Stroop Test for ADHD

This is the Stroop Test for ADHD. Difficulty to perform this test is only an indication that someone might have ADHD. Please follow these instructions in order:


1. Read down the list of words in black print. Say them aloud. Time yourself.

2. Read down the list of colored words. Say aloud the color of the lettering, not the word itself. It's a little tricky but you can do it. Time yourself.

3. Re-read the list of colored words. This time say the word itself, not the color of the letters. Again, it's a little tricky.

Read these words aloud for step #1:

Red Blue Green Red Green Blue Red
Blue Green Red Yellow Blue Green Blue
Yellow Yellow Blue Red Red Blue Red
Green Red Green Green Yellow Red Yellow

Read these words/colors for steps #2 and #3:

Red Blue Green Red Green Blue Red
Blue Green Red Yellow Blue Green Blue
Yellow Yellow Blue Red Red Blue Red

Green Red Green Green Yellow Red Yellow

Most people find #2 and #3 take longer than #1 and a bit challenging but it can be done. A little frustration and some laughing is the usual result. ADHD people have quite a bit more difficulty in doing #2 and #3, much more so than non-ADHD people. A higher level of frustration and longer time to get through the colored words is experienced.


You might also be interested in:

ADHD Questionaire

ADHD - Basic Facts

Famous People with ADHD

Taking Vyvanse for ADHD

Vyvanse (brand name) is a stimulant drug called lisdexamfetamine. It affects brain chemicals that are linked to hyperactivity and impulse control. It can be used as part of a treatment plan for ADHD.

Here are some recommendations and precautions:

Like many other ADHD medications, do not start Vyvanse if you have used an MAO inhibitor such as isocarboxazid (Marplan), tranylcypromine (Parnate), phenelzine (Nardil), rasagiline (Azilect), or selegiline (Eldepryl, Emsam) within the past 3 weeks. The MAO chemicals must be completely cleared out the body before starting Vyvanse. Otherwise, very serious side effects might occur.

All children and adolescents need to have an EKG and/or ECG (heart ultrasound) before taking Vyvanse. Possible unknown heart defects need to be ruled out to qualify the patient for taking Vyvanse and a few other ADHD medications. Some stimulants have caused sudden death youngsters who had unknown heart problems.

Take Vyvanse in the morning because it may cause sleep problems (insomnia) if taken later in the day.

The capsule should be swallowed whole or opened and sprinkled into a glass of water. After the medicine has dissolved, drink the whole glass right away. Never take with vitamin C supplements or vitamin C rich juices or drinks because this vitamin interferes with the aborption of Vyvanse.

This medication might cause you to have unusual results on certain medical tests. Tell the doctor who ordered the test that you are on Vyvanse.

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Side effect warnings:

Long-term use of Vyvanse as well as other ADHD medications can slow a child's growth. Some doctors might recommend not taking the medication on weekends, school holidays and during summer vacation. Tell the doctor right away if height or weight gain has slowed or stopped.

This medication is associated with premature birth, low birth weight, and/or withdrawal symptoms in a newborn baby if the mother takes Vyvanse during her pregnancy. Vyvanse can also pass into breast milk and harm a nursing baby. Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are pregnant or breast-feeding a baby.

Vyvanse can impair your thinking and reactions. Be careful if you drive, operate machinery or do anything that requires you to be awake and alert.

Some patients report a skin rash. Call the doctor the same day if this occurs.
You might experience sleep problems (insomnia) or a dry mouth or an unpleasant taste in your mouth. Drink something or chew some gum.

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Do not use Vyvanse if you:

• are allergic to lisdexamfetamine (hives, difficulty breathing, swelling face, tongue or lips)
• have hardened arteries (arteriosclerosis)
• have heart disease or other heart problems/issues
• suffer from moderate to severe high blood pressure (hypertension,
• have an overactive thyroid
• have glaucoma
• have severe anxiety or agitation
• have a history of drug or alcohol addiction
• are or might be pregnant
• are breast feeding a baby
• under the age of 6 years

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Your doctor might have to adjust dosages or do tests first, so please tell your doctor if there is a personal or family history of:

• mental illness
• psychotic disorders
• bipolar disorder
• depression
• suicide attempts
• epilepsy
• other seizure disorders
• tics (muscle twitches)
• Tourette's Syndrome

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An overdose of or bad reaction to Vyvanse can be fatal. Keep this medication out of the reach of children and keep track of how many pills are in the container. Seek emergency help immediately.

Overdose/reaction symptoms are:

• restlessness
• tremors, shaking
• muscle twitches, tics
• rapid breathing, shortness of breath
• confusion, anxiety
• hallucinations, unusual behavior
• panic, anxiety
• aggressiveness, strange behavior
• nausea, vomiting
• diarrhea
• stomach pains, chest pains
• unexplained muscle pain or tenderness
• muscle weakness
• irregular or pounding heartbeat
• light-headedness, feeling faint
• seizures, convulsions
• fever or flu symptoms
• dark colored urine
• coma
• depression and tiredness
• severe headache
• blurred vision
• buzzing or ringing in ears

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Before taking Vyvanse, tell your doctor if you are using any of the following drugs:

• ammonium chloride,
• ascorbic acid (vitamin C),
• K-Phos;
• blood pressure medications;
• a diuretic (water pill);
• cold or allergy medicines (antihistamines);
• chlorpromazine (Thorazine);
• ethosuximide (Zarontin);
• lithium (Eskalith, Lithobid);
• methenamine (Hiprex, Mandelamine, Urex);
• phenytoin (Dilantin),
• phenobarbital (Luminal, Solfoton);
• pain medication such as meperidine (Demerol) or propoxyphene (Darvon, Darvocet)
• an antidepressant such as amitriptyline (Elavil), amoxapine (Asendin), clomipramine (Anafranil), desipramine (Norpramin), imipramine (Tofranil), or nortriptyline (Pamelor).

Tell your doctor about all the prescription and over-the-counter medications you use. This includes vitamins, minerals, herbal products, supplements and drugs prescribed by other doctors. Do not start using a new medication without telling your doctor.

ADHD and Sleep Problems Linked

SLEEP recently published an article about a study that suggests children with ADHD may be sleep deprived and have abnormal REM sleep. The study was conducted by the Attention, Behaviour and Sleep Lab at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute

The study found that children with ADHD have a total sleep time that is a bit shorter than that of children without ADHD - an average of about 33 minutes less. Children with ADHD also had an average rapid eye movement (REM) sleep time that averaged about 16 minutes less.

The study believes that apnea and other sleep problems make ADHD worse in children. Finding a way to rid children of their sleep distrubances can help alleviate the severity of their ADHD.
Anyone who suffers sleep loss on a daily basis experiences sleepiness and neurobehavioural impairment, which interferes with daytime learning and the ability to pay attention in school or at work.

Additional studies are needed to see whether shorter sleep duration in children with ADHD is associated with short attention spans, behavioural problems and low neurocognitive functioning. The authors would like to next see if improving sleep helps alleviate some of the symptoms of ADHD.

American Academy of Sleep Medicine

Eczema Sufferers More Likely to Have ADHD

This news release really caught my attention. Here's a synopis:

The children in a German study of almost 2900 children and teenager founds that across the board, 5.2 percent of eczema patients had ADHD while only 3.4 percent of eczema-free youngsters did. A research letter will be published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Young people with atopic eczema were found to be 54 percent more likely to have an ADHD diagnosis than those without it. About 20 percent of children in Western nations are found to have atopic eczema by age 6.

"Atopic eczema is highly prevalent in children and it is known to gravely affect the quality of life," Schmitt and Romanos wrote in an email. "Therefore the assumption that it might be related to or influence the presence of psychiatric problems is not far-fetched."

Before the finding can be official, the link needs to be confirmed by more research. There also exists that eczema-related itching or sleep disturbances may exacerbate ADHD symptoms in some children. It's also possible that atopic eczema and ADHD could share an underlying cause.

Special diets have been proposed for treating ADHD, but the role of diet and food sensitivity in the condition has been highly controversial. Some research has linked ADHD to allergic conditions such as hay fever. Jan Buitelaar, M.D., Ph.D., of Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center in The Netherlands has coauthored a 2008 paper suggesting that ADHD may be an allergic condition in some patients.

"There is data that allergic mechanisms could alter brain neurotransmission and brain functioning," Buitelaar said. He also pointed out that children could develop "disruptive and restless behavior" as a result of the itchiness and pain caused by the skin condition.

Treatment for ADHD should be a combination of medication for ADHD and environmental changes that promote positive behavioral changes.

Two out of five studies (unnamed in the original article) have found some evidence that omega-3 fatty acids may benefit ADHD patients.

Very interesting. Can't wait for some follow up studies.
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Causes of ADD / ADHD

According to the Mayo Clinic, more and more scientists are agreeing that changes in the brain may be a biggest cause of ADD / ADHD. They also agree that the environment may contribute to or worsen behavior.

Scientists have discovered some important differences in the brains of people with ADHD as compared to those without the disorder. They found that the brain chemicals called neurotransmitters don't work properly in people with ADHD. Also, there seems to be less activity in the areas of the brain that control activity and attention in people with ADHD. They also discovered that children with ADHD have up to 4 percent smaller brain volumes than do children without ADHD.

Most of us already know that ADHD tends to run in families. About 25 percent of children with ADHD have at least one relative with the disorder.

Women who smoke while pregnant have a higher risk of that particular baby having ADHD. Drug and alcohol abuse during pregnancy is suspected to reduce activity of the nerve cells that make neurotransmitters. Pregnant women who are exposed to the chemical, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's), is also more likely to have children with symptoms of ADHD.

Preschool children exposed to lead and PCB's are at increased risk of developmental and behavioral problems. Exposure to lead, which is found mainly in the paint and pipes of older buildings, has been linked to disruptive and even violent behavior and to a short attention span. The paint can flake and eventually become tiny pieces, mixed in with the playground soil.

ADD & ADHD in Adults

Most children do not outgrow their ADD or ADHD and become disorganized, inattentive adults. Symptoms may be holding them back at work, negatively affecting their relationships, and hampering accomplishment of goals. Symptoms usually get worse as life presents more and more pressures and demands on the individual.

Untreated ADD / ADHD causes difficulty at college or at work, frustrated friends and family members who just don’t understand your lack of self control and why you can’t get your act together, poor self esteem over your lack of accomplishments in life and the stress that goes with all of these things.

The first step in overcoming adult ADD / ADHD is realizing you might have it. ADD / ADHD can have the following symptoms in an adult:

Work

• chronically late to work
• miss or forget deadlines and meetings
• have a hard time organizing projects and delegating work
• difficulty completing projects on time
• spend hours at work but get very little done
• get distracted by trivial tasks, while neglecting the most important ones
• difficulty paying attention in meetings or in conversations with your boss and colleagues

Relationships

• your partner has to take care of all the planning, organizing, cleaning, bill paying, and other household responsibilities and becomes resentful you aren't helping out more which strains the relationship
• you may resent your partner’s constant nagging to tidy up, get organized, and take care of business which strains the relationship even more
• Friends and family members take it personally when you tune them out, forget conversations or commitments, speak a little too bluntly, or keep them waiting

Finance

• procrastination, disorganization, and impulsivity can interfere with good money management
• forget to pay bills
• run up huge balances on your credit cards due to impulsive buying
• cannot save money
• unable to follow through on long-term financial goals
• shop impulsively, inability to stop yourself and say no
• difficulty keeping financial paperwork in order
• fail at budgeting and recordkeeping

Eating behaviors

• many adults with the condition also suffer from overeating, obesity, or disordered eating
• snack throughout the day, rather than eating at planned meals
• unable to stick with a diet
• have intense cravings for carbohydrates and caffeine
• eat a lot of fast food and “junk food”
• waiting until hungry and then eating whatever is fast and easy rather than planning a healthy meal in advance

If you have some of the above symptoms and agree that they are negatively impacting your life, look into getting help. Get evaluated. There are self-help resources as well as seeing a doctor. Here are some links for you to get started on conquering your ADD / ADHD:


Read Self-Help for Adult ADD

Read Treatment Options for ADD / ADHD

Read Medications for Treating ADHD

For a listing of famous people throughout history with ADD / ADHD (to make you feel less alone in this) click HERE.

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Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Phelps and ADHD

As a toddler, little Michael Phelps was constantly talking, asking questions, and needing attention from other people. His preschool teachers complained that he was noisy during quiet time, wouldn't sit during circle time and bothered the other children.

During elementary school, Michael's teachers described him as "immature" and said he couldn't sit still, be quiet when required to, or stay focused on his classwork. Although he did well with physically active subjects like PE and science experiments, he did not like to read. His report card had D's, C's and B's.

Both of Phelps' sisters were swimmers. His mother decided to get him swimming, too, as an outlet for all that excess energy.

When Phelps was in 5th grade, his doctor (and fellow parent at Michael's sisters' swim meets) suggested he might have ADHD. He himself had witnessed Micheal running around at the meets "like a crazy person." Assessment forms were sent to the teachers and the results were no big surprise..."cant sit still, keep quiet or focus."

At age 9, Micheal started taking Ritalin which helped a little bit. His grades improved slightly but he continued to do minimal work, never going above and beyond.

By age 10 Michael was doing great in swimming. He ranked nationally for his age group in competitions. Swim meets offered Michael a way to focus on something he loved. ADHD children are very good at focusing on something they have a passion for. He started setting records.

After about 2 years of being on ADHD medication, Michael asked his mom if he could stop taking it because no one else took it and going to the school nurse for mid-days medication made him feel different than the other children. He promised his mother he could handle school without the medication.

Phelps graduated from Towson High School in Maryland and studied at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

For a listing of other famous people with ADHD, click on http://adhdandmore.blogspot.com/2009/01/famous-people-with-adhd.html#links

Ty Pennington and ADHD

By the time Ty Pennington hit elementary school, he was picking up desks and showing off to make the other children laugh, jumping off the roof at home and running into the street, unaware of cars. His teachers thought he was disruptive. His mother worried for his safety.

Pennington's mother, Yvonne, was studying to become a clinical psychologist and during some research for a psych class she came across studies on children who found focusing very challenging. She decided it was time to take her son to the doctor.

The doctor told Yvonne that her son had "minimal brain dysfuncion." She did not like this label and did not tell her son these words but she did do extensive research on minimal brain dysfunction. She learned about using a token system which rewards children for focusing and staying on task.

Ty was rewarded with drink coasters for a pre-set amount of time to stay focused. Once he saved up enough coasters/tokens he could trade them in for extra time doing something he enjoyed like building with his Erector Set, extra play time or TV time. Ty's teacher adopted this token system, too.

Slowly Ty's ability to stay on task improved but he still did the absolute minimum to get by.

Yvonne noticed that her son developed a strong passion for building. Gotta love that Erector Set! He even talked friends into helping him build a 3-story tree house in exchange for some of his comic books.

In high school Ty earned B's and C's but the lack of structure in college was unbearable. After his first year, Ty dropped out of Kennesaw State University in Georgia.

In the 1980's a new term emerged from the medical community - ADHD. Pennington's doctor prescribed stimulants which helped his ability to focus enough to retry college.

Ty graduated from the Art Institute of Atlanta with honors.

Afterward graduation, Ty got odd jobs in construction, graphic design, modeling and acting. Then he landed a construction gig on the Learning Channel show, "Trading Spaces." Three years later he was offered the lead spot in a new show called "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition."

And the rest will be history!

For a list of other famous people with ADHD click on http://adhdandmore.blogspot.com/2009/01/famous-people-with-adhd.html#links

Famous People with ADHD

Here's a list of famous people with ADHD and those who MIGHT have had it. Obviously people who lived a long time ago weren't officially diagnosed that way, but written history suggests they might have had ADHD. This list is a compilation of several other separate lists. Enjoy!
You are in good company!

Ansel Adams — Photographer
Ann Bancroft —Actress
Alexander Graham Bell — Telephone Inventor
Harry Andersen — Actor
Hans Christian Anderson — Author
Beethoven — Composer
Harry Belafonte —Actor, Singer
Col. Gregory "Pappy" Boyington —WWII Flying Ace (Black Sheep Squadron Leader)
Terry Bradshaw —Football Quarterback
George Burns — Actor
Sir Richard Francis Burton — Explorer, Linguist, Scholar, Writer
Admiral Richard Byrd — Aviator (Was retired from the navy as, "Unfit for service")
Thomas Carlyle — Scottish historian, critic, and sociological writer
Andrew Carnegie - American Industrialist
Jim Carrey — American Comedian
Lewis Carroll — Author (Alice in Wonderland)
Prince Charles — Future King of England?
Cher — Actress and Singer
Agatha Christie — Author
Sir Winston Churchill — English Statesman (Failed the sixth grade)
Bill Cosby — American Actor, Comedian
Tom Cruise — Actor, Couch Jumper
Harvey Cushing M.D. — Greatest Neurosurgeon of the 20th Century
Salvador Dali —Spanish Surrealist Artist
Leonardo da Vinci — Italian Inventor, Artist
John Denver — American Musician
Walt Disney — American Cartoonist, Film Producer, Theme Park Innovator (A newspaper editor fired him because he had "No good ideas".)
Kirk Douglas — American Actor
Thomas Edison — Inventor (His teachers told him he was too stupid to learn anything)
Albert Einstein — Physicist (Einstein was four years old before he could speak,and seven before he could read)
Dwight D. Eisenhower — U. S. President, Military General
Michael Faraday — British Physicist, Chemist
F. Scott Fitzgerald — Author
Malcolm Forbes —Forbes Magazine Founder & Publisher
Henry Ford — Automobile Innovator, invented the Production Line
Benjamin Franklin —American Colonial Politician, Elder Statesman, Inventor
Galileo (Galilei) — Italian Mathematician, Astronomer
Danny Glover — American Actor
Tracey Gold — American Actress
Whoopi Goldberg — Comedienne, Actress
Georg Frideric Handel —German Composer
Valerie Hardin — Gothic Poet, Artist, Children's Author
Mariette Hartley — Actress
William Randolph Hearst — Newspaper Magnate
Ernest Hemingway — Author
Mariel Hemingway — Actress
Milton Hershey — Hershey's Chocolate Magnate, American Philanthropist
Dustin Hoffman — Actor
Bruce Jenner — Olympic Athlete
Luci Baines Johnson - Daughter of USA President Lyndon B. Johnson
"Magic" Johnson — American Basketball Player, Film Personality, Business Man
Samuel Johnson — Author
Michael Jordan — American Basketball Player
John F. Kennedy — U. S. President
Robert F. Kennedy — U.S. Attorney General, Brother of JFK
Jason Kidd — Professional Basketball Player
John Lennon —Musician
Frederick Carlton (Carl) Lewis —American Olympic Athelete.
Meriwether Lewis - explorer (Lewis & Clark) 
Abraham Lincoln —U.S. President during American Civil War (Entered The Black Hawk War as a Captain and came out a Private)
Greg Louganis — Olympic Athelete (Diving)
James Clerk Maxwell — British Physicist
Steve McQueen — American ActorWolfgang 
Amadeus Mozart — German Child Prodigy Composer, Violinist, Pianist
Napoleon Bonaparte —Emperor of France
Nasser (Gamal Abdel-Nasser) Egyptian Leader
Sir Issac Newton - English Scientist, Mathematician (Did poorly in grade school)
Nostradamus —Physician, Prophet
Ozzy Osbourne —English Rock Musician, said he was ADHD on TV
Louis Pasteur — Scientist, developed "Pasturization" (Rated as mediocre in chemistry when he attended the Royal College)
General George Patton — American Military
Pablo Picasso — Spanish Cubist Artist
Edgar Allan Poe — English Author, Poet, Master of the Macabre
Rachmaninov — Russian Composer
Eddie Rickenbacker — WWI Flying Ace
John D. Rockefeller —Founder, Standard Oil Company
Nelson Rockefeller — U.S. Vice President
August Rodin — Artist, Sculptor
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt — American First Lady
Pete Rose —American Baseball Player
Babe Ruth — American Baseball Player
Nolan Ryan — American Baseball Player
Muhammad Anwar al-Sadat — Egyptian President, Nobel Peace Prize Winner in 1976
George C. Scott — American Actor
George Bernard Shaw —Author
Will Smith — American Actor, Rapper, Entertainer
Tom Smothers — Actor, Singer, Entertainer
Socrates — Greek Philosopher
Suzanne Somers — Actress, Pinup Girl
Steven Spielberg — American Filmmaker
Sylvester Stallone — American Actor
Jackie Stewart — Car Racing, Grand Prix Hall of Famer
James Stewart — American Actor
Henry David Thoreau —Author, Poet
(Lev Nikolayevich) Leo Tolstoy — Russian Author (Flunked out of college)
Alberto Tomba — Alpine Ski Champion
Vincent van Gogh — Dutch Artist who settled in France, Impressionism
Russell Varian — Inventor
Jules Verne — Author (20,000 Leagues Under the Sea)
Werner von Braun — German Rocket Scientist (Flunked 9th grade algebra)
Lindsay Wagner — American Actress (Bionic Woman), Spokesperson
Gen. William C. Westmoreland — Military (Vietnam Era)
Robin Williams — Prolific American Comedian, Actor,
Woodrow Wilson — U. S. President
Henry Winkler —American Actor (Fonzie)
Stevie Wonder — American Musician
F. W. Woolworth — Department Store Innovator (While working in a dry goods store at 21, his employers wouldn't let him wait on a customer because he "Didn't have enough sense.")
Frank Lloyd Wright — American Architect
Orville Wright —Airplane Developer
Wilber Wright — Airplane Developer
William Wrigley, Jr. — Chewing Gum MakerWilliam Butler Yeats — Irish Author


Here are links you might enjoy:

Famous ADHD Quotes

Ty Pennington's ADHD Story

Michael Phelps, Olmpic Gold Medalist's ADHD Story
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ADHD - THE BASIC FACTS

When children are toddlers, ADHD is the law of the land. Little ones are supposed to be all over the place physically and mentally. There's a huge world out there to explore and conquer. Little kids are like bees or hummingbirds, needing to visit as many flowers as possible each day. Think of the song, "What's This?" when Jack enters Christmasland in the movie "Nightmare Before Christmas."

Eventually toddlers settle down and become young children, hopefully before entering kindergarten where staying at their desks or in a circle on the carpet and paying attention is required. In defense of the teacher, he or she does need to get the little students through a curriculum set by the school district, as well as keep a certain degree of control over the children, lest all hell break loose!

Children go through their transition at different rates, many still working through it during their early elementary school years. In kindergarten, these children are assumed to be "young" and there's nothing to worry about. Some parents delay entering their children into school a year for this very reason - their child needs another year to play before becoming a student.

For the children who don't outgrow their life as a bee and the demands of school become increasingly difficult, they might have ADD or ADHD (both are now called ADHD). The parents and teacher need to complete a questionaire that is scored by a licensed child psychiatrist. Boys are scored differently than girls. If the doctor feels your child has ADHD, there are many things you can do at home and your child's teacher can do at school to help your child succeed. Try these things first and see how it goes. If it's still not good enough, then the doctor will consider medication.

About 5 to 10% of children have been diagnosed with ADHD. One-third are girls and two-thirds are boys. As children mature into adults, their ADHD tends to become less severe and sometimes they even outgrow it. ADHD can continue into adulthood, but many people have developed coping skills over the years to deal with it.

The symptoms of ADHD have been classified into 3 groups- impulsiveness, hyperactivity and inattentiveness. Everyone on this planet has some of these traits. We had alot of them when we were younger and hopefully only a few of them as adults. The ADHD sufferers have more than their fair share to the point that it interferes negatively with life at home, school, friends and work.

Examples of impulsiveness include acting before thinking about the consequences or dangers, a tendency to interrupt other conversations, shouting out answers or verbally interrupting the teacher rather than raising one's hand. Gotta do or say something, gotta do it now! Can't wait for social conventions or seeing if it's safe or appropriate.

Hyperactivity describes a certain restlessness that just won't stop. A child has difficulty sitting still or staying put in their chair, fidgets with their fingers, climbs furniture or other things that shouln't be, and just can't find any moments of peace for their body. This isn't a hard and fast rule, but boys tend to be "all body" and girls tend to fidget with their hands.

The inattention part of ADHD refers to being easily distracted, zoning out or "space cadetting," not finishing tasks, difficulty listening, and following through if instructions are given. You are lucky if you get your child to do one thing on the list of wash your face, brush your teeth and put on your pajamas. They might even argue that you didn't request the other two items.

About two-thirds of children with ADHD tend to have other psychological challenges, too. Some have Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Conduct Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Tourettes Syndrome, Learning Disabilities, Depression, or some sort of Anxiety Disorder, especially one of the Obsessive Compulsive Disorders. Your child's psychiatrist will take the whole picture into consideration when choosing medication and regular visits with a psychologist or therapist.

So where does my child fit it? ADHD for a girl - fidgetty fingers, zoning out, not finishing tasks, difficulty following a list of instructions, difficulty paying attention (can't do phone calls), and some anxiety (OCD). She's on Adderall and sees a child psychologist twice a month for the anxiety issues. Things at home and school are tweaked to help her succeed. Things are much improved now.

THE FEINGOLD DIET for ADHD

The Feingold Diet is not a cure-all or stand-alone answer but it can help, perhaps combined with testing for food allergies, arranging a success-oriented environment and /or ADHD medications.

It's the artificial ingredients and chemicals that you should avoid. Here is a list of items to avoid in your food, medicine, toothpaste and drinks.

The Feingold Program eliminates these additives:
Artificial (synthetic) coloring
Artificial (synthetic) flavoring
Aspartame (Nutrasweet, an artificial sweetener)
Artificial (synthetic) preservatives BHA, BHT, TBHQ

A word about sugar:
Sugar is not necessarily to be omitted from your diet. Cane sugar is the best type tolerated by children. Most people also handle beet sugar pretty well. If you see a sugar that doesn't say what kind it is, assume it is beet sugar. Some folks don't handle corn syrup very well because it contains high levels of sulfite (an additive used in production). It's hard to go without sugar if you like to eat desserts, so try cane sugar as your first "add back in" item after a month of cleansing. If it causes a problem, detox a month and then try beet sugar.

For cooking for the family at home, it's easiest to put everyone on the diet. (unless you don't mind being a waitress and taking multiple orders). This also keeps the the ADHD person from feeling different or ostracized.

Start out the Feingold diet by elimating everything on the no-no list completely for a month or two. It's a back-to-basics way of eating. Buy fresh or frozen fruits and veggies. Cook your own unprocessed meats. If possible, stay this way for life - it's healthier for you anyway. If you feel the need to eat something that you've been avoiding, try it (and nothing else from the list) after the detox period for one month and see if there's any change.

Post a list in your kitchen of what fruits, veggies and meats the family likes. You can slowly add to the list any avoided items after a successful 1 month trial. Use this list as your shopping list and meal planner.

Good Luck!

FIRST REPORT CARD

This is my daughter's 1st year of school while on Adderall. She's in 6th grade. We invested as many hours as the past on homework and studying for tests. But the outcome is much improved!

A in Math...(got C's last year. She knew how to do everything, just careless errors and not reading instructions) Thank you, Mr. Matthews!

A in Science... (same as math last year). Thank you, Mrs. Lodanosky!

B in Social Studies/History....(got D's last year. So much info to remember, hard to get it into her brain. Also confused facts, people and places). Thank you, Mrs. Sailer!

"3" in Language Arts (3 is "proficient", 4 is "advanced")...(got 1's last year with teacher adding negative comments. Had difficulty meeting deadlines, sometimes refused to write) Thank you, Mrs. Lodanosky!

My Daughter's Reward -

Slumber party and trip out for ice cream (3 friends)
Daddy got her a new game for her Nintendo DS
Mommy did an embarrassing Happy Dance

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6th GRADE IS GOING WELL...

It's almost the end of the first marking period and my daughter is doing great. Her average score in each subject dances around 90%. But it's still alot of hard work. We're just getting better scores than last year for the same amount of work.

For Social Studies my daughter and I review a few pages every night - vocab words, names of people and places, who did what etc. I also have her practice writing out words that might be used in the answers for an upcoming test's essay questions. This all adds probably an extra half hour each night to the homework but it's worth it.

My daughter started taking Adderall in September. She got an EKG and ECG before taking the meds to rule out unknown heart problems. She's so much better able to do one-on-one studying with me during homework without being distracted by the cat walking by or random thought popping into her head. She's reading test questions much better, following directions better, and making fewer "dumb mistakes" or BF's on tests.

The way 6th grade is set up is also a big improvement over how things were done last year. This year the 6th grade teachers share teaching subjects to all of the 6th grade children. Getting up after each subject and changing rooms is great for the ADHD kids. Another thing that is great is that homework for one subject only is written down at the end of it. Just one sentence or phrase to write. This is so much better than asking the children to write down 5 things at the end of the day when they are hurrying to pack their backpacks and listening for their bus numbers to be called.

I am a happy mom. My daughter's self-esteem is improving and I see her blossoming.

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WHAT THE SCHOOL & TEACHER CAN DO...

Seat the child in a quiet area with few distractions, preferably up front and close to the teacher. Avoid open doors and windows where children on the playground might be distracting.

Providing an area where the child can move around to release excess energy.

Scheduling difficult subjects in the morning.

Mixing classroom lectures with brief periods of physical activity, such as washing the blackboard or going to the bathroom.

Keeping assignments brief.

Allowing the child to participate often. Ask the child questions, even if their hand isn't raised. Ask the child to help out writing something on the board, handing out papers, collecting papers. This gives the child a break from their chair as well as makes them feel more a part of the class.

Giving the child extra time to answer questions or complete tests and other assignments.

Providing the student with a simple outline and notes for lectures.

Providing practice tests or quizzes to do at home.

Allowing the student to use a calculator.

Preparing the student for transitions or changes in routines, such as field trips or changes from one activity to another. Give the 5-minute warning that things are about to end or change.

Encouraging the student to check in with the case manager regularly.

Giving immediate feedback and rewards for desired behavior or for achievement.

Making sure homework assignments are clear and that the student has all the materials needed.

Providing an extra set of books to keep at home.

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MY DAUGHTER'S STORY-

When my daughter finished kindergarten her teacher told me she was "young" and worried that she might have trouble getting tasks completed in 1st grade, even eating lunch in time. As the years went on my daughter continued to be "young" and did indeed have difficulty meeting deadlines and time limits with her assignments.

In 4th grade her school started handing out letter grades and report cards. I helped her study for tests and quite honestly she sometimes seemed like an airhead. I'd tell her a fact, then immediately ask her a question to which the fact was the answer and she'd guess something else. It was frustrating. I had frustrations with the 4th grade teacher (didn't bother to make sure homework was written down or books were brought home). Almost every afternoon I had to rush back to school in the afternoon to get books.

5th grade was painful! My daughter confused this information with that. Most of the facts were in her head, but they were a jumbled mess, not organized at all. She was also very forgetful / scatterwitted. Unfortunately the teacher was very authoritarian and strict. He was also an unfair grader, refusing to give my daughter partial credit on answers even though he did so for other students. Yes - I called other mom's to see how their children's papers and tests were graded. The teacher refused all of my requests under the cop out, canned excuse of "We the 5th grade teachers feel children of this age need to be more responsible..." He even told the school counselor no on her requests in my daughter's behalf! My daughter received low grades on her report card and yet she scored high on state tests in 3rd, 4th and 5th grade, not to mention the school's counselor telling me my daughter's IQ was in the 130's. That year ended with a long email to someone of higher authority in the school district.

MY daughter has been tested by several experts and now sees a psychologist twice a month (for anxiety) and psychiatrist (anxiety & ADD) once a month. She started Adderall just before 6th grade- I noticed a difference right away with the meds at home. Most of the forgetful stuff is gone and she's on top of things.

Sixth grade was great! All teachers were cooperative and helpful. My daughter received two-thirds A's and one-third B's on her quarterly report cards. We celebrated every quarter with a trip out for ice cream and a slumber party.