The percentage of children diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in the US has risen significantly in the past two decades, going from six to 10 percent of the population. This raises the need to equip more parents with proper childrearing strategies aimed at kids with ADHD.
If your child has ADHD and you want to learn to manage them effectively, these guidelines should help:
Accept that your child is imperfect like other kids.
Before you can raise your child well, you may need to deal with how you feel towards their condition. Children can feel the resentment and pessimism of their parents, and these may rub off on their confidence and self-esteem.
Take the time you need to make peace with the fact that your child is imperfect. In hindsight, most kids are. Your child just happens to have a rather different case. But it doesn’t mean that your child will never amount to anything.
Kids with ADHD have been found to possess gifts that others don’t have such as creativity, bursting energy, and amazing interpersonal skills. Acknowledge the strengths of your child and do your best to encourage them to hone their talents and skills.
Plan a behavior management therapy.
A behavior management therapy has one goal: encourage a positive change in the behavior of your child. You can do this by using either positive reinforcements or punishments. The goal is to teach your child the consequences of their actions and change their behavior according to the consequences they want to achieve (or avoid).
Planning a behavior management therapy is best left to professionals that offer help for kids with ADHD in Utah. Their professional training and years of experience will save you hours of work and mistakes.
As a parent, you also have to decide which behaviors are acceptable and not. This will help you stay consistent and aligned with the therapy given by the professionals. Some behaviors should always be unacceptable such as violent outbursts, unwillingness to turn off the TV when told to do so, and more.
It’s better to use positive reinforcements.
When trying to instill a positive behavior on a child with ADHD, offering praise and rewards instead of punishments yield better results. Because of their condition, your kid may not have full control over some of their behaviors. They may easily lose focus when doing Math problems or following specific instructions.
Instead of punishing your child, consider offering rewards. For example, you can establish a rewards system where your child earns a point for every Math problem they solve or whenever they turn off the TV when told. These points can then be redeemed as money to spend on treats or other things that interest them.
Successfully raising a child with ADHD into a well-functioning, productive adult is probably one of the biggest achievements you, as a parent, can ever have. Stay patient, ask for help when you need to, and constantly learn about the condition and how you can help your child.
