Adhd & Celiac Questions Regarding Meds & No Meds

[wolfie]

So DS was evaluated for ADHD back in May before his Celiac diagnosis and we just got the results back last week. He has since been diagnosed with Celiac and started the gluten-free diet on July 15th. His Ped said that the results are consistant with ADHD and highly recommends meds, although he said that when he first started his medical training that he was against meds. He said that the feedback from teachers is night & day with medication. I would really like to see if we can avoid the meds since gluten may be behind the ADHD symtpoms. I asked our Ped how soon we should see improvement in behavior if it was due to gluten and he said 6-8 weeks. DH then asked the Ped how many Celiac patients they have in their practice and he said 6. I don't know that I feel comfortable accepting the Ped's response about how long it would take a gluten-free diet to improve behavior if they only have 6 Celiac patients in their practice. We have seen some improvements already, I guess the real test is when he is back in school (started today).

So, I guess these are my questions:

1. Does anyone have experience with ADHD and Celiac/gluten intolerance? If so, how long should it take to see an improvement in behavior/school work from diet alone?

2. Are there other things we can do to help him instead of medicating him?

I am not saying that I am dead set against the meds for DS, but I would certainly like to exhaust all other options first, espeically since the ADHD & Celiac were both discovered within months of each other (and really b/c I pushed the Ped to run the Celiac Panel once we began the evaluation for ADHD).

Thanks for reading & responding.

[celiacgirls]

I don't have any real experience with ADHD but my younger daughter was tested for ADHD after a therapist, a psychiatrist, and I noticed hyperactive, impulsive, distractible behaviour. She didn't get any complaints from the school like a lot of ADHD kids but one teacher did say she had to repeat things to her. Her results from the neuropsych testing said she tested more like the normal population although she was "hyperactive, impulsive, and easily distracted". All that being said, I notice that now that she is strictly gluten free, she is not hyperactive at all. She's also less impulsive and more focused. I don't know how long it took for this to happen because I wasn't really linking the diet to her behaviour until recently.

For me, I thought I had ADD and I noticed this went away in 3 days after becoming gluten-free. My other daughter's behaviour and mood improved within days, too.

I don't know of any ways to help control without medicine it if the diet doesn't work. I remember well those days of my daughter just not settling down to do homework. I could be right there doing nothing but trying to help her focus and 10 minutes of work would take an hour. Thankfully, that doesn't happen any more. One of the many ways being gluten-free has improved our lives!

[eleep]

Somewhere along the way to finding out I had celiac, a therapist suggested I pursue psychiatric treatment for ADD -- I was on Ritalin and then Adderall -- both intermittently for about a year, I think. I was really dissatisfied with the meds and eventually began to pursue other ways of managing the symptoms I was having. The meds also seemed to play up occasional anxiety symptoms to the point where the psychiatrist and I were considering putting me on anti-anxiety meds as well -- which is where I began to balk. I just didn't want to go down the road of relying on multiple pharmaceuticals to keep myself functioning unless, indeed, I had some kind of clinical-level psychiatric disorder -- which I knew was questionable because I'd done a lot of research and "trying on" different possible diagnoses.

So, I spent a lot of time researching treatments for anxiety and revamping my exercise routines. I took a meditation class and tinkered a whole lot with my diet. Eventually, this was how I figured out that there was a food issue -- and my ADD-like symptoms have completely vanished since I've gone gluten-free. However, even before that happened, I had found that, with a very structured schedule and lots of exercise, regular and meditation I was generally pretty functional as well. (I say "pretty functional" -- that's nowhere near as functional as I am right now -- before, it took a lot of effort and structure to maintain those habits and a state of calm -- now, it's just my day-to-day reality except when I've been glutened).

My own opinion would be that you'll have a clearer sense of what's really going on if you try one thing at a time -- try the diet for a few months and, if his symptoms don't seem to be improving, then reconsider the meds. ADD meds don't really "cure" anything -- they're basically stimulants that jack up the brain's dopamine levels which makes it possible for the brain's executive function to focus. However, exercise and diet are also good ways to stimulate dopamine levels (as is being fully healthy) which tend to be more self-sustaining and helpful for the brain's healthy development in the long run.

eleep

[VydorScope]

First off, I have been DX'D with ADHD and I personal DO NOT have celiac disease. I have personally done trials with the ADHD med's.

Let me also state here up front, Meds are not the right asnwer for everyone, but are definitly needed in some cases. In many cases meds are merely a bridge while learning coping mechanism, and in some cases meds are for life. All this is assuming that ADHD is the correct dx.

ADHD-like symptons can defintily be caused by diet issues, such as celiac disease. IMO you should presue a this befor meds. In addtion to celiac disease, allergies to food dyes and preservitives can cause the same symptons, as can anemia and other defiicencies.

As for how long it can take to notice, well thats realy impossible to predict with celiac disease. It could be as soon as the next day, or many many weeks. You probably will see some change soon, say first couple weeks, and you should see some kind of improvent over time, it could be slow and hard to notice if your not watching though.

2. Are there other things we can do to help him instead of medicating him?

Assuming he realy has ADHD yes. First of adreniline is your friend in this case. Get him ACTIVE, get him in sports, karate, what ever he will like that your comfortalbe with him doing. Should be at least daily.

Look up CHADD in your area, and give them a call they will normally have local support groups, and information to contact whats called an "ADHD Coach". They are ppl that are not license to push meds (in most cases) but are experence with what is called "Behavorial Modification", its a training process to help your son self cope with the issues.

Keep in mind there are LOTS of ppl dx'd wth ADHD that do not have it. ADHD is real, but not as common as ppl seem to want it to be. In many cases a simple diet change is all that is needed, such as a gluten-free diet. In some the kid just needs to get off his computer and out more.

I miss threads here all the time, so please feel free to PM/EMAIL me if you have a question and I miss it here...

[kabowman]

My son is ADHD and the teachers pushed for me to talk to his pediatrition about meds (when we moved to a new school right before his 5th grade year, the last school told me NOT to have him tested, I think because they had so many other problems), I avoided it, didn't want him on the meds etc. for a year then finally caved and all his teachers (6th grade had 3 teachers) and both of us as parents filled out a survey and the doc came back and said, yes, I think he could benefit.

Now, he wasn't a problem in the classroom at all, has his own little world that he is very happy in (the hyper comes out at home), he was struggling with half a work load and in tears every day at school. His teachers love(d) him on and off the meds but on the meds, he actually managed to get the work done.

We agreed to try the meds and had a complete turn around in less than a month. Now he does NOT have a gluten issue - this is just meds. I didn't want them, I don't like them, but they make his school life manageable AND he now has some real friends, not many but he doesn't need much...he is actually a little social now.

I also look forward to the day when he takes himself off of the meds (he is now a sophmore in high school) and figures out other coping mechanisims. We just went through another round of testing and he still qualifies for his IEP and Special Ed - which I was worried he would lose.

I am NOT trying to push towards meds, only telling our story and how it actually helped him. If I had a choice, I would not medicate my kid but he, personally needs these until he can figure this out on his own.

[wonkabar]

So, I guess these are my questions:

1. Does anyone have experience with ADHD and Celiac/gluten intolerance? If so, how long should it take to see an improvement in behavior/school work from diet alone?

2. Are there other things we can do to help him instead of medicating him?

Hi! I have LOTS of experience with AD/HD as a mom, a sister and a self-contained special ed teacher. I taught special ed for 7 years prior to staying home with my kids, my youngest brother has ADD and is dyslexic but wasn't Dx until he was in his early 20's, and my 3 1/2 year-old son definately has ADD but is too young to be Dx...attention and distractibility are issues for him both at home and in pre-school.

Zachary is on a gluten-free diet due to issues with gluten not ADD. We saw a huge change in behavior when gluten was removed from his diet. There's not nearly as many tantrums (now appropriate for 3 1/2 ), he's sleeping through the night, 100% less irritable and has a much higher tolerance for frustrating situations, BUT it didn't change his level of distractability and attention. These changes in behavior are paramount and were seen within a couple of days of starting the gluten-free diet. If anything, it exascerbated the ADD symptoms and made them more easily identifiable which is actually a good thing!

First, I agree and believe that AD/HD is over-Dx and kids are put on meds far too quickly; I find this to be incredibly irresponsible on the part of the medical community. There is an enormous difference b/t child who is truly symptomatic of AD/HD and a child who is active and/or needs some discipline in their life. That being said, AD/HD is a very really Dx and needs to be treated as such if it is in fact what the problem is. I am not an advocate for medicating children who have AD/HD unless all other avenues have been traveled to no avail...and I mean all! Many doctors, teachers and parents (not you, of course!) look to meds as a quick and easy fix. I can tell you from lots of personal experience that nothing about AD/HD is a quick fix. This is an issue that a person needs to learn deal with throughout their life, and the sooner the issues with distractability, attention and impulsivity are remediated the easier it will be for the person to function throughout their life.

There are so many different self-mangement skills that can be taught and behavior management/modification techniques that are incredeibly effective for both children and adults with AD/HD. I am of the belief that these skills and techniques should be introduced, implemented and given a fair amount of time to determine their effectiveness prior to medication therapy. Teaching such skills and implementing such techniques is certainly more time consuming than just giving a child a pill and hoping that helps, but they work. I can assure you that my life as a teacher would have been 100% easier and less stressfull at times if I didn't teach any of these skills or implement any of these techniques, however the children in my class are better for it. The kids in my class were the most severely involved cognitively, and sometimes behaviorally, in my building so I had individual behavior modification plans implemented for of all sorts of things! And yes, some of my kids were on medication.

Some children and adults need to take medication because it is truly necessary for them to function with greater ease. In these cases, I do believe that medication should be used in conjunction with the skills and techniques I just mentioned. In my experience as a teacher, I dealt with parents on both ends of the medication spectrum....those who wanted medication and those who were vehemently opposed to medicating their child. Neither were easy situations to deal with, but when/if I did have discussions with a parent who was opposed to it I would encourage them to look at it in the same way they would look at giving their child insulin if they were diabetic. Sometimes medication is absolutely necessary to help the child function to their potential and manage their every day life.

Medicaiton is not necessarily a bad thing and shouldn't be avoided at all costs. I have always advocated using behavior modification and teaching self-management skills prior to any trial with medication. Although I'm not in the classroom at the moment, there's lots of "special edish" stuff I do with Zachary just because that's a part of who I am, and it certainly does benefit him. He is very responsive to the different types of prompts aqnd behavior management techniques I use with him. If I found that Zachary truly needed medication after all other options have been exhausted I would certainly agree to a trial...but not until then. My brother who is 33, married with two little ones and has a great job has been on medicaiton for about 10 years and he absolutely needs it. He has the tazmanian devil tatooed to his calf if that gives you any indication to his personality! And, boy oh boy can you tell when he "tries" to manage without it!!

If you don't mind me asking, how old is your son? Did the doctor tell you why it took them so long to get back to you with results?? Does he have an IEP and if not, are you in the process of requesting an evaluation by the Child Study Team to see if he's eligible for any type of services/support due to the Dx of AD/HD? Some great activities to consider are karate, as it was already mentioned, gymnastics, a sensory gymnastic class (with an occupational therapist) and certain types of computer programs to name a few. I just read my post and I can't believe how long it is...I hope it helped! Please feel free to pm me if you had any other questions or if I could help you in anyway. Lots of luck!!!!!!!!

[VydorScope]

Well siad Kristy, I used to run support group for parents of childern with ADHD/Bi-Polar/etc. It drains you over time! Medication for these things is such a touchy subject. You example of insulin is one I used alot, that and eyeglasses.

Over time I have come to believe that issues with diet (celiac disease, other intorelencs, malnutrution, etc) appear to cuase most of the missed dx'd cases, but thats just my personal observation not a medical study/statistic.

I forgot to mention above, and I am a bit annoyed that I did, I never recomend anyone start meds with out at LEAST 2 completely independent medical opinions from trustworthy/recomended docs in the area of childerns mental health, and never do it based on the advice/demands of a teacher/school alone.

[wolfie]

First off, I have been DX'D with ADHD and I personal DO NOT have celiac disease. I have personally done trials with the ADHD med's.

Let me also state here up front, Meds are not the right asnwer for everyone, but are definitly needed in some cases. In many cases meds are merely a bridge while learning coping mechanism, and in some cases meds are for life. All this is assuming that ADHD is the correct dx.

ADHD-like symptons can defintily be caused by diet issues, such as celiac disease. IMO you should presue a this befor meds. In addtion to celiac disease, allergies to food dyes and preservitives can cause the same symptons, as can anemia and other defiicencies.

As for how long it can take to notice, well thats realy impossible to predict with celiac disease. It could be as soon as the next day, or many many weeks. You probably will see some change soon, say first couple weeks, and you should see some kind of improvent over time, it could be slow and hard to notice if your not watching though.

Assuming he realy has ADHD yes. First of adreniline is your friend in this case. Get him ACTIVE, get him in sports, karate, what ever he will like that your comfortalbe with him doing. Should be at least daily.

Look up CHADD in your area, and give them a call they will normally have local support groups, and information to contact whats called an "ADHD Coach". They are ppl that are not license to push meds (in most cases) but are experence with what is called "Behavorial Modification", its a training process to help your son self cope with the issues.

Keep in mind there are LOTS of ppl dx'd wth ADHD that do not have it. ADHD is real, but not as common as ppl seem to want it to be. In many cases a simple diet change is all that is needed, such as a gluten-free diet. In some the kid just needs to get off his computer and out more.

I miss threads here all the time, so please feel free to PM/EMAIL me if you have a question and I miss it here...

Wow....thanks for the wealth of information! I will look up CHADD in our area. DS plays hockey & baseball and has been playing some casual lacrosse with the neighbor kids daily. He is not one to sit in front of the computer or TV, especially since he had his PS2 taken away. I have started to look for some Karate or matrial arts classes in our area to get him into. I think the focus/discpline will do nothing but help him in the long run.

He did come home from school yesterday with a smile on his face and was actually excited (OMG, a first) to do his homework. He was very proud of himself for how neatly he wrote, a huge improvement, so I hope that the trend continues.

I really appreciate your response.

My son is ADHD and the teachers pushed for me to talk to his pediatrition about meds (when we moved to a new school right before his 5th grade year, the last school told me NOT to have him tested, I think because they had so many other problems), I avoided it, didn't want him on the meds etc. for a year then finally caved and all his teachers (6th grade had 3 teachers) and both of us as parents filled out a survey and the doc came back and said, yes, I think he could benefit.

Now, he wasn't a problem in the classroom at all, has his own little world that he is very happy in (the hyper comes out at home), he was struggling with half a work load and in tears every day at school. His teachers love(d) him on and off the meds but on the meds, he actually managed to get the work done.

We agreed to try the meds and had a complete turn around in less than a month. Now he does NOT have a gluten issue - this is just meds. I didn't want them, I don't like them, but they make his school life manageable AND he now has some real friends, not many but he doesn't need much...he is actually a little social now.

I also look forward to the day when he takes himself off of the meds (he is now a sophmore in high school) and figures out other coping mechanisims. We just went through another round of testing and he still qualifies for his IEP and Special Ed - which I was worried he would lose.

I am NOT trying to push towards meds, only telling our story and how it actually helped him. If I had a choice, I would not medicate my kid but he, personally needs these until he can figure this out on his own.

Thanks for sharing your story. I am glad that your son made a turn around and that the meds helped him. I am not completely against meds, and believe that some kids really do benefit from them. It does help to hear others stories and see what the outcomes are. I wish your son luck in figuring it all out.

[Cheri A]

First, ((hugs))!!

Second, while I haven't had to deal with ADD/HD in my own children, I have several friends who do. One child is on medication and they are still tinkering with it. He is a zombie right now The other friend is not wanting to go the medication route yet and hasn't had him officially diagnosed.

I saw/read a book when my first friend's son was diagnosed. It's called "The ADD Answer Book". I thought it was very good and had a lot of good information about not just throwing medication as the first solution. It had a lot of dietary info and things to avoid, learning the triggers that make the child get whacked out. I thought it was very good and I tried to get my friend to read it. Unfortunately, she didn't want to make the dietary changes. It was too hard and she opted to medicate. See if your library has it!!

I hope that with the change in diet that you are already making, his troubles with lessen!!

[Nic]

Hi, I am not sure you mentioned your son's age. I am a kindergarten teacher but have been teaching for 9 years and have been in 5th and 2nd grade as well. I work in an inner city school district and have seen my fair share of kids we suspected were ADHD but parents did not get them checked out. This past year while in Kindergarten, I had this amazingly precious little girl named Precious . She happened to be ADHD and was unmedicated in the beginning of the school year. I had 33 students (2 teachers and an aid) but this poor little thing was bouncing off the walls. I always compared her to taking one of those little balls you get in a gum ball machine and just throwing it as hard as you could against a wall and watching it bounce from wall to wall. She could not focus on anything or sit still but was absolutely sweet as pie and we loved her but felt we needed a personal aid just to handle her. By November mom had her medicated and her behavior changed 100%. She was not tired or groggy as some parent worry about with meds, but hard working and calm. If mom forgot her meds, we knew it within the first 15 minutes of the day. It helped her so much. I am not saying to medicate your child. I too would try the diet first. But some kids do need the meds even though a lot of parents believe that kids are being over medicated. It helps some of them to feel successful in school because they can keep up with and contribute to the class.

Nicole

[wonkabar]

Second, while I haven't had to deal with ADD/HD in my own children, I have several friends who do. One child is on medication and they are still tinkering with it. He is a zombie right now The other friend is not wanting to go the medication route yet and hasn't had him officially diagnosed.

Medication can certainly change the child's personality. However, there are many types of medications available to address the issues with AD/HD and, as with any type of med, some are not for everyone. There are side effects to AD/HD meds such as decrease in appetite, headaches, change in behav, etc. You may have to try different meds until you find the most appropriate brand and doseage. The flip-side to putting your child on medication if they truly need it to function is that it will help them academically, functionally and socially. And that is the ultimate goal.

An absolutely awesone book to get your child if they have AD/HD, or to explain to your child why little Johnny next-door is a little bouncy and crashes into the Lego tower they just built, is "Eukee the Jumpy Elephant". It's out of print, but I believe can still be ordered through Barnes and Noble. (I ordered this for my brother a few years ago!) It's a riot, but it nicely addresses the issues in school, socially, with doctors and self-confidence. Two other books that are great tools are both by Dr. Seuss. "Oh The Places You'll Go" and "Hoorary for Diffendoofer Day!" Places is a great book for anyone at any age. It addresses the trials and tribulations in life that we all go through and teaches us that things turn out okay in the end. Diffendoofer Day addressess diversity in a way that only Dr. Seuss could. It teaches us how boring life would be if we were all the same. I love both of these books and used them in my classroom for lots of different things.

These are general statements about medication and only my opinion.....please, don't ever play with the doseage without the advice of your doctor. This is the worst possible thing you could do to your child. Also, please don't play the "I just wanted to see if you noticed." game with your child's teacher. I can't tell you how many times I've seen that happen. It is not only frustrating to me as the teacher b/c I can't help your child if I don't know what's going on with them, but more importantly it puts the child in an awful situation--Yesterday they were able to manage and today they're tripping over air.

I agree whole-heartedly with Vincent in that you should always seek a second opinion from qualified professionals in the field and never base your information solely on what the classroom teacher is saying. Also remember that the only person who can Dx your child with AD/HD is a medical doctor. Social workers, school psychologists and teachers ARE NOT qualified to make a Dx. In fact, from a legal stand point within the district, they shouldn't even mention AD/HD to you by name regarding your child. (We can have opinions about Dx which are often correct, but we are not qualified to tell you that.) They should only mention the behaviors (distractability, etc) to you in terms of classroom function. You certainly should take the teacher's observations into consideration as functioning in school does play a factor in a Dx, but you have to look at the "whole child".

I would also recommend taking a child to see a neuro-developmental pediatrician who specializes in disorders such as AD/HD in children. A neuro-developmental pediatrician is completely different than a neurologist. This type of pediatrician is far more specialized than any general pediatrician you'd visit. My opnion is based both as a teacher and a mom. Zachary was a 32 week preemie and had developemental delays. While I just love my pediatrician, he couldn't have possible given me the type of information or level of evaluation that the neuro-developmental pediatrian did. I would also recommend having an OT Evaluation to specifically evaluate sensory integration by an Occupational Therapist who is specifically certified to conduct this type of evaluation. Often kids with AD/HD have sensory issues...every wonder why some of them can't sit still, seem clumsy, have low frustration level, trip over air, etc.?? Any type of structured activity such as karate or organized sports are great for kids with AD/HD. For little ones, places like Gymboree, JW Tumbles and Kindermusik are great experiences because of the structure and physical outlet.

There several other disorders that can co-exist with AD/HD such as Bi-Polar disorder, OCD, ODD (Oppositional Defiance Disorder), Sensory Integration Dysfunction and Asperger's Syndrome. Disorders such as Central Auditory Processing Disorder can actually mimick AD/HD and can only be Dx by a qualified Speech and Language Therapist. Therefor, I would never encourage a parent to self-diagnose these types of issues. You should certainly educate yourself and by all means advocate for your child but do seek the advice of a qualified medical professional. And while I agree that diet can play a part in your child's behavior(sugar, gluten, etc), AD/HD isn't quite as simple as that. There 's a whole lot more to helping your child manage their difficulties with AD/HD than changing their diet. So considering dietary changes are non-invasive and usually healthy it should certainly be considered, but it is by no means the only thing that should be considered. You also shouldn't try any type of dietary change prior to an evaluation as this could skew the opinion of the evaluator.

AD/HD is a neurologically based disorder that will effect your child throughout their lifetime if it's not addressed and appropriately remediated. There's also a strong genetic component to AD/HD, so having a legitimate Dx would not only be of use to your child now but their children in the future. That being said, people of all shapes and sizes can and do happily manage in life with a Dx of AD/HD. As with many different medical conditions, AD/HD doesn't mean you can't function in life, it simply means you have to do it a little differently. And the way I've always seen it....that's okay because different is a good thing!

[VydorScope]

And while I agree that diet can play a part in your child's behavior(sugar, gluten, etc), AD/HD isn't quite as simple as that. There 's a whole lot more to helping your child manage their difficulties with AD/HD than changing their diet.

I agree, IF the child has ADHD. However many times child does NOT have ADHD, he/she just merely appears to due to symptons caused by the diet or other treatable issues.

AD/HD is a neurologically based disorder that will effect your child throughout their lifetime if it's not addressed and appropriately remediated.

I am not sure what you mean here, real ADHD can never be cured, with current medical tech at least, you just learn coping methods (meds, behaviors modification, etc).

BTW - a great book for adults with ADHD/ADD is Driven to Distraction. Highly receomded it.

Second, while I haven't had to deal with ADD/HD in my own children, I have several friends who do. One child is on medication and they are still tinkering with it. He is a zombie right now sad.gif The other friend is not wanting to go the medication route yet and hasn't had him officially diagnosed.

Unfortunitly medication does are still a bit of a guessing game. Oh they have tables based on wieght, age, and all that but they realy are only a starting point. By far most familes I have worked with have tried a few dif meds at a few dif doses before nailing it in. Its a otften a slow process.

AND BE CAREFUL with these meds, some of them are dangerous if you skip a dose.

[wolfie]

Hi! I have LOTS of experience with AD/HD as a mom, a sister and a self-contained special ed teacher. I taught special ed for 7 years prior to staying home with my kids, my youngest brother has ADD and is dyslexic but wasn't Dx until he was in his early 20's, and my 3 1/2 year-old son definately has ADD but is too young to be Dx...attention and distractibility are issues for him both at home and in pre-school.

Zachary is on a gluten-free diet due to issues with gluten not ADD. We saw a huge change in behavior when gluten was removed from his diet. There's not nearly as many tantrums (now appropriate for 3 1/2 ), he's sleeping through the night, 100% less irritable and has a much higher tolerance for frustrating situations, BUT it didn't change his level of distractability and attention. These changes in behavior are paramount and were seen within a couple of days of starting the gluten-free diet. If anything, it exascerbated the ADD symptoms and made them more easily identifiable which is actually a good thing!

First, I agree and believe that AD/HD is over-Dx and kids are put on meds far too quickly; I find this to be incredibly irresponsible on the part of the medical community. There is an enormous difference b/t child who is truly symptomatic of AD/HD and a child who is active and/or needs some discipline in their life. That being said, AD/HD is a very really Dx and needs to be treated as such if it is in fact what the problem is. I am not an advocate for medicating children who have AD/HD unless all other avenues have been traveled to no avail...and I mean all! Many doctors, teachers and parents (not you, of course!) look to meds as a quick and easy fix. I can tell you from lots of personal experience that nothing about AD/HD is a quick fix. This is an issue that a person needs to learn deal with throughout their life, and the sooner the issues with distractability, attention and impulsivity are remediated the easier it will be for the person to function throughout their life.

There are so many different self-mangement skills that can be taught and behavior management/modification techniques that are incredeibly effective for both children and adults with AD/HD. I am of the belief that these skills and techniques should be introduced, implemented and given a fair amount of time to determine their effectiveness prior to medication therapy. Teaching such skills and implementing such techniques is certainly more time consuming than just giving a child a pill and hoping that helps, but they work. I can assure you that my life as a teacher would have been 100% easier and less stressfull at times if I didn't teach any of these skills or implement any of these techniques, however the children in my class are better for it. The kids in my class were the most severely involved cognitively, and sometimes behaviorally, in my building so I had individual behavior modification plans implemented for of all sorts of things! And yes, some of my kids were on medication.

Some children and adults need to take medication because it is truly necessary for them to function with greater ease. In these cases, I do believe that medication should be used in conjunction with the skills and techniques I just mentioned. In my experience as a teacher, I dealt with parents on both ends of the medication spectrum....those who wanted medication and those who were vehemently opposed to medicating their child. Neither were easy situations to deal with, but when/if I did have discussions with a parent who was opposed to it I would encourage them to look at it in the same way they would look at giving their child insulin if they were diabetic. Sometimes medication is absolutely necessary to help the child function to their potential and manage their every day life.

Medicaiton is not necessarily a bad thing and shouldn't be avoided at all costs. I have always advocated using behavior modification and teaching self-management skills prior to any trial with medication. Although I'm not in the classroom at the moment, there's lots of "special edish" stuff I do with Zachary just because that's a part of who I am, and it certainly does benefit him. He is very responsive to the different types of prompts aqnd behavior management techniques I use with him. If I found that Zachary truly needed medication after all other options have been exhausted I would certainly agree to a trial...but not until then. My brother who is 33, married with two little ones and has a great job has been on medicaiton for about 10 years and he absolutely needs it. He has the tazmanian devil tatooed to his calf if that gives you any indication to his personality! And, boy oh boy can you tell when he "tries" to manage without it!!

If you don't mind me asking, how old is your son? Did the doctor tell you why it took them so long to get back to you with results?? Does he have an IEP and if not, are you in the process of requesting an evaluation by the Child Study Team to see if he's eligible for any type of services/support due to the Dx of AD/HD? Some great activities to consider are karate, as it was already mentioned, gymnastics, a sensory gymnastic class (with an occupational therapist) and certain types of computer programs to name a few. I just read my post and I can't believe how long it is...I hope it helped! Please feel free to pm me if you had any other questions or if I could help you in anyway. Lots of luck!!!!!!!!

Kristy ~

Thank you so much for your post. It is great to hear from someone who has the experience with ADHD/ADD that you do. My son is 10.5. He said the reason for the delay with the results was due to the fact that 1 of the drs in their 4 dr practice had been out for an extended amount of time and they were swamped. I was a little irritated that it had taken so long, but since we had gone gluten-free, I wasn't as concerned about the ADHD side at that point. He does not have an IEP to my knowledge. We had not requested an evaluation by a Child Study Team b/c once he got the Celiac diagnosis I expected things to improve and he has just started back to school. Now, his grades have always been good in the past (they don't get letter grades yet), but went consistently downhill last year. I think that once he was presented with a challenge, he would simply give up. It was too much work (focus) for him. He is very smart (fortunately for him) and has been able to cruise through the earlier years of elementary school. I have seen some subtle improvement since he went gluten-free and hope that now that he is back in school that I can see the improvement in his schoolwork & grades. I have located a few martial arts schools that are close by and hope to get to see them this week. He does play ice hockey and that is starting back up here in a month. He has been playing since he was 4. Is there any specific reading that you can recommend for behavior modification techniques? He may not need all of that, but I would like to be prepared.

Thanks again for your response. I haven't yet got to the end of this thread, so if you posted again, I will get to it shortly.

I forgot to mention above, and I am a bit annoyed that I did, I never recomend anyone start meds with out at LEAST 2 completely independent medical opinions from trustworthy/recomended docs in the area of childerns mental health, and never do it based on the advice/demands of a teacher/school alone.

This is what DH was saying. Plus, he was evaluated last school year while still eating gluten. Additionally, he now has a new teacher who may see none of what his teacher saw last year. I guess what we need to do is see how this first grading period goes and then seek a second opinion if we are still seeing significant issues.

First, ((hugs))!!

Second, while I haven't had to deal with ADD/HD in my own children, I have several friends who do. One child is on medication and they are still tinkering with it. He is a zombie right now The other friend is not wanting to go the medication route yet and hasn't had him officially diagnosed.

I saw/read a book when my first friend's son was diagnosed. It's called "The ADD Answer Book". I thought it was very good and had a lot of good information about not just throwing medication as the first solution. It had a lot of dietary info and things to avoid, learning the triggers that make the child get whacked out. I thought it was very good and I tried to get my friend to read it. Unfortunately, she didn't want to make the dietary changes. It was too hard and she opted to medicate. See if your library has it!!

I hope that with the change in diet that you are already making, his troubles with lessen!!

Thanks for the book info! That is one thing I don't want to do......make my child a zombie. He really does have a great personality and I would hate to squash that with meds if I could accomplish getting him to focus and improve in school with behavior modification and his new diet change.

Hi, I am not sure you mentioned your son's age. I am a kindergarten teacher but have been teaching for 9 years and have been in 5th and 2nd grade as well. I work in an inner city school district and have seen my fair share of kids we suspected were ADHD but parents did not get them checked out. This past year while in Kindergarten, I had this amazingly precious little girl named Precious . She happened to be ADHD and was unmedicated in the beginning of the school year. I had 33 students (2 teachers and an aid) but this poor little thing was bouncing off the walls. I always compared her to taking one of those little balls you get in a gum ball machine and just throwing it as hard as you could against a wall and watching it bounce from wall to wall. She could not focus on anything or sit still but was absolutely sweet as pie and we loved her but felt we needed a personal aid just to handle her. By November mom had her medicated and her behavior changed 100%. She was not tired or groggy as some parent worry about with meds, but hard working and calm. If mom forgot her meds, we knew it within the first 15 minutes of the day. It helped her so much. I am not saying to medicate your child. I too would try the diet first. But some kids do need the meds even though a lot of parents believe that kids are being over medicated. It helps some of them to feel successful in school because they can keep up with and contribute to the class.

Nicole

Nicole, He is 10.5 years old.

Thanks for sharing your story. I agree that some kids really do need the meds and if all else fails to work with my son, I would be willing to consider medication. I am glad that Precious was able to focus and learn.

[wonkabar]

I agree, IF the child has ADHD. However many times child does NOT have ADHD, he/she just merely appears to due to symptons caused by the diet or other treatable issues.

I am not sure what you mean here, real ADHD can never be cured, with current medical tech at least, you just learn coping methods (meds, behaviors modification, etc).

Vincent-

**I couldn't agree with you more!! That was my whole point with stating that AD/HD is overly and inappropriately Dx in my first post about this. But it should not be forgotten that it's a very real Dx. Too many people also think that taking herbal supplements or making dietary changes will "cure" their child. AD/HD is a diagnosable disorder that needs true intervention in a variety of areas. Certainly, parents can use dietary interventions to supplement coping mechanisms and techniques if they see that it helps their child, but it is not a cure-all if their child does in fact have AD/HD. I'm 100% sure that Zachary is a beast when on gluten. That being said, the gluten has absolutely nothing to do with his inability to attend and focus for more than a half a second!!

Too many parents, doctors and teachers throw around the term AD/HD as if it applies to every child or adult. The truth of the matter is that some kids need to engage in more physical activity and need some structure and discipline in their lives which I believe you also mentioned earlier. It's a lot easier for a parent to say there child has AD/HD and give them a pill than to actually discipline them and acknowledge they're brats. This is both a matter of ignorance, laziness and the pill-popping society we currently live in.

***No, there isn't a cure for AD/HD but the etiology of it is nuerologically based. The whole point of my posts was exactly that. I've never indicated this was a curable disorder. This is a disorder that you need to manage via a variety of techniques b/c you will never be cured of it. That being said, you could certainly live a happy, fullfilling life with a Dx of AD/HD. And yes, based on my personal experiences both at home and school I can say unequivacally that it will effect a child/adult throughout their lifetime if it's not addressed by a medical doctor or remediated via self-management skills, behavior modification or medication therapy, if needed.

This is not at all a condescending statement, but I'm honestly not sure what you're not sure about in what I've posted. I think we've said the same exact things!

[VydorScope]

***No, there isn't a cure for AD/HD but the etiology of it is nuerologically based. The whole point of my posts was exactly that. I've never indicated this was a curable disorder. This is a disorder that you need to manage via a variety of techniques b/c you will never be cured of it. That being said, you could certainly live a happy, fullfilling life with a Dx of AD/HD. And yes, based on my personal experiences both at home and school I can say unequivacally that it will effect a child/adult throughout their lifetime if it's not addressed by a medical doctor or remediated via self-management skills, behavior modification or medication therapy, if needed.

Okay, then I misunderstood your post, I thought you were implying that early treatment lead to a cure, I am problably just predjucie because so many times I have heard "he will grow out of it" or the like. Sorry. Or just my ADHD-Implusiveness rushing a relpy

Your right we agree.. prbly cause we both have so much exposure to a large number of cases, more then many doc;s I would wager. Nothing like real life cases to cement you in reality!

BTW - I often wish I COULD take the meds... but thats to my heart condition I dont dare, I just struggle instead.

Based on my understanding of how the mind works, and the neurochemical causology of ADHD I think it IS cureable, just not with current medical tech.