHD medicine that you or your child is taking, including possible side effects, dose recommendations, cautions, and substances to avoid, such over-the-counter cold remedies.
Have patience
It requires trial and error to determine the correct medicine and dosage. It will involve some trial and error and genuine, open communication with your physician.
Begin modestly. It is normally recommended to begin with a modest dosage and raise it gradually. The objective is to discover the lowest dose at which your child’s or your own symptoms can be eased.
Observe the medication’s effects
Keep a close watch on how the medicine is influencing your emotions and behaviour, as well as those of your child. Note any bad reactions and analyze the degree to which the medicine is lowering symptoms.
Reduce gradually
Call your doctor for advice on how to gradually reduce the dosage if you or your kid wishes to cease taking medicine. Unpleasant withdrawal symptoms, such as irritability, tiredness, melancholy, and headaches, can happen from quitting medication unexpectedly.
Talking to your child about ADHD medication
Make sure your child
Understands how to take their medication appropriately and why following prescription criteria is crucial if they are on ADHD medication. Many children and teens with the illness cease taking their medicine without contacting their parents or doctor.
Encourage your child to come to you with any medication-related issues so you can work together to fix the problem or find another treatment option. It’s also crucial to bear in mind that an ADHD treatment should never dampen a child’s vitality, curiosity, or excitement. Even yet, a youngster must act like a child.
Monitoring ADHD medication’s effects on your child
Here is a list of questions you should ask when your child begins medication therapy, changes dosage, or starts taking a different medication:
Is the drug having a good impact on your child’s mood and/or behavior?
Do you think the dosage or drug is working? Does your youngster think the dosage or medication is
working?
Does the dose need to be increased or decreased? What was the change in a specific behavior or collection of behaviors that caused you to believe that the drug needed to be evaluated?
Is your youngster having any side effects, such as headaches, stomachaches, exhaustion or sleeplessness, (or suicidal thoughts if taking Strattera or another SNRI)? What is the likelihood that those adverse effects will last? (Ask your doctor). Do any lingering negative effects (if any) outweigh the medication’s benefits?
Do you or your child think a drug or dosage level has ceased working?
Source: From Chaos to Calm: Effective Parenting of Challenging Children with ADHD and Other Behavioral
Problems, by Janet E. Heininger and Sharon K. Weiss.
Dealing with side effects
Most children and adults taking medication for ADHD will have at least a few negative effects. Sometimes, side symptoms go away after the first few weeks on the medicine. You may also be able to minimize or reduce unpleasant side effects with a few simple measures.
Loss of appetite. To deal with diminished appetite, consume healthy snacks throughout the day and defer dinner to a later time after the prescription has worn off.
Insomnia. If getting to sleep is a difficulty, consider taking the stimulant earlier in the day. If you or your child is taking an extended-release stimulant, you can also consider switching to the short-acting type. Also avoid caffeinated beverages, especially in the afternoon or evening.
Stomach upset or headaches
Don’t take the drug on an empty stomach, which can induce nausea, stomach pain, and headaches. Headaches can also be provoked by medicine that’s wearing off, so switching to a long-acting drug may help.
Dizziness
First, have you or your child’s blood pressure checked. If it’s normal, you may wish to cut your dose or switch to a long-acting stimulant. Also make sure you’re consuming enough fluids.
Mood shifts. If medicine is producing anger, depression, agitation, or other emotional adverse effects, try reducing the dose. Moodiness may also be induced by the rebound effect, in which case it may assist to overlap the doses or switch to an extended-release medicine.
If troublesome side effects persist despite your best attempts to manage them, talk to your doctor about changing the dose or trying a new drug.
Many people respond better to the long-acting or extended release versions of ADHD medication, which develop gradually in the bloodstream and then drop off slowly. This minimizes the ups and downs caused by variable medication levels and generates less of a rebound effect, where symptoms reappear, typically worse than before, as the drug wears off.
Reviewed by Damon Ramsey, M.D
A practicing physician in Vancouver, co-founder of InputHealth, an award-winning digital health firm, and Chief Product Officer of TELUS Health.
