Tackling ADD in children
SANDRA and Paul (not their real names) found it difficult to handle their eight-year-old son, Alex who has attention disorder since preschool.
Sandra and Paul never noticed the seriousness of their son’s problem until he entered second grade in his primary school.
They tried sending him to a tuition centre to improve his studies and his attention. Unfortunately, it made matters worse.
At home, Alex could not do his homework without his parents’ regular assistance. He always got distracted easily by the sound from the TV and passing vehicles.
His parents felt it hard to get him concentrate on his homework. They spent long hours with him to get it done. However, it usually ended up messy and disorganised.
In school, the teachers struggled with his difficulties. Alex was a loner and that made reaching out to him difficult.
Alex tuned out quite frequently and got confused and constantly daydreamt in class. Sometimes, he would just ignore the teacher and forgot what the teacher had taught him.
Sandra and Paul are not alone in this. They are two of the many parents having the same problem and finding it hard to understand and manage their child’s lack of attention.
They sought information from the Internet and social media on how to deal with this problem. They found that the website /ChildPsych – Centre for Child and Adolescent Psychology/( www.psychology.com. my) was able to help with their son’s problem.
During the first session, the child psychologist interviewed them on the child’s background and developmental history. They wanted to know how Alex was growing up so that they could have better understand his situation.
They then held a separate session with Alex to assess him for his behaviour and problem in paying attention.
Attention Deficit Disorder
After the assessment was done, the psychologist revealed that their son may be suffering from a disorder called Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). This affected his behaviour, attention and learning.
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is a psychological disorder or neurodevelopmental behavioural disorder characterised by significant difficulties only on inattention.
This includes easy distraction, missing details, forgetting things and frequently switching from one activity to another, having difficulty maintaining focus on one task, became bored with a task after only a few minutes, unless they are doing something enjoyable.
They have difficulties focusing attention on organising and completing a task or learning something new.
They also have trouble completing or turning in homework assignments, often losing things that are needed to complete tasks or activities.
They do not seem to listen when spoken to, they daydream and become easily confused. They also have difficulties processing information as quickly and accurately like other normal children and struggle to follow instructions.
Alex’s therapy lasted from six to 12 sessions after which he is able to manage his behaviour.
With his parents’ assistance Alex has dramatically less complaints from teachers about his disability.
More importantly Sandra and Paul are now able to enjoy their family life again as they no longer to use negative punishment for their son’s inattentive behaviour.
* This article is contributed by ChildPsych - International Psychology Centre’s team of children psychology therapists and psychonutritional therapists. Contact them at the International Psychology Centre Sdn Bhd, 11-1 Wisma Laxton, Jalan Desa, Taman Desa, KL.
Call 03-27277434, e-mail info@ psychology.com.my or log on to www.psychology.com.my or www.malaysianpsychology.com. Visit Facebook: www.facebook. com/psychologyasia or get Twitter updates via twitter. com/ msiapsychology and the Centre’s blog malaysiapsychology.wordpress. com/