Amy Smith, MS, LMHC

Are you raising a child who has ADHD? Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a problem with inattentiveness, over-activity, impulsivity, or a combination of both. As a counselor at Life Skills Resource Group I often work with adults and children who are dealing with ADHD. As a parent, dealing with these issues can be overwhelming and frustrating.  To manage the daily pressures of parenting a child with ADHD it is important to have knowledge and understanding of what ADHD looks like and how to best treat the symptoms.  It is also important to boost your child’s self-confidence while helping him or her navigate through the symptoms in a healthy manner.  There are many tools and skills that can be helpful to parenting a child with ADHD, but a good place to start is with you, the parent.  
 
Take Time For Yourself
 
Raising a child who is ADHD is a full time job, and then some. After working all day and dealing with the stress of daily life, addressing the issues that face your child with ADHD can lead to a lot of frustration.  There are probably days when you think to yourself that nothing that you do is helping and that you are fighting an uphill battle.  Therefore, it is important to take time for yourself each and every day.  It may seem impossible, but setting aside time each day for you to regain control and recharge your spirit will lead to a positive environment for you to help your child best.  Here are a few ideas to get you started.  
 
1. Talk to a friend
2. Listen to music
3. Read
4. Take a bath
5. Cook
6. Exercise
7. Meditate
8. Pray
9. Watch movie
10. Go for walk
11. Journal
   
Here are a few other ideas that will also help you address the pressures of raising a child with ADHD
 
1. Attend Counseling
2. Take parenting classes
3. Join a support group. Orlando CHADD meets Downtown
1505 E. Michigan St. Orlando, Florida 32806
 
Now, that you’ve taken steps to get yourself in the right place to help your child, make sure you are doing everything you can to boost your child’s confidence and nurture that supportive environment.
How to boost your child’s confidence
Tell your child that you love and support her or him unconditionally. There will be days when you may not believe this yourself. Those will be the days when it is even more important that you acknowledge the difficulties your child faces on a daily basis, and express your love. Let your child know that you will get through the smooth times and the rough times together.
Assist your child with social skills. Children with ADHD may be rejected by peers because of hyperactive, impulsive or aggressive behaviors. Parent training can help you learn how to assist your child in making friends and learning to work cooperatively with others. Learning these social skills may not be easy, so it takes consistent effort on your part to help your child learn these skills.
Identify your child’s strengths. Many children with ADHD have strengths in certain areas such as art, athletics, computers, or mechanical ability. Build upon these strengths, so that your child will have a sense of pride and accomplishment. Make sure that your child has the opportunity to be successful while pursuing these activities and that his or her strengths are not undermined.
Set aside a daily “special time” for your child. Constant negative feedback can erode a child’s self-esteem. A “special time,” whether it’s an outing, playing games, or just time spent in positive interaction, can help fortify your child against assaults to self-worth. Simply put, do something fun with your child.
Helping a child with ADHD is a challenge to any parent, so make sure you take time for yourself, and most importantly, give your child the love and support they will need to work through it.  If you need more help, the Orlando counselors and life coaches at Life Skills Resource Group have made a commitment to help individuals, couples, children, adolescents, and families incorporate positive healthy skills into their lives and would be honored to help you and your family. Please read about OUR TEAM here at Life Skills Resource Group in Orlando and become familiar with the counselors and life coaches who are willing to help you on your journey.  AMY