Exploring ADHD and Available Treatments Essays

The following paper deals with Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in Adults. The paper will mainly focus on the symptoms of ADHD along with diagnosis of it. It will show how at least some research demonstates that adult and child ADHD are two different things and should be treated as such. In the process it will higlhight the what at times can be conflicting nature of adult ADHD research.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (2004) signs of ADHD become noticeable in children during their preschool and early years of school. It is estimated that 3 to 5 percent of children have ADHD, which is roughly about 2 million children in the United States. This means that 1 child out of a classroom that has 25-30 students in it will have ADHD. The NIMH (2004) has stated this in their article on ADHD that Dr. Heinrich Hoffman first described it in 1845. He was a physician who wrote books on medicine and psychiatry, he also wrote books for children. He described the disease in a book he was writing to his son, he wrote "The Story of Fidgety Phillip" which described a little boy with the exact symptoms of what would be known today as ADHD. It was not until 1902 that Sir George F. Still published a lecture to the Royal College of Physicians in London about impulsive children with behavioral problems that he stated were caused by a genetic dysfunction and not by poor education. Since then many studies have been done on the cause, symptoms, and treatment of ADHD.

In this mixed method approach, there were various types of data used such as questionnaires and surveys regarding if children took any prescription medication related to ADD, ADHD, or hyperactivity. There was an analysis investigating whether and to what extent minority children diagnosed with ADHD were taking medication for the disorder. I one particular study participants were asked to answer the questions with a “yes” or “no” response. According to the data parents answered that 650 of 780 children with an ADHD diagnosis use prescription medication for ADHD (Morgan, Staff, Hillemeier, Farkas, & Maczuga, 2013).

| Markers: record grade for each question answered. Each of the 3 Section B answers is marked out of 10

Not being able to keep still, talking out of turn, and not being able to resist temptation are many traits of a child under the age of twelve; also, the symptoms of a child diagnosed with ADHD. Though there isn’t a test to determine whether or not a child has ADHD many psychiatrists are quick to incline that the child may have this behavioral disorder even though they could just be acting like children. Not only are psychiatrists too quick to diagnose they’re also quick to prescribe medications that have high risks of causing behavioral changes and disruption of the chemical balance within the brain. Children under the age of twelve should never be diagnosed and/or prescribed medication for attention deficit hyperactivity

As the pressure on students to perform well in school becomes more apparent, students in response have started to abuse ADHD medication not prescribed to them as a way to focus in on their studies. Over 6% of high school seniors abuse these types of drugs, and this number is projected to increase as the number of ADHD (diagnoses’ ???) cases rise in the United States. My county specifically has seen a sharp rise in this type of drug misuse. This summer, I was given the opportunity to work in conjunction with the United Way of Forsyth County as an intern. I was assigned to the youth drug council awareness team with the goal of finding solutions to reduce teen ADHD drug usage in my county.

When dealing with adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ADHD may become a challenge for many parents. Knowing the facts about this disorder and how to treat the problem is the key to a healthy lifestyle for adolescents as well as families. Many therapies and medications are available to families with children with ADHD but many questions that parents have with their children with ADHD is which therapy is best and what would work best with their children and their quality of life. The question of which therapy, alternative versus medication therapy would improve adolescent’s quality of life and behavior modification.

According to Dr. Robert Epstein, Medco’s chief medical officer, seventeen percent of total drug cost spending last year was for behavior medicines; compared with sixteen percent for both asthma and antibiotics, eleven percent for skin disorders and six percent for allergy medicines. There was also a 369% increase in spending on ADHD drugs for kids under the age of five. A lot of children have been diagnosed with ADHD, and many of their parents have opted to give them behavioral drugs. Some parents give the drugs because they are not aware of the long term effects or the psychological dependency, and lastly because they are not aware of the alternatives. As parents we have to be more cognizant of what these disorders are and how they

There are many negatives involved in ADHD, but what’s often overlooked, are the positives. One of these positives is the fact that this disorder is very manageable and treatable. We have an extended amount of knowledge from numerous studies that have been done since the disorder was discovered. From these studies we now know that this disorder can affect people in many ways and be a burden on someone if not treated properly.

Should children with ADHD be medicated? Although many parents, doctors, and teachers would say yes I believe there are far too many risks for children with ADHD to be medicated. [You left out a comma in the previous sentence.] Diagnosing ADHD is purely a matter of a doctor's opinion. Parents often use medication as the first option for their children instead of trying alternative methods of medication. Medication needs to be the last option.

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder is a common mental disorder whose definition continues to change. Most clinicians make a diagnosis off of a list of symptoms in three categories: inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. There are three different subtypes of ADHD: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Combined Type if both the inattentive criteria and the hyperactive/impulsive criteria have been present for the past six months; Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Predominantly Inattentive Type if the inattention criteria are met but the hyperactive/impulsive criteria has not been present for the past six months; and Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Predominantly Hyperactive/Impulsive

ADHD is an abbreviation for attention deficit/hyper activity disorder. It is commonly referred to as a psychiatric disorder in need of therapy. The origination of the disease is in the neuro-physiological brain construct, and the main cause of the disorder is considered to be genetic (Wilson, 2012). Many children with ADHD struggle with impulsivity, hyperactivity, and inattention (Unnever, Cullen, & Pratt, 2003). According to McNamara, Vervaeke, and Willoughby (2008), “attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder is the most commonly diagnosed behavioral disorder among children and adolescents. It affects between 3% and 5% of school age children” (p. 38). In a

During the past 60 years, many different terms have been used to describe what we now call ADHD, (Barkley, 2006 ). Over the past decade, many researchers have conducted empirical studies to deepen our understanding of ADHD as well as identify evidence-based strategies for assessing and treating individuals with the disorder.( Lisa L. Weyandt, ‎George J. DuPaul - 2012).Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is believed to be a chronic disorder that affects a significant proportion of the child, adolescent, and adult population. Scientist still do not know of its root causes but attribute it to a chemical imbalance in the brain.

A second limitation to this study is the form of treatment that the author has decided to concentrate upon to treat ADHD. The reason that the author choose to focus upon this form of treatment is because ADHD possesses cognitive and

Attention Deficit/ hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a chronic mental health disorder with distinct behavioral manifestations in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood (Barkley, 1997; Barkley, Fischer, Smallish, & Fletcher, 2002). Many sources state that the prevalence in ADHD is about 3% to 7.5% in school-aged children (Fischer, Barkley, Smallish, & Fletcher, 2005). Most current studies from 1995 to 2006 estimate that the worldwide prevalence is about 5% and that these studies are similar in all countries that ADHD is studied (Polanczyk, Lima, Horta, Biederman, & Rohde, 2007).