Help Grandson with ADHD

[Josie]

My six year old grandson is having a slight problem in school. He is a very active kid and I figured there would be issues when he got to school full day. The boy lives to run and loves to jump off of anything that he can climb. He learned to ride a bike in a day and only has two speeds on it...stop and as fast as his little legs can pump the pedals. And that is great but when it comes to sitting in school and listening to the teacher teach, he really struggles. His teacher understands his issues and tries to help him as much as possible. We just found out that he also has a mild hearing loss in one ear. I really don't want them to medicate the boy out of him, but I do understand that some people struggle a lot with this and medication is a great help. Anyway, I believe that my daughter is wanting to try caffeine with him to see if it will calm him down a bit but is having a problem finding something that he might drink without a ton of sugar. Coffee and tea would be great but there aren't too many six year olds that will drink it black! Can anyone suggest something palatable to a six year old?

As it stands now, the boy comes home from daycare and has to run full speed on the treadmill for 15-20 minutes and he's good for maybe 20 minutes of homework time. But then the energy just starts to bubble up again!

 

[Shooter]

Ill volunteer to get a transfusion of energy from him,

My grandson ADHD, he big thing for calming down was a swing set, he would swing as high as he could, hes 18 now,still has some issues but mostly under control, from what I learned about it, no 2 kids react the same to treatment, just gotta try things and see how they react
Good luck,

 

[duchess47]

My son had this as a child, as did my nephew. My brother gave his son coffee which helped a lot. I took my son off sugar and anything with red or yellow dye and all sodas. That helped him tremendously.

I believe there are energy drinks that have caffeine but no sugar.

 

[Breeta]

My 7 year old son has mild autism and is much the same. My friend’s son is 7 as well, no diagnosis, and the same. 6 and 7 year old boys are very active. In fact I think 20 minute attention span is pretty much normal for this age for boys.
I tried giving him diet mountain dew (high in caffeine) and it had no effect... so we just give him lots and lots of movement breaks and ket him know the daily schedule (visual chart). We use a visual timer and first 20 minutes homework. then 20 minutes play. Then 20 minutes more homework (or read), then 20 minutes play...

Also, my son could stay up all night bouncing off the walls. 1mg melatonin 1 hour before bedtime helps him go to sleep after nighttime routine (bath, storytime, prayers). It was recommended by his doctor.

ETA: oh yes, watch the food dyes & preservatives, sugar and possibly even gluten. I was going to suggest looking into probiotics as well.

 

[Hfcomms]

I don’t know why she would want to try caffeine as that is a stimulant unless it works differently with kids. And as you had mentioned sugar that is a big no no for several reasons so certainly minimize his sugar intake. If the school system really gets their claws into him they are going to want to put him on Ritalin which causes even more problems down the road.

The solution generally is pretty simple. Diet and environment are big factors. Try to get him off processed foods and avoid too many carbs which are rapidly metabolized into sugar. So for breakfast instead of cereal and things of that nature feed him eggs and meat like sausage and bacon which are metabolized slower and don’t give the blood sugar spikes which feed into him being ‘hyper’ in school. And with school lunches those are usually really high in carbs as well and by 1pm the kids are really juiced again and it‘s hard for them to sit.

As for environment not to much you can do with the things at school they do to stimulate him but you can control the environment more at home. Provide a lot of structured activities that guide his energy appropriately. When he gets home he is amped up so that treadmill is a great idea if he likes it. Goals can be set for how long he is on it and he can record how long he is on and the intensity and see if he can increase the time he can do it by a minute or two at a time.

I doubt if he will have homework for a few years but try to get him a little tired before he does something that requires him to sit and pay attention. And if course take into consideration the short attention span of that age.

I think you will find that by changing his diet somewhat and by being creative in finding ways for him to tire himself out he will be manageable and get better. And of course it’s completely normal for little boys to be highly energetic and full of energy and many of the schools have forgotten that as it’s easier to medicate than to challenge and manage.

 

[WanderLore]

With ADHD, caffeine works to speed up the brain chemistry so much that it actually slows it all down.
My oldest and friends oldest the same. She gave Dr. Pepper. I did the diet thing. I started homeschool with him at 13. He is 40 now, still very active but great employee and makes backpacking you tubes.
He was on ritalin in school. They kept increasing the dose. Documented IQ of 147.
Bet your boy is mighty big smart.

 

[helen]

Coffee helped. Dancing and karate helped with patterned movement.

Daily Exercise Ideas for Children with ADHD

Research suggests that aerobic exercise can help decrease symptoms and improve functioning in children with ADHD. Here, ideas for incorporating physical activity into your child's daily routine.

www.additudemag.com

 

[Orion Commander]

If cafine helps put cream (lots of cream or milk) in the coffee. Half a glass of coffee and half of the glass milk. I liked it as a kid. Perhaps unsweetened chocolate in the coffee.

 

[1eagle]

www.waterjoe.com water with caffeine. Or maybe try small dosing of No-Doz? Is it even still made?

 

[Krayola]

I don’t know why she would want to try caffeine as that is a stimulant unless it works differently with kids

I know it sounds strange, but caffeine works differently in kids and it has been known to help kids with ADHD.

 

[West]

I'm glad this thread so far and the OP hasn't been about the benefits of ADHD drugs.

They insisted to put my 6 year old upon the recommendation of his teacher and the walk in doctor said sure, teacher know frigging best, and his mother was all for it to grrr..

I put my foot down as the father and at the time still living in the house, and CPS told me that it would be child abuse if I didn't drug him. Camel that ended my first marriage.

Adderall is what they forced upon my son and IMO really messed him up.

Still lives with his mom, in the house I built, now 21 years later.

 

[Faroe]

Kids, esp. boys shouldn't be sitting still for hours at a time in a structured class room. Ideally, home school. Also, a clean, lo-carb diet (at least sugar free), and more vigorous play.

 

[Digger]

They also might try a really good probiotic. I have a friend that Has an autistic son. She saw big improvements after putting him on a good probiotic. I don't know if it would help, but it certainly would not hurt to try it.

 

[kyrsyan]

Those levels of energy might be a hair high. Maybe. But if he can burn it off on a treadmill and then focus on homework for twenty minutes he is doing real good.
Twenty minutes is honestly a good length of time for that age.
I second or third removing red food coloring and high fructose corn syrup.
The trick for caffeine is that it is too easy for the body to adapt and demand more. So he should be taught to view it as a drug and use it sparingly. There are caffeine pills. And lower doses that the No Doz we were so fond of in college. She can look for a very low dose pill and let him carry it for when needed.
Yes, caffeine acts differently for those with ADD/ADHD. It brings two systems within the body to matching speed levels which allows them more control. My son has ADD. We managed to make it through to his adult years without the drugs. The drugs have their uses but almost none of them are actually tested for kids. If it can be done, let him get to mid twenties first so that his brain chemistry is less malleable/damageable.

 

[West]

My son at 6 was just like the OPs kid. He was just a vary smart and super active boy. Not only could he ride a bike but could also pull a wheelie and change the tire mostly. Also tie his shoes and showed excellent table manners. Not to mention climbing trees and building forts.

After six months of being drugged every day he forgot how to ride a bike, tie his shoes and practice any kind of table manners. But his teacher was happy and his grades did improve.

But at the loss of his hand eye coordination and natural mechanical skill set.

I think little boys like these need to be physically challenged to do even greater things. Perhaps building a real home/barn/forts, etc.. and teach them all of the math, geometry etc that's related to construction..or building a motor, etc.. really, thinking that would be a epic move and a huge betterment for society.

 

[hummer]

WOW! This thread hits me in my heart. Myself, one daughter, all 5 grandkids are ADHD/and/or ADD, all very intelligent.
We all had a huge learning curve. All the things mentioned in the above posts will help with some kids. Each kid is the same, but different. The first thing I did to help my daughter was to get familiar with Montessori Schools. they have been working with ADHD and ADD kids for years...they just didn't know it. lol They have a wealth of information.

Diet is very important...sugar and additives of any kind are usually not recommended. Eat Whole Foods or combinations of. Sensory input is very important... Example, Loud, screechy noises produce disruptive behavior. Harp music is extremely soothing, especially for meditation...as soft and mid to low musical piano tones. repetitive movement, like the swinging someone mentioned.

One of my grandsons was extremely tactilely defensive. He was unable to stand anything touching his skin, or the bottom of his feet. To this day he can only wear certain kinds of shirts, underwear, pants, etc. Plus he has grown in his ability to tolerate things against his skin. When in elementary school shoes and socks had to come off as soon as he got to class. He couldn't stand anything touching the bottom of his feet. Therefore, when other kids were sitting quietly at their desks doing work, he would be standing and jumping quietly from foot to foot, working his way around and around his desk, working on his assignments, and getting them done correctly.

As you read in the posts above, there are so very many things that can be short circuited, and so many ways to help those circuits that you have to experiment with different things. For my grdson with the extreme tactile issues, he couldn't stand to be touched, so it was a slow social process for him.

I know this is all jumbled, but that is where my mind is these days. These are just a few examples, ideas to look at. It takes time. and eventually as they grow they will begin to learn how to deal with it. They are all in their 20's now except for the 17 year old. They all feel comfortable with who they are.

Keep searching for information. Holding all of these wonderful kids and those that love them in my heart.

 

[Josie]

Thank you all for your experiences and suggestions. School these days are so different from when my kids (his mother) was going to school. Its a good Christian school he goes to and if he makes it through, will be more than prepared for high school. He has actually been having homework since pre-k. Two months into first grade the poor boy was studying for a SCIENCE test where there was an essay question on it! I didn't even know he knew enough words to put a sentence together, let alone answer an essay question!

 

[kyrsyan]

If he's handling that level of work then he's okay. Most who are adversely affectes by their ADD/ADHD find that it affects their ability to concentrate and get things done. But it may also be that the brain challenge is helping provide a version of an energy burn. Sounds like a smart boy.