The Blog of P.U.R.E. and Sue Scheff

Very good new article posted at ADDitude Magazine website. If you or your child has ADD/ADHD, this website covers all topics for both kids and adults. Source: ADDitude Magazine The Truth About Your ADHD Child's Lying Attention deficit children may tell lies as a result of their ADHD symptoms rather than being dishonest. Learn when to punish your ADHD child's lying and when to deal with its causes. By: Peter Jaksa, Ph.D. Few things damage the trust of parents of ADHD children as quickly or deeply as habitual lying. I don't mean the little white lies that everyone tells once in a while, but repeated lying that causes conflicts and difficulties. Some ADHD kids may not be dishonest as much as they are victims of uncontrolled ADHD symptoms . Barry's mother, for example, tells him to come right home after school, because the family is going out to dinner. Distracted and rushing, he mumbles, "Yeah, OK, Mom." In the course of a hectic day, he forgets his mother...

Source: Parenting Toolbox Having an ADHD child often means MESS for mom and dad. Here’s some great tips and tools for keeping them slightly more organized: 1. Give specific instructions. “Put away the toys on your carpet on the shelf in the closet.” Be consistent — if the toys are stored on the shelf one night, they should be put there every night. Children need to know precisely what you expect. 2. Assign tasks that your child is capable of doing on his own. Success builds confidence. The goal is to teach your child to do things independently. 3. Involve your child in discussions about rules and routines. It will help him understand goals and teach him to accept responsibility. 4. Write down routines as sequences of tasks (two to five items only), and post where easily visible (refrigerator, bathroom mirror). Review lists regularly with your child. 5. Be realistic about time. Make sure you’ve set aside enough time for the child to complete his homework, clear the dishes, and get out t...

Source: ADDitude Magazine ADDitude Helpful Tips The Statistics of ADHD ADD by the numbers - a summary of the research of Russell Barkley,Ph.D. A quick summary of statistical research of Russell Barkley •On average, there are 1 to 3 children who have ADHD in every classroom of 30 students. •Three to six more boys are diagnosed than girls. •The rate of emotional development for children with ADHD is 30% slower than their non-ADD peers. For example, a 10-year-old with ADHD operates at the maturity level of about a 7-year-old; a 16-year-old beginning driver is using the decision making skills of an 11-year-old. •65% of children with ADHD have problems with defiance, non-compliance and other problems with authority figures, including verbal hostility and temper tantrums. •25% of students with ADHD have other serious learning problems in one or more of these areas: oral expression, listening skills, reading comprehension, and math. •Half of all ADHD students have listening comprehension prob...

Parent networking is a great way to expand resources, tips, advice, and more! Today I was introduced to a new website – Kids Awareness Series . Kara Tamanini has worked in the mental health field for 15 years and specializes in ADHD. Her first book – Understanding ADHD is available now through Amazon and visiting her website. One of her recent articles is how parents deal with ODD – Oppositional Defiance Disorder. How Parents can deal with an ODD child Children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder exhibit an ongoing pattern of resistant, hostile, and uncooperative behaviors. These behaviors are often a challenge for parents and make the child’s behavior very difficult to deal with. Parents need support and undersanding and there are a number of things parents can do to help themselves and their child with ODD. First of all, build on the positive behaviors that you see in your child. No child is bad every single second of every day. Point out good behaviors and praise them and reinforce...

Source: ADDitude Magazine Is It More Than ADHD? Diagnosing & Treating Bipolar Disorder Symptoms of ADHD and bipolar disorder are often confused—and often coexist in the same person. How to make the distinction, and suggestions for treating bipolar disorder along with ADHD. by William Dodson, M.D. It can be difficult enough to obtain a diagnosis of attention deficit disorder (ADD ADHD), but to complicate matters further, ADHD commonly co-exists with other mental and physical disorders . One review of ADHD adults demonstrated that 42 percent had one other major psychiatric disorder. Therefore, the diagnostic question is not “Is it one or the other?” but rather “Is it both?” Perhaps the most difficult differential diagnosis to make is between ADHD and Bipolar Mood Disorder (BMD) , since they share many symptoms, including mood instability, bursts of energy and restlessness, talkativeness, and impatience. It’s estimated that as many as 20 percent of those diagnosed with ADHD also suff...

I just discovered this amazing Blog about parenting an ADHD child. As many know, I raised my son who is ADHD, and at the time, there were limited resources to help parents understand this behavior, options and information that we could understand - besides our child was hyper, smart, however not working to their academic potential (oh, and disruptive in class) - which I tend forget. 10 Rules for Working with My ADHD Child By Chris G. Everyone wants to know how to best help there child dealing with ADD or ADHD. Very often readers and social networking friends ask what we do, in working with our kids. Recently, a discussion like this resulted in an impromptu list of some of the rules we have tried to stick to. We’re not perfect and sometimes the train goes flying off the rails, but these rules make sense to us: 1.Always show love, acceptance and support – our love is not dependent on our children’s behavior. 2.Provide our children plenty of opportunities to make the right decision and c...