Q: Mornings are such a hassle for my family that by the time the kids leave for school, I am a wreck. I am constantly telling my kids what to do - particularly with Garth, my child with ADHD. If I were not on his case every moment, he’d end up at school in his pajamas! He just doesn’t seem to be able to stay focused on getting ready. I feel guilty that I am yelling way too much. Is there some way that we can have a calm morning with everyone just getting ready on time and out the door without me having to chase them every step of the way?
50 years ago, a classroom averaged one hyperactive child. Today, there are at least five to six hyperactive children per classroom. Our food has also changed more in the last 50 years than in the 500 years prior. Perhaps it’s simply a coincidence? I don’t think it’s an accident.
How many times has your daughter heard you complain about your body, its size, weight and shape? Is she a witness to you struggling with unrealistic diet or exercise regimes? Has she ever heard you say that you hate some part of your body? Has she ever heard you say that you are comfortable with yourself and the skin you are in?
The diagnosis of ADD (attention deficit disorder), or its more severe cousin ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), has become a controversial one. Attaching a diagnosis to a set of symptoms usually helps to solve the problem by suggesting a method of treatment. Once it is discovered, for example, that a child has pneumonia, the proper antibiotics can be prescribed and the illness is usually cured. Pneumonia has a relatively clear set of symptoms that suggest the disease, and the suggestion can be confirmed using laboratory tests. ADD is not like this.
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