Originally posted at: Neuro Colorado
For millions of children and adults in our culture, the realities of living with ADD and its cousin, ADHD (the form of Attention Deficit Disorder that includes hyperactivity) are overwhelming and unbelievably frustrating. The characteristics of people with this brain imbalance disorder are well-known:
- Have very short attention spans
- Are easily distracted—jobs, schoolwork, and relationships suffer
- Manifest impulsive behavior often
- Have a disorganized living style, are known to procrastinate
- Seem to lack “internal supervision”, or self-discipline
ADD and ADHD are real neurological disorders many experts believe are inherited. Eighty percent of children with ADD have at least one parent with the same disorder. Experts trace the dramatic rise in ADD-related issues in the last half-century to many factors, ranging from our sedentary western lifestyle, to the increasing presence of food additives and other pollutants in the environment.
People associate certain drugs with the management of ADD, yet there are safe and natural therapies that are known to treat and help manage the disorder. Natural methods that retrain the brain teach people to actually cope with living instead of simply being managed by a drug. Neurofeedback is a safe and proven way to train the brain to function more efficiently by decreasing the excess theta waves in the ADD brain that make simply staying on task so difficult. Brain maps created on ADD patients can empirically show these changes.
But there are more immediate, simple things parents of ADD children or family members of adult ADD sufferers can help their loved ones implement at home, school, or on the job:
- Set up simple routines and systems to get basic tasks done, such as studying certain subjects on certain days.
- Break up homework or other mental tasks into small chunks, especially if the tasks are not that interesting to the person. People with ADD are very apt at focusing for long periods on something interesting to them.
- During high-focus tasks, reduce distractions and outside stimulation to a bare minimum. If the person insists on background music, pieces by Mozart are the best: the arrangement and frequency of notes in his compositions reduce theta brain waves that block alertness in the brain.
- When presenting writing to a person with ADD, try to offer brief learning points, bulleted if possible.
- Avoid sugar and processed foods, especially refined carbohydrates.
A few simple changes can make the world of difference to an ADD/ADHD sufferer. Are there any other tips you can think of to help the ADD/ADHD person?