Edge Foundation Blog

You may have noticed that the Edge Foundation has never taken a position about whether or not to use of medication (ex. Ritalin, Adderall etc.) in treating ADHD symptoms. The reason for this is simple: we believe that whether or not you take medication is a personal decision that each family must make after consulting with a qualified doctor. It is not our place, nor the place of people who aren’t living with your ADHD to have any say in the matter.

Yet, there are plenty of vocal opponents to ADHD medication. You don’t have to look far to hear the criticism that we are overmedicating our children in this society. We say to them, walk a mile in ADHD shoes before you start to criticize. Judith Warner has done just that.

Author discovers over medication is a misconception

When best-selling author Judith Warner landed a book deal, she believed that American children were overmedicated. Surprise – turns out she was wrong! What she discovered instead was that this common misconception couldn’t be farther from the truth. “Not only has Warner never met a parent who lunged for the medicine cabinet to dope up their kids, but some fought the medication route as long as they could, to the detriment of their child,” says Kirkus Reviews, Dec 01, 2009.

Warner’s book, We’ve Got Issues: Children and Parents in the Age of Medication, ended up being a thoughtful exploration of how we can help our children live successful lives using all of the tools we have at our disposal – including medication. We hope Warner’s book will help assuage the shame, fear, guilt and embarrassment felt among many people who have decided to use medications as part of their ADHD treatment plan.

Medication doesn’t cure ADHD

And we also want to underline the importance of understanding that medication is not a cure for ADHD. “Medication should be viewed as a useful tool to help individuals with AD/HD make positive changes in their lives as a part of a multi-modal approach which should include positive behavioral management and supports such as ADHD coaching,” says Edge Foundation Executive Director, Robert Tudisco. Tudisco is much more concerned about the diversion of AD/HD medication to individuals who have not been prescribed to use them by a doctor such as sharing them with friends to help them pull an all-nighter, or failing to safeguard prescribed medication that is stolen on campus and either sold or taken by individuals without medical supervision. He is currently working on an article on the subject to be published in Attention Magazine later this year.

The important thing for parents and students alike to know is the best person who can know whether or not medications are for you, is you (along with your physician’s guidance.) And as for those who are misinformed, operating under popular misconceptions, or trying to sell a product, we encourage you to get the facts from a qualified physician and point them in the direction of Warner’s book.

Over the past several months, we’ve been focusing on anxiety and ADHD.

In January we introduced the topic of ADHD and anxiety with a report of how common forms of anxiety are much more common in people who have ADHD than the general population.  We also gave you a list of physical and psychological symptoms associated with anxiety.    Last month, we outlined the 4 most common axiety disorders associated with ADHD.  Remember half (52%) of adults with ADHD will experience general anxiety disorder during their lifetimes.

This month we’ll teach you a few things you can do to control anxiety.  Of course we need to start by saying that if your anxiety feels overwhelming or gets worse over time, you should begin by seeking the help of a professional, who might possibly prescribe therapy and/or medication.  There are, however,  easy, everyday things you can do to help control anxiety without taking another pill – that you can start right now!

1. Exercise
2. Eat right
3. Get enough sleep
4. Practice relaxation

Exercise Exercise Exercise

If you’re a regular Edge Foundation subscriber, you’ll have seen our review of John Ratey’s book, Spark: the revolutionary new science of exercise and the brain.

In it Ratey explains that regular exercise alone can dramatically reduce symptoms of anxiety:

• Exercise releases neurochemicals that help you feel better (serotonin, the “feel good” neurochemical, and GABA, an important inhibitory neurochemical that basically gives the command to “stand down”. )
• Exercise helps relax your body, reducing the resting tension of your muscles and thus interrupting the anxiety feedback loop to your brain.
• Exercise teaches you that you have control over the symptoms of racing heart, sweating, and elevated breathing. That feeling this way physically is not the same thing as a panic attack.
• Exercise even helps you unlearn the habit of anxiety.

Diet

We are going to sound like your mother, but she was right.  Be sure to remember to eat regular meals.  You may be able to get by and skip a meal with a little help from caffeine or sugar, but did you know that both of these foods can mimic the sensation of an anxiety attack – and actually trigger one!

Sleep

Irregular sleep habits can actually increase your anxiety symptoms!  Stress and anxiety may cause the body to produce a “no sleep” signal in the brain that heightens arousal and makes sleep difficult. This alerting effect is a cause of more anxiety and may set in motion a cycle of sleeplessness and stress.

Sleep is such a big issue for many people with ADHD that we are planning a future post on the topic.  In the meantime, there is a lot of information on the web about sleep, sleep problems, and how to develop better sleep patterns. Here are a few places to start.

• http://www.sleepfoundation.org
• http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/brain_basics/understanding_sleep.htm
• http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih3/sleep/guide/info-sleep.htm

Relax Your Mind

Take a time out and pause to let your mind and body relax. When you are stressing, do something distracting and fun. Take a deep breath.  Or fill your mind with a challenging task like a Sudoku or crossword puzzle and you won’t have room to think about your anxiety

Relax Your Body

Relax your body and your mind will follow – we call this the relaxation response.   Relax your body and your

• heart rate decreases
• breathing becomes slower and deeper
• blood pressure drops or stabilizes
• muscles relax
• and your anxiety level decreases

Did we mention exercise?

Exercise can be a great way to release tension in your body.  There are non-strenuous ways to invite your body to relax as well.

• yoga
• medication
• relaxation excecises
• biofeedback
• and don’t forget to breathe.

Anxiety is a real and serious problem, but you don’t have to let it put you on the sidelines or eat you up inside.  It just takes self-awareness that your anxiety is getting the best of you and self-discipline to take steps every day to keep your anxiety at bay.  An ADHD coach can help you figure out which techniques are best for you and put a plan in place to help you stay on top of your anxiety.

Have you found any of these everyday habits have helped your anxiety levels?  Please share your experience in the comments.  We’d love to hear from you.

Join Edge Foundation Board Member, Dr. Patricia Quinn, at the National Resource Center on ADHD’s Ask the Experts! chat. This month’s topic: Treatment for Women and Girls with AD/HD.

When: Wed., Jan. 14, 2009 – 1:00 pm (Eastern Time)
What: Treatment for Women and Girls with AD/HD.
Who: Patricia Quinn, M.D., Co-Author of Understanding Girls with AD/HD

From the National Resource Center on ADHD’s announcement:

ADHD is a neurobiological disorder affecting 5 – 8 percent of school age children with symptoms persisting into adulthood nearly two-thirds of the time. According to TheCenter: A Resource for Womena and Girls with ADHD current diagnostic criteria continue to emphasize traits common to boys, leaving the majority of girls with ADHD to remain undiagnosed and misunderstood.

Last month, December 2008, Dr. Kathleen Nadeau, one of the founders of TheCenter, discussed “Raising a Girl with ADHD,” and tackled questions mainly geared towards younger females living with ADHD. Due to the overwhelming response, and a number of questions regarding women as well as girls with the disorder, Dr. Patricia Quinn, another founding member of TheCenter, will pick up the topic and expand on it.

Dr. Patricia Quinn will address questions regarding women with ADHD, girls with ADHD and will discuss treatment options, including medication.

Dr. Patricia Quinn is a developmental pediatrician in the Washington, D.C. area. A graduate of the Georgetown University Medical School, she specializes in child development and psychopharmacology.

Dr. Quinn has worked for over 28 years in the areas of ADHD and learning disabilities. She gives workshops nationwide and has appeared on Lifetime TV’s New Attitudes and the PBS show, To the Contrary, discussing the issue of girls and women with AD/HD.

Dr. Quinn is the author of several books on ADHD and is also co-editor of ADDvance: A Magazine for Women with ADD.

Her books, ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER: Diagnosis and Treatment from Infancy to Adulthood and Voices from Fatherhood: Fathers, Sons, and ADHD have been well received. Her latest book, Understanding Girls with ADHD, was coauthored with Drs. Nadeau and Ellen Littman, a licensed clinical psychologist who has worked with attentional issues for more than 18 years, and is groundbreaking in its presentation of this population.

Dr. Quinn lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband and four children, two of whom have ADHD. All of her books may be ordered through Advantage Books or by calling (toll free) 1-888-238-8588.

A new study released by Massachusettes General Hospital shows that girls taking stimulants to treat their ADHD are signficantly less at risk to start smoking, drinking alcohol or using drugs than girls with ADHD who don’t.

This study is one more in a series that show ADHD stimulants are not only effective at treating the symptoms of ADHD, but they have powerful, positive health benefits.

For more read: http://budurl.com/gcfq (Reuters) or http://budurl.com/xt45 (US News and World Report)

This study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and by the Lilly Foundation.  When you see a drug company listed as a funder of a study like this are you skeptical that it’s totally true?  We’d love to hear your thoughts on this.   Please leave a comment!