WHAT CAN YOU DO IF YOU SUSPECT THAT YOUR CHILD HAS ADHD?

1. Get a diagnosis done by a qualified professional. This is available at the Child Guidance Clinic, 3rd Storey, Institute of Health Building or at a private clinic by any educational or clinical psychologist or psychiatrist. In general, behaviour management programmes, with/without medication, may be recommended. You may like to read up this article on ìGeneral Principals for the Diagnosis and Treatment of ADHD at website www.add.org/gp98.htm

2. Find out more about ADHD from the internet to educate yourself on this topic. Some good sites are www.adhd.com, www.add.org, www.chadd.com and www.ThomHartmann.com

3. Educate your childís school teachers and Principal on ADHD. You can use the sample letter attached to describe the ADHD problem to the teachers, and what the school can do to help. You can also request the SPARK Committee to give the SPARK Roadshow presentation to your child school (you need to make the time arrangement with the school Principal).

4. Ask to met the Learning Support Coordinator (LSC) and /or the MOE Educational Psychologist (EP) assigned to your childís school to discuss your childís needs. Get your child to be monitored and helped by the LSC and EP in your childís school. This goes a long way to helping the child cope with school, and helps to buy teachersí understanding.

5. Seek Professional help - Explore medication and treatment approaches and therapies outside the school to help your child. The most common medication for ADHD is Ritalin, which must be prescribed by a Psychiatrist. Non-medication treatment methods include Sensory Integration (SI) therapy, Ron Davis programme, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), Cranial-sacrum therapy, Brain-gym, Allergy-free diet etc. (the www.adhd.com site has a good introduction to many of these treatments). The child needs to be diagnosed first by a professional in that field before the treatment can take place.

6. If your child has some other learning disabilities which are diagnosed (rather common for ADHD children to have accompanying learning disabilities eg. Dyslexia, or language difficulties) and the child has great difficulty coping with the 2nd Language, use this diagnosis to request the school to apply to MOE for 2nd Language exemption. This will lighten the learning load on the child.

7. If all else fail, and the child is truly struggling with self-esteem going down, and school becomes a perpetual struggle, AND you have the financial means, consider moving your child to an International School , where the class size is typically below 20, the teachers are mainly foreigners, and the teaching methods deployed are more multi-sensory in nature. ADHD kids will typically fair better in such learning environments, and self-esteem can be rebuilt. (Note : The International School you choose will apply on your behalf to MOE for approval, but you need to furnish the case history of your child as justification why he cannot fit into the local school system. You will need Diagnosis Reports from Professionals to back up your case. Approval by MOE is stringent and on a case by case basis).

8. Join SPARK , a voluntary society formed by parents of ADHD children and professionals in the field. Share experiences with parents in the same boat and learn from each other. Hear from the experts who are regularly invited to give talks to members. Access SPARKís website and library of information on ADHD. Volunteer your time if possible to help out in SPARK activities and projects to help our ADHD children.

9. Be realistic with your childís capabilities - identify and develop his other talents and not focus on the academic achievement (Academic IQ is but one out of seven intelligences a human being can have).

10. Keep faith - Continue to be your childís champion against all odds. Your understanding of and attitude towards your childís learning difficulties and related school problems is THE critical factor. Whilst the school environment can be harsh, make sure the home environment gives him/her warmth, hope, and above all, LOVE.

11. View the childís ADHD traits positively - there is increasing research and literature that ADHD is not a brain disease or a so called ìdisorderî, but rather just biological differences in the parts of the brain associated with paying attention, impulse control and activity level. Such people need much higher level of stimuli to stay focused than is the norm. Therefore ADHD students find it a lot more difficult to sit still and pay attention in class. Such people are present in the population from time immemorial. Many have succeeded and achieved in life and some are even geniuses. The trick lies in harnessing their abundant energies and channeling them into positive learning experiences and strengths building, as well as identifying and nurturing their innate talents. For such ìalternativeî views and treatments of ADHD, please read up the research work of Thom Hartmann at his website www.ThomHartmann.com . It is enlightening and gives all ADHD parents HOPE!