ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a common disorder among the children, although the child does suffer due to the illness—so does the parents. Raising a child with this illness is not like your normal child rearing, which means that regular rule-making household routines may not work well.
With this said, it can be frustrating for the parents to cope up with some of the child’s behavior which is a result of ADHD. However, there are ways to lift the burden up other, than taking the medication for this illness such as Ritalin which can be bought with some Ritalin discount coupon in local pharmacies.
Thus, here are the ways to cope up from this illness and some parenting tips that could surely help not only your child but for you as a parent too.
Creating structure
Create a structure for your child’s day. Meaning, you should make a routine of your child to stick to every day. With this, you can help your child exercise to be focused on specific activities, which would undoubtedly help with the child’s focus building.
With this being said, establish rituals that your child can stick to, such as meals, homework, playtime, and bedtime, wherein simple tasks are also included in between, such as laying out his or her things for the next day. These simple and daily tasks can provide essential structure while your child is growing.
Break the Tasks
Your child is not the same as normal children. Thus, there is something needed to be done for your child so that he or she would not be overwhelmed with the tasks at hand.
For example, try using an eye-catching large wall calendar to help your child be reminded of the tasks they are assigned to. Color coding their chores and homework can also keep your child from being burdened with their everyday tasks and homework. Also, take note that even their morning routing should be broken down into manageable pieces so that they can manage it all well.
Organize and Simplify
Organize and simplify your child’s life by creating a quiet special space for your child to read, do homework, and take a break from their everyday life. Make your home simple, neat, and organized so that your child wouldn’t be puzzled as to where does everything goes. Because of this action, you help your child reduce the unnecessary distractions, which both of you benefits from.
Encourage Healthy Lifestyle
Encourage a healthy lifestyle through a proper diet and encouraging exercise and regulating your child’s sleeping pattern. Physical activity burns excess in healthy ways, and that’s precisely what you want and what your child needs. Not only that, but it also helps the child to focus their attention and may decrease impulsivity.
On the other hand, regulating your child’s sleeping pattern might be difficult for you since children who have ADHD cannot sleep easily as how the other kids can. So, you should help your child get better sleep by eliminating stimulants like sugar and caffeine, all the while decreasing their television time. You can also add some healthy and calming bedtime ritual to enhance their rest.
Encourage Speaking Out
Perhaps you already know about this, but children that have ADHD lack self-control which causes them to speak and act before thinking. With this said, to help both of you, you should ask your child to speak out or to verbalize their thoughts and reasoning when the urge to act out occurs.
It is essential to do this since it is needed that you understand your child’s train of thoughts for you to help him or her curb out impulsive behaviors.
Promote Wait Time
The main characteristic of ADHD that you would want to be reduced is controlling their impulsiveness. Thus, here is one of the ways in controlling the impulse to act before thinking: promoting wait time. With this said, you should help your child how to pause for a moment before talking, acting, or replying.
For example, encourage your child more by encouraging more thoughtful responses by helping him or her with homework assignments while asking some interactive questions about a favorite book or television.
Takeaway
As a parent, there’s surely is nothing more important than to see your child grow into the man or woman that you hope them to be. And certainly, your child can still grow into one too, and you only need to believe in your child and yourself that you can guide them properly despite the setback.
Lastly, you should also take good care of yourself. As what they say, you cannot pour from an empty cup. Thus you should also seek help, such as counseling, and take breaks like scheduling an alone time for yourself, then take time to breathe and relax.