ADHD Management

What is ADHD? 

In the old days, ADHD was perceived as bad parenting, out-of-control children or ‘naughty boy syndrome’, which led to parents being judged in social situations. Due to this, many parents found themselves in isolation.  

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However, new neuroscientific research carried out by Professor Katya Rubia, and others over two decades of structural and functional MRI research shows otherwise. The brain abnormalities compared to ADHD child brain and non-ADHD child brain.  

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The structural MRI measures the structure of the brain, while fMRI measures the function of the brain. These longitudinal studies show that findings of differences in the brains of ADHD children are not different from the norm. Yet, it is delayed in the velocity of the normal maturation in the process. The delay in the maturation of the brain structure is between three and five years, depending on the region of the brain. The cortical thickness and surface area increase with age due to a proliferation of synaptic connections between neurons in childhood and peak, on average, at about the age of seven, after which there is a decrease in cortical thickness due to a competitive elimination of synaptic connections.  

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This peak of cortical thickness maturation is related to cognitive maturation, i.e. children with an earlier peak of cortical thickness have better cognition skills.  This process is delayed in people with ADHD by three to five years. The frontal lobe is the region that is most delayed in the peak of cortical thickness of up to five years. In some areas, followed by the temporal lobe, where the peak is up to four years delayed in certain areas, also parietal regions, which are important for attention shown to be delayed in maturation (Shaw et al., 2007, 2013) 

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ADHD Symptoms

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Managing ADHD Symptoms

ADHD affects the “executive functioning” of the 11 areas. We will focus on a one-to-one basis with an integrated approach of neuroscience, mindfulness, and simple techniques to help you with your symptoms and target the executive centre part of the brain.  

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1. Response inhibition 

Develop skills to stop and think to delay an impulsive action.

 

2. Working memory 

Develop the ability to remember relevant information and apply it when necessary.

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3. Emotional regulation  

Focus on the ability to manage emotions and feelings effectively.

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4. Sustain attention 

The ability to focus and concentrate despite distractions. 

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5. Task initiation 

The ability to act without procrastinating. 

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6. Planning / Prioritisation 

The ability to implement a set of strategies to achieve a microtask or goal.

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7. Organisation 

The ability to implement a system in order to achieve your goal.

 

8. Time management  

Develop the ability to respond to micro-task in a timely fashion.

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9. Goal-directed persistence  

Develop the ability to complete tasks that require sustained effort and persistence.

 

10. Flexibility 

Develop the ability to be adaptable, improvise and shift approaches depending on the context.

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11. Metacognition  

Develop the ability to observe, monitor and assess the performance.