ADD/ADHD

As I have talked about before, my son has ADHD. He is actually on medication for it. There are a lot of people in the world that have this, so really, it's not that big of a deal...unless you are the parent of an ADHD kid. If you are a parent of a kid with this and say it's not big deal, then you are either a)lying or b)a saint! Let me just say, I love my son so much and I am so grateful to have him in my life. He may not have come to me in the typical way, but he was definitely meant to be my son. That said, sometimes he makes me cry, scream, yell, shake my fists, laugh, want to pull my hair out and wonder about the mother's curse. Surely it was my late husband that had the mother's curse for a kid that is so full of energy that within 5 minutes you are exhausted! It definitely wasn't me!! I was a very calm, quiet and shy kid. I know some wouldn't believe that, but I really was!

ADHD kids are energetic, so much so it's as if they run on a motor with the throttle wide open! They talk nonstop, even in situations where you really don't want them talking and they talk about everything...I mean EVERYTHING!! They are also loud! It is impossible to keep them quiet and for them to keep secrets. (Someday I will share my favorite story of him embarrassing me in Walmart a few years ago!) If a kid like this has something to say, they are going to say it no matter what. No matter how many times you tell them no, walk away, shush them, tell them they can tell you later, it doesn't matter...they are going to say it! Their maturity levels are usually not up to the same levels as other kids their age. They have bad tempers and will usually pitch fits or have "melt downs" on a regular basis. They have to be told every single day what they need to do...even with routine stuff. They are impulsive. If they want to do something, they will just do it without even thinking about what the consequences could be. They get distracted very easily! My son gave the perfect example of this the other day. We were walking to the park and ran into a friend and her kids on the way. He was trying to tell her about getting hit in they eye with a baseball a couple weeks ago. He was halfway through telling the story, saw the park and ran off...without ever finishing the story! I just had to laugh! (and finish the story!)

Yesterday I needed to get some housecleaning done. So I went into my room to start folding clothes and finish cleaning my bedroom and bathroom. I folded some of the laundry and took the towels and rags into the kitchen. When I got into the kitchen I saw that I needed to do dishes, so I started doing dishes. Then I remembered I needed to sweep and mop the bathroom floor, so I started with that before I finished the dishes. Then as I was sweeping the kitchen floor, I saw that I didn't finish the dishes and didn't wipe down the counters. Ok, this went on and on and I'm pretty sure you get the picture. I think it took me twice as long to clean my house as it normally would because I kept getting distracted!! I got to thinking...does Attention Deficite wear off on people?! I was very frustrated with myself!

Anyway, back to my story (see...another sign that ADD wears off on people), I have also noticed that ADD/ADHD kids, and adults, are very smart! My boy struggles in school and doesn't have good grades, but he is such a stronge visual learner. He can look at something and see how it works and how it's supposed to go together. He also is the kid, that if you lose something, ask him to help you find it because he is the one that is going to. He won't stop until he does! When he went on the scout camping trip he INSISTED on building the fire and wanted to learn right then and there and wouldn't take no for an answer. Thank goodness for a leader that was understanding and taught him how to do it...he learned on the first try and was so proud of himself. He also was the youngest kid on the campout and left all those older boys in the dust on the 5 mile hike! He and I went for a mile run yesterday morning...he left me in the dust! I think he would be awesome at track and I think I might have convinced him of that because he asked if we could keep running. :) That will be good for me for sure! Sometimes when we are coming home from somewhere, I will drop him off a couple blocks away and he will run home just to burn off a tiny bit of his excess energy. How frustrating it must be to have so many thoughts in his head that just go round and round, but his brain won't land on any particular thought for very long.

I am still learning patience and still learning the best way to teach my son how to be a good, decent, honest person. I slip and fall back into my old habits of total and complete frustation, but I'm trying. If you see me falling asleep on my feet or have a look of desperation on my face, now you know why...I'm exhausted trying to keep up and maybe it was a frustrating day for both of us!