ADHD

ADHD

1.) What is ADHD?
2.) What are the treatments for ADHD?
3.) How is ADHD diagnosed?
4.) What causes ADHD?
5.) Why has the diagnoses for ADHD risen in recent years?

Throughout the course of this class, I will be focusing on the above questions.

What do I think ADHD is?
I have decided to focus my research on ADHD. The reason I have chosen this topic, is because I don't believe in ADHD. This may seem harsh to my classmates who are reading this, but this is the reason that I have chosen this topic. I have learned a little bit from my Developmental Concerns class and my Accommodations and Adaptations class, but overall I don't really understand what it is exactly, and I think this may be the main reason that I don't believe there is such a thing as ADHD. I'm going to first explain what I think ADHD is, and then I will tell what I have learned through my readings.
It is a well known and documented fact, that over the past thirty years there has been a tremendous increase in the amount of time that children spend watching TV, playing video games, or working on the computer. Children spend an average of 5 hours 18 minutes a day watching TV, playing video games, or being online. 60% of five and six year olds have their own TV in their room. In 1980 it was calculated that children spent an average of 3 hours a day watching TV.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article55555797.ece.
I refer to these statistics, because in the past 10 years there has been a significant rise in the number of children that have been diagnosed as having ADHD. I believe that our society has made a huge transition towards being more sedentary and eating more unhealthy foods. 15% of children between the ages of 6-19 are overweight, and 10% between the ages of 2-5.
www.harvardmagazine.com/2004/05/the-way-we-eat-now.html
I want to point out that at no time have I read an article that links these findings to the rise in ADHD. This is my own opinion that I have formulated with this information. Or rather this information is here for the purpose of backing up ideas that I already had. I believe that the children of today don't get enough exercise, they eat too much junk food, and they spend to much time in front of the TV and their video game systems. I believe this is the reason there are so many children diagnosed with this disorder. I believe all these things helped children to be hyperactive as it were. They just have so much pent up energy, that they are unable to release, and they just drive people crazy with their energy.

What is ADHD?
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity is characterized by impulsiveness, hyperactivity and Inattention. Children with ADHD have trouble functioning in multiple settings. ADHD has three subtypes:
1) Predominantly hyperactive-impulsive
2) Predominantly inattentive
3) Combined hyperactive-impulsive and inattentive

Hyperactivity
*fidgeting
~talking a lot
dashing around, playing
~trouble sitting still
constantly moving
difficulty doing quiet tasks

Impulsive
*impatient
*blurt out inappropriate comments, show emotions without restraint, act without regard to consequences.
~difficulty waiting for things
*interrupt conversations or other's activities

Inattention
*easily distracted, forget
*can't focus on one thing
*bored with task after few minutes
*difficulty focusing on organizing, completing a task
~trouble turning in homework assignments
*don't seem to listen when spoken to
*daydream, easily confused, move slowly
*difficulty processing information quickly and accurately
*struggle to follow directions

* always
~sometimes
www.nimh.nih.gov

Reflection
I still want to reiterate that I don't really believe in ADHD. However, I decided to put stars next to the 'symptoms' that characterize myself. As in I deal with these things on a daily basis, constantly through out the day. I put a squiggle line next to the items that I have problems with, but not as much as the others. In the past I have had conversations with other people about how I react to certain situations, and how many of these 'quirks' I exhibit. My family has always wondered why I can't remember things after I've been shown or told about some subject numerous times. I have huge lists of directions for simple activities that are more precise than a manufacturing booklet. I'm very easily distracted by things, and I have to constantly restart projects. It takes me a long time to process information. I've always wished I could retake every class, because every time I get to the end, that's when I get the 'Ah ha' moment, and I understand everything. But, by that time it's too late, and I've failed it, but now I know everything. I've learned to do a variety of things, but I have a limit on directions. If anything has anything longer than three steps in it, I can't do it. That may seem strange, the number three, but it's true. Also, I have a specific way that I learn. I watch someone else do it, and then we do it together. For some reason if someone else know how to do something, and I learn from them, and I do it with them, then I can do it alone. I even have a direction list for this class, it's called 'how to blog'.