Does this sound familiar to you? “My child is struggling in school… the teacher complains that they don’t complete their class work, can’t follow directions, and are frequently daydreaming. Their grades are below average, yet I know that they are intelligent. Homework takes forever, and is a constant battle. If this were not enough, they are frequently getting into trouble at school, and it’s the same at home. The poor kid can’t get a break, and the family is constantly in an uproar. We always dread the start of the next school year, and things seem to be getting steadily worse.”
If the academic performance and/or behavioral part of this statement sounds familiar to you, there is a good chance that your child may be suffering from ADHD. The destruction of the child’s self esteem, and the conflict and chaos wrought on family dynamics can be devastating.
A further complication to this problem is that many parents, thinking that the side effects and rigors of life-long medication are the only remedy, try to deny the problem and avoid testing and treatment. Fortunately, medication is definitely not the only form of successful treatment. We’ll discuss this more in a moment.
The problems mentioned above and the hectic schedule of the school, sports, etc. often make it near impossible to get help during the school year. However, when the school year ends, and the summer is finally here, an opportunity presents itself to make a big change for the better. Neurofeedback treatment for ADHD requires thirty sessions, each being thirty minutes long, with a minimum of one session a week. During the school year the pace of life can be so hectic that the treatment may take four to seven months to complete. In the summertime, the opportunity presents itself for a “Short Course” treatment, which can be completed in one to two months.
One of the gifts of childhood is an innocence, which (as long as their self esteem isn’t too damaged) prompts them to believe (without anything actually occurring to bring it about) that next year will always be better. If the child’s parents actually correct the problem over the summer, then a beautiful thing happens to the child’s belief in his/her self. They discover that, “you know what?… I was right to believe in myself… things are better this year.” When parents intervene for their children in this way, not only does their performance and/or behavior turn around for the better, but the parents also give their child an incredible boost in self-confidence and self-reliance. These are wonderful gifts to give your child!
Neurofeedback is an effective, drug and side effect free, painless procedure in which the child learns to re-train the attention mechanisms of the brain, alleviating the condition. Once training is complete, no further treatment is necessary.
To request information on the treatment of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD, ADHD), Mild to Moderate Autism Spectrum Disorders, Sleep Disorders, Chronic Depression, Chronic Anxiety, and Peak Performance Training pleasecontact:
Dr. Stephen Ferrari for Orange County Neurofeedback
