I came across a thought provoking article by Dr. Art Hister that got me thinking about how some people manage and bring up their kids, and how it relates to ADD/ADHD. Specifically, I loved his comments about kids needing schedules…..the same holds true for adults too, especially with ADD. On his blog, Dr Hister wrote “In an interesting study about ADHD, the researchers conducted interviews with 704 parents, mostly mothers, of kids aged 2 to 13. The researchers asked a lot of questions about the kids’ behaviour, their sleeping schedules (or lack of same) and about whether the kids had ever been diagnosed with ADHD or if a teacher or some other adult had suggested that their child should be treated for ADHD.
According to the lead researcher, a substantial number of kids in this study had been diagnosed with ADHD but their real problem was the lack of a sleep schedule because the kids were either allowed to go to bed on their own schedule or they slept with a sibling or with a parent, which is pretty much the same thing, given that kids who sleep with either siblings or their parents are very likely to stay awake considerably longer than kids who sleep by themselves. In other words, says this researcher, at least some kids who’ve been diagnosed with ADHD are really only sleep-deprived since many of the symptoms of ADHD are similar to those of a kids who are inappropriately aroused.
2 points
1) I’m not sure this is nearly as common a problem as the authors of this study would have us believe, but I do believe that a substantial number of kids are misdiagnosed with ADHD simply because for whatever reason – sleep deprivation, perhaps, but just as likely what we might call excessive enthusiasm – their behaviour exceeds what the authorities who look out for those kids deem appropriate in those circumstances.
2) Kids need schedules. Period.”
The original article can be see here .
I came across a thought provoking article by Dr. Art Hister that got me thinking about how some people manage and bring up their kids, and how it relates to
ADD/ADHD. Specifically, I loved his comments about kids needing schedules…..the same holds true for adults too, especially with ADD. On his blog, Dr Hister wrote “In an interesting study about ADHD, the researchers conducted interviews with 704 parents, mostly mothers, of kids aged 2 to 13. The researchers asked a lot of questions about the kids’ behaviour, their sleeping schedules (or lack of same) and about whether the kids had ever been diagnosed with ADHD or if a teacher or some other adult had suggested that their child should be treated for ADHD.
According to the lead researcher, a substantial number of kids in this study had been diagnosed with ADHD but their real problem was the lack of a sleep schedule because the kids were either allowed to go to bed on their own schedule or they slept with a sibling or with a parent, which is pretty much the same thing, given that kids who sleep with either siblings or their parents are very likely to stay awake considerably longer than kids who sleep by themselves. In other words, says this researcher, at least some kids who’ve been diagnosed with ADHD are really only sleep-deprived since many of the symptoms of ADHD are similar to those of a kids who are inappropriately aroused.
2 points 1) I’m not sure this is nearly as common a problem as the authors of this study would have us believe, but I do believe that a substantial number of kids are misdiagnosed with ADHD simply because for whatever reason – sleep deprivation, perhaps, but just as likely what we might call excessive enthusiasm – their behaviour exceeds what the authorities who look out for those kids deem appropriate in those circumstances.
2) Kids need schedules. Period.”
The original article can be see here .