"Home" remedies for ADD??

[imanaddict]

My stepson recently came to live with us and we just found out he has ADD. His mother is supposed to be carrying insurance on him and was for a while, but wouldn't give us a copy of his insurance card to take him to the dr. for it. She eventually started taking him herself and got him some meds (don't know the name). He ran out of medicine and his mother is saying she no longer has insurance for him. She is VERY unreliable, so this does not surprise me in the least. We cannot put him on my husband's insurance for another 10 months. We are having major problems out of him, behavior at home and at school, amongst other very touchy issues I do not want to discuss at this time. I'm at my wits end with him!!!! If we could afford to take him to every dr. that he would need to go to, believe me we would! So, the question I have is are there any kind of "Home" remedies I can try for ADD until we can get this mess straightened out?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!!

[victoriabalch]

Thanmk you for the information, it is all great and I think it will work with my son! love you for it!!!!!

[speck135les]

you cant honestly believe that theres no treatment foir aspergers. all of us within the spectrum that i know treat ourselves with turmeric from the spice aisle in your local grocery; its as simple as that.

[Sandman2]

     I am glad to hear that two of your kids are doing ok without the meds.  I feel for your older one.   I have never found or seen a natural remedy that will work for ADHD.   Omega 3's do seem to help a little.  The sleep study is important.  All the research I have seen shows that lack of sleep will make ADHD symptoms worse.  The question is what is causing the lack of sleep?  The reasons can be either physical (swollen adenoids, etc), ADHD related (its a common symptom), or environmental (his sleeping area and people in it).  
    A lot of physical activity will help him.  How old is he?  I mean if you could get him on a swim team and exhaust him - you would notice a difference!     Melatonin might help.  But, it may be that he will be the one that really does need some kind of medication to help him through the day and night.  This is where a good responsive doctor is really important!
   As for your youngest one - at least part of his aggression problems may be his older brothers and sisters (?).  Kids do learn from those around them!  But here again, I don't know how old he is and can't really suggest specific ideas until I know that.
   I would highly suggest (especially since all of your kids have some form of AD/HD) to buy the book,   "The ADD/ ADHD Answer book," by Susan Ashley.  Its only about 10 bucks via Amazon.  It will give you a ton of very helpful information.  I also can give you lots of web sites to go to for help, but I really need more info.  Don't be afraid to ask for more info.  But if you could please address just one child at a time - it makes giving help a lot easier.  Best wishes.

[Raeshell]

I have 5 children. Three have ADHD and one has ADD. My first child could not be tested until he was 4 years of age.They have all been on meds. We stopped all meds for all 4 of them. Two of them manage well without it. However,one son has suffered with ADHD a little more than the others. He is aggressive. When he isn't on his medication he doesn't sleep well. Every night he talks in his sleep sometimes hollers out loud. Gets up and walks through the house and I have to walk him back to bed. He is very restless. He usually dreams horrible dreams that something is after him. Scary stuff. He is very smart. He needs meds but I would much rather some type of herbal theraphy. The least little thing sets him off and he's ready to attack his siblings. We were going to do a sleep study and we had a storm come through at that time and his doctor at that time moved. So we never proceeded with it. My youngest is having a very hard time with aggression also. Anyone have any suggestions?          

[Norman209]

Coffie surprisingly

[Sandman2]

   Whoa,  me thinks you are kind of pulling your hair out now.  I can't imagine how frustrating have 3 out of 4 kids with ADHD must be.  There is some very good advice by bminor and dai3symae.  I think they must have started posting before I joined this forum, so I am glad you brought up this old link.  Some good (and not so good) stuff here.  And while I agree with your feelings about a certain poster - ya, kind of went a bit overboard.  So that is going to disappear.  
   But, you must have a lot to share and I hope you do so!  And if we can be of help please ask!  Best wishes.

[dorotheap3883]

I wish I could be as great of a parent to my children as you were to yours! Great Job! 3 out of 4 of my children are ADHD, sometimes, I want to pull my hair out!

[jsbeiti]

I've been ADD since I was 10 or so. It affected my ability to focus and learn. Sadly back then, it was just perceived to be a behavioral issue and not something that could be dealt with socially. We've come a long way in terms of learning what is helpful and not. I really enjoyed reading so many comments posted about people's own challenges and how they've coped. I thought it would be only right for me to offer my suggestions.

1. Diet is very important! The foods and beverages I consume today is vastly different than when I was growing up or in college (budget constraints!) Pick up on more raw foods! Uncooked foods offer the greatest natural nutrients to the body and mind!

2. Social involvement: Sounds absurd but the people you associate with, the conversations you have on a daily basis impact greatly how you feel and your ability to effectively participate. Basically, you have to surround yourself with people and activities that help you thrive!

3. A little supplemental nudge! I've personally tried vitamins and B has helped but issue is they are a little too synthetic (rarely food-based) and hence I don't know that they are as effective. I decided to try natural food-based supplements that could possibly give me the brain endurance I needed to focus (my greatest adversary!) I've been taking VavAlert ( http://www.vavalertusa.com ) for about 6 months now and honestly been blown away by its impact on how I feel and perform, mainly with regards to improving concentration and focus.

4. Learn to not multi-task! This is also a big one! Multi tasking is overrated and creates ONE BIG Problem! It distracts you from FOCUSING!

I hope my pointers help someone! I look forward to reading other people's experiences along the way!

[allmymarbles]

Off the top of my head I would suggest you give him to drink coffee at breakfast. The usual meds for ADHD are uppers. So is coffee. Cheap too.

[christeneyck]

i dont know of any home remidies but what ever you do do not use concerta cause it will mess up your life

[maremus]

well i have ADD benn dealing with no meds for 15 years, what ido when it gets so outa hand i cant do anything.... is take 2 pills of st. Johns wart, how ever it does not seem to work if I take it everyday, so i only take it when ABSOLUTELY needed, you can find  st.johns wart at gnc, or most places that carry vitamins, got mine at walmart 100 pills for $4 and take it about 1 a week sometimes 2 times a week  

[benjimom]

wow, never thoguht about the aluminum that could go into capri-sun nad it's all natural too.  Well, good thing my son isn't crazy about it.  

[Beetroot]

RE: Capri Sun. Further to the issue of HFCS and dubious "natural" ingredients (see http://www.adhdawareness.com/child-nutrition.html for example), I just came across this video series. Listen from about 2min50 in the first video and you'll hear that just drinking Capri Sun seemed to be CAUSATIVE in ADHD presumably because of aluminium leeching into the drink... so ditching Capri Sun could be a big help!

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/03/20/david-ayoub-interview-february-2010.aspx

Best Wishes,

Paul

[April2]

There really is something to classical music. It's not just that it's soothing, it's also supposed to help with focus, etc. They say it can help with the mental development of babies and children. Many studies have shown that listening to Mozart, Bach and other composers is very good for the brain and improves the grades of students who listen regularly..

[Melissa0116]

Just another helpful thing for ADHD.  I read that listening to classical music is very soothing for a child with ADHD.  I recently got a CD for my son and he listens to it at night and it really helps him sleep.  Also, I give him 3mg melatonin 1 hour before bedtime and this really helps him calm down.  

[April2]

I have a friend who was very into health food and all natural and both her boys had ADHD. She started giving them flax seed oil in a smoothie every morning and swears she saw a huge difference in them when they were on the flax seed oil. When she stopped it for awhile, she said she noticed the difference. It might be worth looking in to.

[Sandman2]

   L-Theanine isn't caffeine.  The health section of the Times said there are some studies that show L-theanine will help.  I don't personally know if it will, but it won't hurt to try.  It is in some new enery drinks.  Gatorade has it out in a product called Tiger.  Vitamin Water and SoBeLife also has it.  Look for the highest concentration.
   And by the way, I am pretty sure that you can now get Kool Aid without sugar. But it won't taste as  good.  Try mixing it with club soda (no calories), but a real zing that won't make her bounce off walls.

[imanaddict]

Someone mentioned caffeine, but I'm kind of skeptical of letting him drink caffeine since it really isn't good for you. I don't let my kids drink a lot of juice or cokes because of the enormous amounts of sugar and they are pretty active already! LOL! My 4 year old daughter will ask me for Kool Aid, and I'll say, "No baby." She'll say, "Why? Because it makes us bounce off the walls?" I just laugh and say "That's right!"

[Sandman2]

Let us know how the L-theanine works.  The LA Times "Health" section just had a article on it.  Article was kind of inconclusive and didn't really mention use for ADHD, but it definitely let one believe it could be helpful since it does pass the brain/blood barrier.  Several "energy" drinks are now appearing with it in them.

[imanaddict]

Oh cool! Thanks for the advice on the L-theanine. I'll get him some of that too,

[Melissa0116]

Also, you can use L-theanine since this is used to help the brain and concentration.  There have been many studies done with this and has proved to work very well.  If you go to the 700 club website and do a search for ADHD and L-theanine or go directly to the page:

http://www.cbn.com/media/browse_videos_info.aspx?s=/vod/GTO505v2


Hope this helps................

[imanaddict]

Thank you for everyone's input! We finally got his mother to give us his insurance card (a copy of it anyway) and we got him on the proper medication. He's on metadate 20 mg once a day. It has helped tremendously with his school work and grades. He has went from being a "C" (report card) student, to an A and B student. I also have him on Fish Oil (to support healthy heart since he has heart murmurs) and Melatonin to promote brain function.

Now if only there were a "behavior" pill...LOL! J/K!

[BMinor]

Sorry that didn't work.

brandi.minor is my user name for my email

I am with hotmail

[BMinor]

Well, I am sure you have it all taken care of by now but I thought that I will still give my advice for others that may have this same problem.

I have dealt with ADD issues for my whole life and still have them as an adult. I also have been in contact with many children with severe ADD symptoms. So my advice is as follows:

For school work:
1. Children with ADD hate school. They will do anything to avoid doing homework because it is hard, they don't get it, and it takes a long time (people with ADD tend to take about twice as long to do the same work as someone without it)
    a. Keep in constant contact with the teachers. i.e. Have them sign an assignment notebook that the child wrote down their assignment in (in pen because they will surely erase the assignments in pencil after the teacher has signed it), or have the teacher send you a daily email with the assignments for the day.
     b. When studying, mix it up. And mix it up often. People with ADD get bored very easily when doing things they are not interested in. Make flash cards, have them read it out loud, you read it out loud to them, quiz them, make homemade worksheets.
     c. Have an area set aside with NO distractions. Some students can study with music in the backround, the TV on, or with a view of the outside world, but students with ADD can't handle that and still be productive. They already battle the distractions in their head about EVERYTHING else, outside distractions should be minimal, if not, nonexistant.
     d.   Take lots of breaks. People with ADD get frusterated and a feeling of their "brain being full". Every 20 or 30 minutes let them get up for a few minutes and walk around.
    
2. At home
     a. Structure! I can't express how important structure is. Everyday should be very close to the same. Study time, dinner time, bed time, tv time...they should all be at the same time everyday. It reduces frustration and provides comfort in knowing what is going to happen and when. Behavior problems will decrease drastically once the child gets used to this one small step.
     b. Take everything away. Most parents give their children everything and take things away when they do things the parents don't approve of. In my experience this teaches children to find ways around it. (Don't get caught and nothing will happen). It teaches to hide poor behavior as opposed to showing off good behavior. By taking everything away from the beginning and allowing priveledges for studying, or chores it gives a feeling of accomplishment and pride in what they have done. This is particularly helpful in kids with ADD since they have very low self esteem. Think about it, you don't get cable if you don't go to work and make the money to pay for it. You earned your TV time.
     c. Provide immediate concequences for actions. For children with ADD a great one to try is physical activity. This helps relieve frustration, burn off energy, and also promotes physical activity. The amount should reflect the issue. For example, your child back-talks you - 10 push ups, your child takes TV time without earning it - 50 push ups, your childs hits his kid sister, 100 jumping jacks. Do the same thing, EVERYTIME.
     d.  Put it in writing. Put house rules in writing. That way, there is no forgetting and no mistaking.

Good Luck. I hope this advice works. Teaching children how to cope with ADD is something that will follow them their whole life. ADD doesn't go away but if you can learn how to deal with your individual problems you can overcome it!

If anyone has any questions please feel free to contact me at

brandi.***@****
Entitle it: ADD Posting