All About ADHD : Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

[little patrick]

Hi jedamum


Psy has advise not to tell my ds has diagonsed with ADHD. He went to psy since P1, he knew went there because of his behaviour. He dont really ask about his condition but I believe he knew somthing. I have told him, he is a normal boy, smart boy, nothing wrong with him, he just need to know how to control himself, how to make friends.

[shawnlim88]

Dear all,


just found out that there are 6 types of ADHD
(http://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/guide/types-of-adhd)

Based on these symptoms, and the use of brain scans to measure blood flow (SPECT), to highlight activity in the parts of the brain related to attention, short-term memory, and forethought, Amen described these six types of ADHD:

Type 1 -- Classic ADHD. Symptoms of ADHD, plus hyperactivity and impulsivity; responds well to stimulant medications
Type 2 -- Inattentive ADHD. Features of ADHD, but instead of hyperactivity, there is low energy; responds well to stimulant medications
Type 3 -- Overfocused ADHD. Symptoms of ADHD and negative thoughts and behaviors, such as opposition and arguing; tends to respond better to an antidepressant (such as Prozac) combined with a stimulant
Type 4 -- Temporal Lobe ADHD. The hallmark features of ADHD, plus irritability, aggressiveness, and memory and learning problems; responds better to antiseizure medications (like Neurontin) than to stimulants
Type 5 -- Limbic ADHD. Combines ADHD with depression and low energy and decreased motivation; responds better to stimulating antidepressants than to stimulants
Type 6 -- The Ring of Fire. Cross between ADHD and bipolar disorder; characterized by moodiness, aggressiveness, and anger; Anticonvulsants or newer antipsychotic medications tend to work better than stimulants

[gerberadaisy]

Dear parents,


For parents that have kids with ADHD, can you please share if you’ve sent your child for Occupational Therapy, or any other therapy and whether it is effective? Has anyone sent your child to Kidz PTOC at Tanglin Shopping Centre, or to Leapfrogs at Bukit Timah? Are they good? Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks!

[beanbear]

gerberadaisy:

Dear parents,


For parents that have kids with ADHD, can you please share if you've sent your child for Occupational Therapy, or any other therapy and whether it is effective? Has anyone sent your child to Kidz PTOC at Tanglin Shopping Centre, or to Leapfrogs at Bukit Timah? Are they good? Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks!

My DD has been attending OT at Kidz PTOC for past 7 months. She attended intensive OT during the June holidays and I could see a marked difference after that. She also does Music Therapy at home daily based on what therapist has given her. Just listen to the music with specific model of headphones for about 30 mins while she does light homework.

I must say DD's emotions are better regulated, homework is now done in a timely fashion and she can focus for longer periods of time.

[fifiyeo]

beanbear:

gerberadaisy:

Dear parents,


For parents that have kids with ADHD, can you please share if you've sent your child for Occupational Therapy, or any other therapy and whether it is effective? Has anyone sent your child to Kidz PTOC at Tanglin Shopping Centre, or to Leapfrogs at Bukit Timah? Are they good? Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks!

My DD has been attending OT at Kidz PTOC for past 7 months. She attended intensive OT during the June holidays and I could see a marked difference after that. She also does Music Therapy at home daily based on what therapist has given her. Just listen to the music with specific model of headphones for about 30 mins while she does light homework.

I must say DD's emotions are better regulated, homework is now done in a timely fashion and she can focus for longer periods of time.

Hi Beanbear, what do they make your DD do during those sessions? I wanted to put DS in for yoga class but can't find any that will suit our timing. Was wondering if there is anything else I can do to help DS concentrate better.

[baobei]

beanbear:

gerberadaisy:

Dear parents,


For parents that have kids with ADHD, can you please share if you've sent your child for Occupational Therapy, or any other therapy and whether it is effective? Has anyone sent your child to Kidz PTOC at Tanglin Shopping Centre, or to Leapfrogs at Bukit Timah? Are they good? Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks!

My DD has been attending OT at Kidz PTOC for past 7 months. She attended intensive OT during the June holidays and I could see a marked difference after that. She also does Music Therapy at home daily based on what therapist has given her. Just listen to the music with specific model of headphones for about 30 mins while she does light homework.

I must say DD's emotions are better regulated, homework is now done in a timely fashion and she can focus for longer periods of time.

Hi beanbear,

Good to learn that the therapy works for your DD. Do one need to get a referral letter before seeing the therapist? Can share the name of the therapist or the programme/technique?

Best Regards,
Baobei

[gerberadaisy]

Hi baobei,


Don’t need to get a referral, but need to get an assessment done by the Occupational Therapist first before the commencement of therapy. The assessment is not cheap - about $420 for 2 hours.

[baobei]

Thanks gerberdaisy!


Is the assessment targeted on identifying if child having ADHD or covers all possible syndrome?

It works for beanbear DD, pinning hope to work for DS. Invested a lot to see very little improvement though cost lower. If can work within a holiday, I think the therapy must be very good, have to try though need to strive hard to pay the bills.

Forget to ask much does each therapy session costs. Maybe not affordable after all. Sigh!

[beanbear]

fifiyeo:

beanbear:

[quote=\"gerberadaisy\"]Dear parents,


For parents that have kids with ADHD, can you please share if you've sent your child for Occupational Therapy, or any other therapy and whether it is effective? Has anyone sent your child to Kidz PTOC at Tanglin Shopping Centre, or to Leapfrogs at Bukit Timah? Are they good? Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks!

My DD has been attending OT at Kidz PTOC for past 7 months. She attended intensive OT during the June holidays and I could see a marked difference after that. She also does Music Therapy at home daily based on what therapist has given her. Just listen to the music with specific model of headphones for about 30 mins while she does light homework.

I must say DD's emotions are better regulated, homework is now done in a timely fashion and she can focus for longer periods of time.

Hi Beanbear, what do they make your DD do during those sessions? I wanted to put DS in for yoga class but can't find any that will suit our timing. Was wondering if there is anything else I can do to help DS concentrate better.[/quote]Those of us who don't understand the work of Occupational Therapists will probably think it's just another gym workout or playing around. My DD swings on the hammock, hangs on monkey bars, rolls on the floor. When she went for the intensive Interactive Metronome therapy, she was asked to do a series of clapping to a specific rhythm and timing.

I personally also don't really understand fully how each of these moves help but the therapist will sometimes explain why certain things are done. For eg my DD has dyspraxia so swinging is to help her brain to learn how to find balance. Each child's needs are unique so the exercises will vary based on what needs to be addressed. For the Interactive Metronome therapy, the child must concentrate to get the moves correct + it's a series of repetitive and seriously very boring stuff to do so it's helping them to focus their attention and get to certain targets eg correct clapping. ADHD kids are impulsive and get bored more easily than normal kids so they'll want to switch tasks after like 1 min!! So keeping them on task is aimed at lengthening their concentration and training the brain to with-hold their impulses.

I bought a book called \"How does your engine run\", a Leader's Guide to The Alert Program for Self-Regulation from the US and there are great ideas there to help ADHD kids to monitor their energy levels and how to bring their energy up when they need it and how to tune down when they need to slow down. I used some ideas there to help DD. For eg I allow DD to chew gum and eat when she's working. I used to get DD to work in sessions of 15min - 30mins, then bounce ball for 2 mins and then get back to work again. I learnt from the Educational Psychologist that it's about getting your child to persist in doing something \"boring\" for short periods of time without moving from the table or shaking their legs. For eg you can start with 5mins or 10mins first. Time them and then reward them immediately. Do it everyday and consistently with the same task. After a few days, you could lengthen the time by a little eg extra 1-2 mins, then do it for another week. Then repeat the cycle for another week. Each time you do this you help a child to learn how to resist his impulsivity. But it's got to be in very small tasks first.

[beanbear]

baobei:

Thanks gerberdaisy!


Is the assessment targeted on identifying if child having ADHD or covers all possible syndrome?

It works for beanbear DD, pinning hope to work for DS. Invested a lot to see very little improvement though cost lower. If can work within a holiday, I think the therapy must be very good, have to try though need to strive hard to pay the bills.

Forget to ask much does each therapy session costs. Maybe not affordable after all. Sigh!

Every child's progress will be different. I met some really desperate mums who tried so many things and kept saying they can't see any difference. The OT Alvin shared that there are times the child has made progress by leaps and bounds from an OT perspective but for the parent it's not good enough because the parent compares her child to a normal child.

There is no cure for ADHD. With therapy and self-awareness, the child becomes more equipped to deal with the daily demands that society imposes, whether at school or at work in future.

Maybe I focused my attention to look for small signs of progress. I knew that DD's attention span before therapy was about 10-15 mins for homework, go toilet 4-5 times per hour, go into dream states in the middle of our conversation. The moment DD could sit and complete a task without moving for 30mins, it's a huge accomplishment. Her progress don't necessarily translate into academic success. Not yet. I'm hopeful but I try not to set high expectations.

I didn't expect the results to come in during the school holidays but when it did, the OT and I celebrated DD's great progress. DD was able to complete assessment tests and do them accurately for 1 hour. She was cheerful, on task and generally motivated. It was really motivating for me.

OT at a private centre is a very expensive exercise, I must add. Regular sessions are $140 per hour. Interactive Metronome costs a whopping $160 per hour and DD was attending 15 sessions in June. I tried Brainfit Studio previously for total of 80 sessions for DD with little improvement. That costs $50 per session. On hindsight, I didn't know the difference between Brainfit studio and OT and it was only after seeing the Educational Psychologist that I was enlightened. It's a bit like seeing a GP but your illness really requires you to see a Specialist. GP you pay $25-30 for consultation but specialist you pay $80-120 each session right?

I console myself, never mind, Lesson learnt. It's my child that matters. Money lost can earn back. What's more important is to look forward and stay open to new possibilities for my child. She may not score well for PSLE, maybe go to Normal Academic or even Normal Tech. It's ok. Who am I to know what she's capable of next time. She's already a gifted musician and very empathetic to very young children and old people. She will find her own niche somehow. As a parent, if what I can do now is pay money and chauffeur her to get the specialist help she needs, then I do what I can while I can still afford. If the day comes and I cannot afford, then got to go and queue at government hospital, lah.