Natural treatments for ADD/ADHD?????

[luvmychicknkids]

My oldst son it ADHD as a result of being a 25 week preemie. I let him know from day one it was not an excuse for disruptive behavior and HE has to control himself. He will bounce his legs, hold objects in his hands to fidget with, things like that. I was spending over $100 a month on natural remedies that the health food store recommended that did nothing. Now he takes fish oil (works wonders) and has a cup of coffee on the way to school (try it, it really works). He is a terrific, well behaved, brilliant child. Good luck. You will find what works for you.

 

[PeepsInc]

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My cousin has 2 unruly children that just seemed out of control. It turned out that ADD is commonly misdiagnosed. It is an intolerance to red die's & preservatives that affects most kids. There are a several food additives that affect children's development. My cousin had her kid strung out on those ADD drugs,and the kid was simply doped up. Try changing there diet for a few weeks. You'll see a world of difference in the kid. Personally my sugar problem makes me diet sensitive. I beg of you, don't drug your kids with that stuff. You have no idea what it will do to them in the long run.

 

[Boyd]

coffee. Lots of coffee

 

[Whirlwind]

I agree I think they misdiagnose alot. I am not really big on the drug route. Hopefully you can find better solutions.

 

[Hoosiermomma]

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I will definately have to try the fish oil and some green tea. I drink green tea daily but it doesn't have caffeine. The kicker is, I have two who have ADD and one with ADHD. One of the ones with ADD has a fairly minor case of it so I'm sure the fish oil would work well for him. My 16, soon to be 17 year old is the one giving me fits. My kids are homeschooled for the very reason that the teachers didn't know how to manage a classroom with kids needing varied learning styles. So here they are. I wish there was a school that would tailor (sp?..too lazy to look it up) programs to fit the child's learning style. My 16 yr old cannot sit and do bookwork but he can take apart engines on mowers and rebuild them. He is a very hands on kid. I need him to concentrate on school work just as much so I need something that can help him focus. Has anyone tried or heard of GSE working? If I have to I will put him back on his meds but I would really like to find something else that is equally effective. We stay away from food dyes but have to work on the processed food part. With a family of our size sometimes it's really hard to. LOL
I do think that some kids are misdiagnosed b/c instead of really getting at the heart of what's going on it's easier to lump them all together and label it add/adhd. I do know though that my kids all have problems concentrating, staying focused, unable to sit still for any great length of time and I attribute it to environmental factors, too much outside stimulation...tv, computer etc. I am working on limiting those things as well and have see a big difference.

 

[Hoosiermomma]

Quote:
Speaking from personal experience are we????

 

[luvmychicknkids]

Everyone talks so much about kids being mis-diagnosed but what people don't seem to realize is, ADHD meds are NOT going to calm a child who doesn't have ADHD. They are a stimulant. They will make the child act worse. A cup of coffee is actually a great test to see if a child truly is ADHD. It will calm them and give them the ability to focus. Trust me, when a child truly is ADHD you KNOW.

 

[Bluemoon420]

My younger brother was diagnosed with ADHD back in the 70's. The doctors wanted my mother to put him on an experimental treatment called ritalin ( sp). She refused to do it.
Instead, he was taken to a wonderful behavior psychologist ( we all went as a family too), and we learned how to cope with his outburst as a family unit. He never needed any drugs, he never had to change his diet, and he doesn't need them now as a functioning 30 something year old. He doesn't drink coffee or tea. He's just a great, intelligent all around normal guy.
One of my best friend's child has ADHD, and I showed her the same techniques we learned back then to cope with behaviors from ADHD. They did wonders for her, and she hasn't had to put her daughter on anything, or change her diet.
If natural remedies don't work, then my suggestion is find a really good behavoral pyschologist ( ours NEVER recommended drugs) who specializes in ADHD in children. It worked for us, and didn't require anything, but common sense approach to behavioral changes, and how to cope when outburts did occur.

Bluemoon

 

[skeeter03]

ADD/ADHD is just an excuse to put those children that dont "FIT" into the "normal" category on drugs to make them fit.
I have worked with special needs children alot and have seen lots of kids "diagnosed" add and they werent specially when you put them beside a child that truly was ADD the difference is astounding!!! I really believe that about 90% of the kids that are diagnosed with ADD DONT have it they are just more active then others or they learn differently or are on a processed food diet or there might be issues at home that make them act out at school or home.
So be wary of misdiagnoses and make drugs your last resort.
-Red dyes in food is a big one .
-preservetives are another.
-to much exposure to TV/Computer can be another.
-I would start by changing diet right off the bat - start by eliminating most refined sugars/ red colors/ and processed foods
Cook from scratch its easy peasy once you get used to it. just read your labels - you can use canned goods as long as its just the items and nothing extra eg. canned tomatoes should be just that with maybe water and thats it.
-Make sure your child has a way to get excess energy out
-cut back on TV/computer/gameing time.
-Routine helps to so that your child knows what to expect next (thats if you dont really have one established)
-give them responsibilities they can handle
-finaly dont let them or you use ADD as an excuse to not do something!!!

 

[luvmychicknkids]

Oh, and another thing, I KNOW people are going to disagree with me, but that's alright. Video games and the like are GOOD! Anything that hyper stimulates your child's brain is helping him learn to focus. Video games helped my son teach himself self control. He also uses books. He can sit still for hours with a good, fast paced book.

If the tea doesn't have caffeine it won't work. It is the stimulant effect of the caffeine that makes it help.