ADD Symptoms

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are terms that refer to conditions that are increasingly diagnosed in children in this country. Although most of us recognize the names, many people do not really understand what they mean and wouldn’t recognize an ADD/ADHD symptom in their own child when it was presented. The most common and easily recognized ADD/ADHS symptom is the child’s inability to pay attention but there is also a diversity of other symptoms that may be present or absent and which are normally experienced in a variety of degrees making it even more difficult to recognize.

Difficulty in controlling behavior is another common ADD/ADHD symptom and one that can cause many difficulties in the classroom as well as in the home. Some children will behave impulsively, acting out without any desire or ability to prevent their actions. When a child becomes bored easily with any task he is given, this may also be an ADD/ADHD symptom.

It may be difficult for a parent or teacher to determine that a child has the condition based on only one ADD/ADHD symptom when there are different degrees, or subtypes, of ADHD. The most severe subtype is “predominantly hyperactive impulse” which means that six or more symptoms that are exhibited are in the hyperactivity impulsivity categories. It may also mean that there are fewer than six of the symptoms of inattention present even though inattention may be present to some degree.

In “predominantly inattentive ADHD, the second subtype, the majority of symptoms are in the inattention category and there are less than six symptoms of hyperactivity-impulsivity even though hyperactivity and impulsiveness may be present to some degree without any ADD/ADHD symptom to indicate it.

The most frequently occurring subcategory of ADHD is “combined hyperactive-impulsive and inattentive” ADHD which normally includes at least six symptoms of inattention in addition to six or more of those from the hyperactivity-impulsivity category.

ADS Symptome richtig erkennen

Because children may have an ADD/ADHD symptom of inattention that makes them less likely to act out, the condition can be mistaken for other problems. A child who is sitting quietly and is seemingly focused on what he is doing may really be distracted and not paying attention as he appears. The same may be true for those children who do act out. A common ADD/ADHD symptom like hyperactivity may be thought to have emotional or discipline causes.

While some children may be diagnosed early on because a parent or teacher recognizes an ADD/ADHD symptom for what it is, the diagnosis often comes much later. Symptoms often present between the ages of 3 and 6 but they vary among different children. The first ADD/ADHD symptom that parents become aware of may be that their child loses interest in things much faster than others or is frequently acting out in ways that are uncontrollable. In many cases, teachers are the first to notice the first ADD/ADHD symptom because of the child’s behavior in the classroom and with other children.

The diagnosis of ADHD can not be based on a single ADD/ADHD symptom but must be made by a licensed health professional who has evaluated the child based on a variety of information. This normally happens only after the possibility of other causes for the symptoms have been ruled out. To learn more about the symptoms and characteristics of the disorder, go to http://www.google.com/search?q=add%2Fadhd+symptom&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a.

Although there is no cure for ADHD, there are treatments that can improve the child’s ability to function in all areas of their life. Medication, psychotherapy, education and training as well as a combination of any of these treatments may be used. The important first step is in recognizing an ADD/ADHD symptom and taking the steps to have the child diagnosed.