
Guiding parents and teachers to navigate the challenges of ADHD
ADHD is a medical condition marked by developmental delays in children and teens, and often leads to challenges in parenting. It tends to be greatly misunderstood by medical and therapeutic providers, who may develop treatment plans that rely on medication as a sole source of treatment to the exclusion of behavior management training in parenting. Parenting interventions are effective, recommended, and have been proven to improve symptoms for children and teens. Most experts agree that ADHD is much (cont'd below)
Filter by Focus Area
Leading Articles about Managing ADHD
Communicating with Teachers for School Success with ADHD
The Struggle Is Real It is heartbreaking and frustrating for parents to witness the struggles their children face in school.…
CONTINUEDHow To Help My Kids Manage Time When I’m Not Around
Welcome to Tea & Tips, where we respond to burning questions from parents and educators — taking aim on one…
CONTINUEDHow to Create a Great Relationship with Your Child’s Teacher
Having a son with ADHD really reinforced the importance of my building a good working relationship with his teachers. Being…
CONTINUEDOutrageous Homework Advice for Kids with ADHD
Warning: this strategy is going to fly in the face of traditional recommendations to parents! If we learned anything from…
CONTINUEDPulled Between Work and Kids with ADHD
Remember how fun tug-of-war used to be? Getting down in the dirt, pulling with all your might – it’s the…
CONTINUEDWhen Smart Kids Struggle with School
If I live to be 100, I’ll never forget the joy of that afternoon, overshadowed by the years of misery…
CONTINUEDHow to Help Teens with ADHD Stop Procrastinating
As parents, we can’t help but worry when our teens won’t stop procrastinating. It can bring up some deep-rooted fears:…
CONTINUEDWhat is Recommended Treatment for ADHD?
What Are Medical Guidelines for ADHD Treatment? According to the American Association of Pediatrics, the American Psychiatric Association, and other…
CONTINUEDADHD Medication for Kids: 10 Things Parents Should Know
Medication for kids with ADHD is a hot-button issue. Over the years, we have talked with literally thousands of parents…
CONTINUED(continued) more than a ‘deficit of attention.’ Instead, ADHD can appear as a rather complicated collection of symptoms, manifesting somewhat differently for each individual. It may more easily be understood as a brain-based developmental delay in executive function. It can also be confused with or compounded by the many co-existing conditions that are common for people with ADHD, including anxiety, learning disabilities, depression, asthma, allergies, autism, Tourette syndrome, as well as newer (and less-well-known or researched) conditions, such as rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD).
Executive functions are responsible for how we think, feel, and act. They’re how we get ourselves to do (or not do) absolutely anything. Therefore, the symptoms that lead to an ADHD diagnosis are not just whether or not someone can pay attention, but whether they can self-regulate – whether they can decide what to pay attention to, stick with it, finish what they’re focusing on, minimize their impulses, and avoid getting distracted in the process. That’s what makes parenting so difficult.
The five areas most commonly reflected in ADHD symptoms rely heavily on executive function: attention (focus), impulsivity, organization, emotional intensity, and (sometimes) hyperactivity. Again, when kids, teens or young adults struggle with these issues, it can cause significant challenges in parenting.
Whether parents are trying to get life moving in the mornings or just help their kids and teens manage any or all of their responsibilities, ADHD is best treated by a combination of medication and ‘behavior therapy,’ otherwise known as parent management training, or behavior management training. With training, parenting can work with medication (when relevant) to teach children and teens skills in self-management, and ultimately improve outcomes for the whole family.