Research Paper Example on ADHD

📌Category: Disorders, Health, Mental health
📌Words: 1563
📌Pages: 6
📌Published: 21 June 2022

Abstract

Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a psychiatric condition that has long been recognized as affecting children and adult’s ability to function. Individuals suffering from this disorder show patterns of developmentally inappropriate levels of inattentiveness, hyperactivity, or impulsivity. Although there used to be two different diagnoses of Attention Deficit Disorder vs Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, the DSM IV combined this into one disorder with three subtypes: predominantly inattentive, predominantly hyperactive, or combined type.

How ADHD affects kids and adults?

Have you ever not been able to just sit down and focus on your work without having to thinking about a million other things and feel like you have to run and talk like non-stop? Well believe it or not many kids and adults go through this every day, I would know. Its known as ADHD. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) which is a brain disorder that affects how you pay attention, sit still, and control your behavior. It happens in children and teens and can continue into adulthood. ADHD is the most commonly diagnosed mental disorder in children. Boys are more likely to be diagnosed with it than girls are. It’s usually spotted during the early school years, when a child begins to have problems paying attention, but it can also go undiscovered into adulthood as well. In this research paper I will be going over several different things like how ADHD is managed, ways ADHD can be dealt with in school and the workplace, the causes and how it affects the brain and other things.

ADHD

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder also known as ADHD is a neurobehavioral development disorder diagnosed by a number of symptoms, which include having trouble sitting still, staying organized, absent-mindedness, difficulty focusing, forgetfulness, problem paying attention, and/or short attention span. ADHD can affect kids and adults in very different ways because as you get older if you were possibly diagnosed at an early age, you possibly know how to control it a little better than you did at a younger age.

History and Causes of ADHD 

Although there is no known cause for ADHD it is believed to be caused by Genes and that is estimated to make up about 75% of the risk, pre and perinatal risks, psychosocial factors and environmental toxins have all been considered as potential risk factors as well. The very first example of a disorder that was similar to ADHD was given by Sir Alexander Crichton in 1798 (Gunnerson, 2020).  ADHD was mentioned again in 1902 by British pediatrician Sir George Still described it as “an abnormal defect of moral control in children.” He found that some affected children could not control their behavior the way a typical child would, but they were still intelligent (Healthline, 2019).” By 1937 a man named Charles Bradley reported a positive effect of medications (Stimulants) in children with various disorders (Lange et al., 2010). Research is still being done on ADHD today to find out more about it. There has been a little debate that ADHD is caused by eating too much sugar, food additives, allergies, and/ or immunizations but there is no real research that any of that causes ADHD.

Who does ADHD affect and how?

Kids 

ADHD can affect children of all ages. A survey was done on the number of children diagnosed with ADHD and it showed that about 2.4% or 388,000 children between the ages of 2-5, and 9.6% or 2.4 million children aged 6-11 and then children between the ages of 12-18 were about 3 million have been diagnosed with ADHD as well (Team, 2021). Boys are more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD than girls are (12.9% compared to 5.6%). There were about 6 million children in the United States between the ages of 2-17 years old that had never received a diagnosis of ADHD and that represented about 9.4% of the total age-group nationwide (Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 2018). 

Adults

ADHD among the adult population was about 4.4%. Prevalence estimates for adult ADHD in the U.S. vary. A study that was done in 2019 estimated that an adult ADHD prevalence of about 0.96% doubling from 0.43% a decade prior too. According to prior studies the prevalence rate in the U.S. is between 2.5% and 4.4%, with the diagnosis rate for men being 5.4% and 3.2% for women (Saline, 2021).

Ways to help treat ADHD.

Treatment for ADHD can vary from different medications and even therapy and that goes for both children and adults. The use of medication is categorized as stimulants which are a class of drugs that speed up messages travelling between the brain and body. They can make a person feel more awake, alert, confident or energetic. Stimulants are used to treat moderate to severe cases of ADHD. These meds work for 70-80% of people (Bhargava, 2021). Again, these medications can be really helpful for kids and adults who have a hard time at school, work, and even at home just doing simple things like sitting still. But along with many other things it comes with side effects like loss of appetite, weight loss, sleeping problems, crankiness and irritability. Non-stimulants are in case stimulants don’t work or cause problems and then the non-stimulant medications may work better for the person. These medications can help improve concertation and impulse control. And the last one is antidepressants some people with ADHD might have depression, anxiety, and possibly dipolar disorder. They may take antidepressant along with a stimulant to help control their ADHD and other health issues (Bhargava, 2021). Therapy is also another way to help with ADHD. This includes talk therapy and psychological therapy and going to see a specialist well.

Kids in School and at home

For kids with ADHD in school there are programs and plans to help them with their schooling. Individualize Education Program (IEP) or a 504 plan can be put into place for the child (CDC, 2021). By putting this in place for your student or child, it will allow them more time for tests, Instructions given to them in a way they can best understand them, technology use for certain tasks, Allowing breaks and/or time to move around, which I believe to be really helpful sometimes because for a kid with ADHD it’s hard for them to sit still for long periods of time and keep their mind on just one thing, so allowing them to get up and move around for a little bit whether it be to take a walk around the classroom or to go get some water a little break can go a long way. Some more reasons it would help your child or student have an IEP or 504 plans would be that it can provide positive reinforcement and feedback, Changes to the environment to limit distraction and to get some extra help with staying organized.

Ways Teachers Can Help

Teachers of course play a major role with kids that have ADHD because they have to help them learn and stay on task as well. Some of the thing they can do to help their student with ADHD would be to provide them with visual reminders and examples, whether that be with notes or assignments printed on bright colored paper or maybe something written in bright colors as well (Dendy, 2021). Teachers can also do more hands-on activities and increase the active class participation. Another thing that would help students with ADHD would be to establish the rules for the classroom as a whole and post them somewhere everyone can see them like in front of the classroom or taped to the desk or tables and also get into a routine. Some accommodations that can be made would be to reduce potential distractions by sitting them near your desk or by sitting them near the front of the classroom, use positive peer models, prepare for transitions (like next class, recess, lunch time or that it’s time to get a new book), and like said above allow for movement and let the child play because it can really help them in the end (Dendy, 2021). They can also reward them if they had a good day and they listened and got all of their work done, because letting them know they are doing a great job can really help them in the long run.

Kids at Home

First thing a parent should do for their child with ADHD is to make sure they know that nothing is wrong with them and also be involved with them by taking time to hang out with them or run around and play if you can. Know how ADHD effects your child because it does affect kids in different ways and if they’re on medications how it affects them as well. Work closely with your child’s school finding out how they are doing in class and working with other students and also to find out if the school believes an IEP or a 504 plan needs to be put into place (Hasan, 2020). Make sure you’re checking in and talking to them about how things are going with school and in life as well.

Adults at Work

According to WebMD excellent focus, attention to detail, speed and organization are all the things that employers look for in their employees and potential job candidates. Working adults with ADHD, just like with the kids it can be really hard for them to focus, and get their job done correctly and maybe even on time. ADHD affects job performances in a number of ways. Because if you can’t sit still for a long period of time or have trouble with staying organized and focused things at work can really be hard. Many adults who are restless, aren’t able to concentrate, or have other symptoms have never really been formally diagnosed with ADHD (WebMD, 2021). If you have experienced any of the symptom of ADHD, the first thing you should do is have a talk with your doctor and have them recommend a specialist to you. And like stated above in the “ways to help” section adults have ways of helping them deal with their ADHD for their jobs like medication, therapy and etc.

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