Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Alyssa Roark
HCA/240
September 27th 2015
Kim Dankert

ADHD is defined as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Individuals that have this disorder cannot keep their attention focused for very long, or on one particular subject for very long. Individuals can also be over active and very impulsive. The cause of this disorder has not been determined but there has been evidence that ADHD is a genetic disorder. ADHD use to be considered strictly ADD (attention deficit disorder), and it was once used to only describe school-aged children, but it is no longer considered a DSM diagnosis. In children, if they were hyper, they were considered ADHD, even if they really were not. Children can be hyper but not have this disorder.
There are some misconceptions when it comes to ADHD. It is believed that ADHD is limited to only childhood. It has a chronic lifelong course and, if left untreated, results can be found in school and work failure, substance use disorders, legal difficulties, car accidents and fatalities. There are several different medications that have been used for treatment for this disorder. The most known medication is an oral medication called Ritalin.
ADHD affects about ten percent of school-aged children. Boys are three times more likely to be living with ADHD symptoms, than girls are. Symptoms of ADHD in children include, but are not limited to lack of attention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. Symptoms of ADHD in adults include problems with relationships and employment. There are three different types of ADHD. The most common type of ADHD is called Combined ADHD, this is marked by impaired attention and concentration with hyperactivity present. The second type is called Inattentive ADHD (which was previously known as ADD). This is marked by impaired attention and concentration without hyperactivity present. The third is called Hyperactive-impulsive ADHD, which is marked by hyperactivity without inattentiveness.
A person diagnosed with ADHD may have some or all of the following symptoms. One major sign or symptom is difficulty paying attention to details and tendency to make careless mistakes in school or activities. This often results in an individual producing work that is often messy and careless. A person can easily be distracted by irrelevant stimuli and frequently interrupting ongoing tasks to attend to trivial noises or events that are usually ignored by others. Individuals can have the inability to sustain attention on tasks or activities. One can have difficulty finishing schoolwork or paperwork or performing tasks that require concentration for more than a few minutes at a time. Failure to complete tasks, such as homework or chores, frequent shifts in conversation, not listening to others, not keeping one's mind on conversations, and not following details or rules of activities in social situation are also signs of ADHD. Some children often show that they do not seem to listen when spoken to directly.
Hyperactivity symptoms show more in young children, and are present before the age of seven. These symptoms include fidgeting or squirming when seated, getting up frequently to walk or run around. Children have a tendency of running or climbing excessively when it's inappropriate. Children also have difficulty playing quietly or engaging in quiet leisure activities, always being on the go and often talking excessively.
Impulsivity symptoms include when the child often has difficulty awaiting his or her turn. The child will also often blurt out answers before questions have been asked completely, or directions given in full. Also they could interrupt or intrude on others conversations and wanting the full attention to be for them. A prime example would be for the one suffering with ADHD to butt into others conversations.
Diagnosis of this disorder is done by a medical professional, for example, a psychiatrist, psychologist, or the child's pediatrician. There is a total of nine symptoms that are reviewed and a child is said to have ADHD if they have six or more of the nine symptoms present for at least six months.
One study of the structure of the brain affected and non-affected individuals, the brain chemistry of transmitters involved with judgment, alertness, mental flexibility and planning. A genetic predisposition has been demonstrated in twin and sibling studies. If one identical twin is diagnosed with ADHD, there is a 92% probability of diagnosis with the twin sibling. When they did the study with siblings that are not twins, the probability falls to 33%.
There are four different treatment options for ADHD. One of the options is medication. There are several different types of medication. Some of them are Adderall, Dexedrine, Focalin, Ritalin, and Daytrona. Most ADHD medicines are given in the morning and are slowly released (time-release capsules) throughout the individual’s day.
Future research and directions for ADHD are found that they need more data regarding some of the long term methods. Doctors are also looking to do further studies so they can see if there is medication that can be taken on a long term basis that will not cause any effects in the long run when started a child and when they become adults .
The experience I have with this disorder is that my son was diagnosed with ADHD when he was seven years old. The first physician that diagnosed him was adamant that he take medication for this. I was very much against giving my son any type of medication so I took her to a second doctor for another opinion. The second doctor suggested the same thing, so I broke down and decided to give him the medication that was recommended.
My son showed signs of talking during class when he was not supposed to, he would play with a toy for only five minutes then want to move on, and did this with several different toys, he would only want to watch three minutes of his favorite show and then have to run around. He was also having difficulty paying attention in school, and would try to get up away from his desk to walk around for no reason at all.
I found that after giving my son the medication that was requested, he showed major improvements in school. His writing went from not being able to read anything he wrote to taking his time and getting his writing more clearly and understanding.
If my son is off his medication or we forget to give it to him in the morning, you can see a big difference in his attitude. He will talk back, he cannot sit still to do homework or pay any attention to what is supposed to be done. The downfall to the medication is he has a decrease in his appetite. We give him his medication in the morning, he will eat breakfast, but then have very little for lunch during the school day.
Having to take care of a child with ADHD comes with several challenges. Not only do we have to see a psychiatrist on a month basis for his medication refills, we also have to see a psychologist to teach us how to deal with the outbursts that come along with ADHD. There are several fights that happen within our house. The psychologist told my husband and I that because of the ADHD, these outbursts are normal. What we need to do is pick and choose our battles with him. We only fight the battles that can cause himself any harm to himself or others. Having a child with ADHD has changed the way I look at life and how I can also manage difficulties that come my way.

References

ADHD CDC. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd/

What is ADHD. (1995-2015). Retrieved from http://kidshealth.org/parent/medical/learning/adhd.html