Why does it seem like there are never enough hours in the day? From day to night, work to family, personal goals, and endless to-do lists, we’re a nation of on-the-go people. We all want to be more productive, but that requires more focus and more energy, especially with a child with ADD.
Here are 10 positive ways to guide behavior of ADD children:
1. Relationship is key.
With a good parent-child relationship, almost any form of discipline will work. Relationships require two things: time and willingness to listen.
2. Teach children from your own real–life experiences.
3. When a child meets your expectations, be sure to notice him or her.
If you never reinforce good behavior, you’re unlikely to get much of it.
4. Notice the behaviors that you like in your child ten times more than the behaviors you don’t like.
This teaches them to notice what they like about themselves, rather than grow up with a critical self-image.
5. Children live up to the labels we give them.
Be careful of the nicknames and phrases you use to describe your children.
6. Never discipline a child when you’re out of control.
Take a time-out before you lose your cool.
7. Remember the words, “firm but kind.”
Try to balance them at the same time.
8. Have swift, clear consequences for broken rules, enforced in a matter-of-fact and unemotional way.
Nagging and yelling are extremely destructive, ineffective, and tend to be addictive for the ADD child.
9. Do not yell at, hit, or berate an ADD child.
The more emotionally intense you get, the more they will make you get emotionally intense.
10. Parents need time for themselves.
Parents who are drained do not have much left that is good for their children.
We Can Help
ADD is not a single or simple diagnosis and no one treatment method will work for everyone. At Amen Clinics, we can help you understand your brain and create a treatment plan that is targeted to your brain’s unique needs. We have identified 7 types of ADD—and each requires a different treatment plan because of the diverse brain systems involved. Each of the ADD subtypes has its own set of symptoms as a result of the abnormal blood flow patterns in the brain, but for the most part, they all share the same core symptoms.
To learn more about ADD/ADHD, you can begin with our ADD Type Test. Take the 4-minute confidential test to discover you, or your loved one’s ADD Type and get a personalized overview on what to do about it.
Our Care Center is experienced in addressing your concerns and helping get you or your loved one on the path to wellness. Call us today at 888-288-9834 or tell us more online to schedule an appointment. Comprised of around 80% water, the brain is very soft, with a consistency similar to soft butter or custard. It’s protected by a hard skull and surrounded by fluid, yet there are many bony edges and ridges inside the skull; some of them as sharp as knives. These ridges can easily damage the brain during head trauma.
Sports & Your Brain
We must reiterate that your child’s brain was not created to withstand all the bell-ringers and hard knocks from tackle football, soccer headers, and hockey, among others.
If you love your child’s brain, and especially if you have a child with ADD or learning problems, please educate them about risk-prevention and if possible, don’t let them play these brain-injuring sports. The symptoms of a brain injury can be very similar to the symptoms of ADD or ADHD, therefore it’s most important to get a proper diagnosis when you notice that something is wrong.
Unquestionable Proof
Not only did we conduct the world’s largest study on brain damage in NFL players, more than 4,500 former players sued the NFL, seeking concussion-related compensation and alleging that the NFL concealed the risks of long-term brain damage. The settlement was $765 million dollars – yet the NFL will neither admit liability nor that the players’ injuries were caused by football.
From 2009-2012, Amen Clinics performed the world’s largest brain imaging and rehabilitation study on active and retired professional football players because we had a high suspicion that many players suffered with the effects of chronic traumatic brain injury (TBI).
The results of our NFL study were very clear:
• A very high percentage of our players had evidence of TBI patterns on their SPECT scans and showed symptoms of it – there was a high rate of depression, dementia, obesity, and ADD-like symptoms among them.
• 81% of the players complained of attention problems and showed concentration problems on the psychological testing that we performed.
The good news came from the second part of this study, where we taught players how to care for their brains and gave them specific nutritional supplements.
• 80% of our players experienced significant benefit, including improvements in mood, attention, motivation, and sleep.
This shows that even those who have suffered brain injury can still have hope – as there is a very high potential for recovery on a brain-smart program.
Treatment is Possible
Nobody knows exactly how many blows to the head it takes to cause problems, yet studies have shown that it takes longer for children to recover from a second concussion if it follows soon after a first, and that once someone has a concussion they’re more likely to experience more.
Many brain injuries go untreated because the person did not lose consciousness, so keep an eye out for these symptoms and seek medical attention right away if you suspect trauma:
• Feeling drowsy or having a hard time waking up.
• Not thinking clearly, feeling spacey, or acting confused.
• Headache or the feeling of pressure in the head.
• Memory and mood changes.
We Can Help
At Amen Clinics, we want to help you and your children heal brain injuries before they affect your life. Call us today at 888-288-9834, or tell us more about your concerns. Brain trauma can cause significantly decreased function in a person’s brain. Even though we have seen that brain damage can be reversed to some degree, for the best quality of life, a never-damaged brain is by far the best option.
At Amen Clinics, we have the largest database of brain scans relating to behavior. We once treated a 42-year-old woman who had failed six alcohol treatment programs. Her impulse control was virtually zero. She could not even be given a prescription for any medication because she would take them all at once. When we initially asked her if she had ever had a brain injury, she said no. But when we asked her again, she remembered that she had been kicked in the head by a horse when she was 10 years old. Her brain SPECT scan showed severe damage to her prefrontal cortex (PFC).
When the PFC shows damage, most people are in serious trouble. Without the high thinking, and executive functions offered by the PFC, this woman had virtually no “supervisor” in her head.
What Research Says About Concussions
This is why new research about the average teenager’s risk of concussion is so concerning. The way they treat their brain today has lifelong implications.
Research shows that one in five teenagers will suffer a concussion, even if they don’t play sports; and the risk rises dramatically if they drink, smoke pot or play a contact sport.
A traumatic brain injury is defined as a head injury that knocked the teenager out for at least five minutes or resulted in overnight hospitalization.
The study involved students in grades 7–12. Here’s what the researchers found:
• Over 20% of teenagers said they had a concussion in their lifetime.
• Nearly 6% said they had suffered at least one concussion in the past year alone.
• 63.5% of concussions in boys were related to sports; 46.9% of concussions in girls were related to sports.
• Teens who drank alcohol, even if just occasionally, were five times more likely to suffer a concussion in the last year than those teens who didn’t drink alcohol.
• Teens who smoked marijuana more than 10 times in the last year were three times more likely to suffer a concussion in the last year than those teens who didn’t smoke marijuana.
Consider This
A person doesn’t have to be knocked out or hospitalized to have suffered a concussion. If a concussion or traumatic brain injury in this study was measured as a 5-minute blackout or hospitalization, then 20% is a very conservative figure.
It is likely that teenagers sustain a higher rate of traumatic brain injury than this study discovered.
What Brain Injuries Can Tell Us
We have treated people who have suffered from brain injuries they did not think were serious until they saw their SPECT scans. These were often unreported and untreated.
These people can suffer from cognitive, mood, and behavior problems.
They don’t understand why, they just feel they are messed up. As in the case of the woman who was kicked in the head by a horse, after many questions from us, they’ll remember a childhood knock to the head or a “ringer” they suffered in a sports match. Brain SPECT studies will show decreased blood flow to these previously injured parts of the brain and, depending on the location of the injury, can have dramatic impact on behavior, temperament and cognitive power.
We Can Help
At Amen Clinics, we know that brain trauma is not a function of not trying hard enough, being lazy, or not having enough willpower. We will work with you to address your specific brain type. Learn more about how Amen Clinics can help, or contact us today at 888-288-9834 or tell us more online.
Addiction is vicious. Not only does substance abuse rewire our brains for the worse, it is also a relationship killer.
Instead of handing down the classic car or the childhood home, some parents are bequeathing their children a future of internal torment. Is the cause physiological or psychological? The answer is unclear. What is clear is that when it comes to addiction, we need to be thinking about our children’s future as much as our own.
In brain SPECT scans of patients struggling with addiction we often see global damage to the brain, including the frontal lobes (which control executive functioning skills like planning, attention span, and impulse control) and in the temporal lobes (which are involved in memory, mood, and understanding speech). Depression is a brain illness, and SPECT scans of patients suffering from anxiety and depression demonstrate several different patterns of brain activity.
Time and again we have seen the generational toll of addiction. We have compassion for all who are involved. The question is, how can you intervene and break the cycle of not only addiction, but also depression, which so often leads to addiction?
Our Recommendations
We have three immediate recommendations to any parent and their adult children who are ready to break the cycle of addiction and depression and start reversing damage that has been done.
Get an Assessment of Your Brain
At Amen Clinics, our full evaluation includes a detailed history, cognitive testing and two brain SPECT studies (at rest and during a concentration task). SPECT (single-photon emission computerized tomography) is a special kind of image of the brain that gives doctors crucial information. How can you change your brain if you do not know anything about it?
Get The Support You Need
You don’t have to be an addict or a manic to have a hard time making change. Major life changes are very difficult for many people. Studies have shown that those who surround themselves with a support group are far more likely to have success implementing major changes.
Accept Hope
In our thirty years, we have collectively performed over 150,000 scans on patients from 120 countries, we have seen many cases of addiction, depression, brain trauma, and illness. But you must know that we have seen an equal or greater amount of recovery, repair and re-engagement with life in patients who had almost given up on the possibility of getting better. The brain is complicated and delicate, but it is also resilient beyond explanation.
We Can Help
We urge you to accept that there is hope. When you do that, taking action to break the cycle is the natural next step. The Amen Clinics biomedical evaluation is part of The Amen Clinics Method approach to mental and physical health. We treat each patient as an individual, and take a full personal history before beginning SPECT imaging or recommending any treatment program. Call us today at 888-288-9834 or schedule an appointment online.
