Miller, Geidel and Associates

Non-Profit  Family Counseling Center

Creating a WARM...SECURE...HOME-LIKE Environment.

ADD/ADHD: BEYOND THE MYTHS!

What are the causes of ADD/ADHD?

Is it Genetic? Biological? Environmental?

Is Medication the answer? Will my child outgrow it? Can parents, teachers, and doctors do anything to help?

If identified and treated early, children can better overcome emotional difficulties, do better in school, and achieve greater success.

MYTH: Only a few people really have ADD.

FACT: Estimates of who has ADD range from 3 to 5 percent of the school age population (between 1.46 and 2.44 million children.) While boys outnumber girls by 4:1 to 9:1, experts believe that many girls with ADD are never diagnosed.

MYTH: Children with ADD are no different from their peers, all children have a hard time sitting still and paying attention.

FACT: Before children are considered to have ADD, they must show symptoms that demonstrate behavior greatly different from what is expected for children of their age and background. They start to show the behaviors characteristic of ADD between ages 3 and 7. These behaviors are persistent and occur in many different settings and situations.

MYTH: ADD can be prevented.

FACT: While scientists are not certain they understand the causes of ADD they have ruled out most of the factors controlled by parents. The causes of ADD are genetic and biological, the parents cannot cause ADD by being too strict or too lenient. Parents can influence the child’s ability to control his or her ADD behavior.

MYTH: Medication can cure students with ADD.

FACT: Medicine cannot cure ADD but can sometimes temporarily moderate its effects. Stimulant medication such as Ritalin, Cylert, and Dexedrine is effective in 70 percent of the children who take it. In those cases, medication causes children to exhibit a clear and immediate short-term increase in attention, control, concentration, and goal-directed effort. Medication also reduces disruptive behaviors, aggression, and hyperactivity. However, there are side effects and not evidence for long-term effectiveness of medication. Recent studies show that medication has only limited short-term benefits on social adjustment and academic achievement. While medication can be incorporated into other treatment strategies, parents and teachers should not use medication as the sole method of helping the child.