Counseling does help for ADHD
Counseling does help for ADHD
My son has suffered for ADHD for years, since he was about 4 years old. He has been on medication since he was 5 years old. The medication does help but it is not a quick fix. It helps with focus, inattention and hyperactivity. We did behavioral therapy for a few months after he was diagnosed. I don’t believe it helped. We stopped when my mom got sick and I was unable to take him.
Last school year we tried counseling again. This time I did it through the school. The school district is affiliated with a mental health center. They send counselors to the school to help your child. We did this for a few months. Michael did not like it. He went once a week. They would pull him from one of his classes (which he did not like). I did not get updates. I have no idea what was going on with the sessions. They never kept me informed. I did not see any changes in Michael. After the school year was over, I discontinued it.
Michael had his annual IEP meeting the last week of school in May. The school suggested counseling again. I spoke with his doctor, and they referred me to a counselor. Within 48 hours I got a call from the counseling center to schedule an appointment. I scheduled an appointment for the following week.
Counseling
I immediately liked his counselor. She was so nice, kind and amazing with Michael. We spent the first few sessions talking how Michael was in school and at home. We discussed his failing grades, his inattention and his meltdowns. She said she was going to work on his meltdowns and teach him some coping mechanisms.
Some of the coping mechanisms are when he feels like he’s overheating is to hold ice in his hands, go in an A/C room or drink a cold drink.
In the beginning he wouldn’t let me, or my husband leave the room. Now he goes in by himself for the first half then we go in for the other half. My son had a meltdown one day because he wanted my husband to take him for every session. We had discussed us alternating taking him each week. One week we both went because Michael screamed and had a meltdown. She discussed this with Michael. We have not had a problem since.
He has been seeing her since end of June and we have seen a change in him already. Even my dad said to me the other day that he sees a difference in Michael. He is calmer, more mellow and has been having less meltdowns.
Positive Reinforcement
The counselor suggested some positive reinforcement. She said it works very well with ADHD kids. During one of his sessions she suggested giving him a prize for no meltdowns for a week. We tried it and it worked. He went a full week without any meltdowns, he was rewarded with a game for PS5. The second week he had no meltdown again, he was rewarded with money toward a game on his ipad. He had a science test coming up, I told him if he passed it I would reward him. He studied like crazy and got a 100% on it. I was super excited and proud of him. He couldn’t wait to come home and tell me. His reward for his grade was a trip to starbucks.
We have been doing this for the past month. We have seen such an improvement. He has a test coming up next week in Math. We told him if he passes his math test he will get another reward. I almost feel like I’m bribing him to get good grades or to not have a meltdowns. I did a lot of research on ADHD and positive reinforcement is very important. Some positive tips are to praise your child immediately when it happens, be consistent with your expectations, be aware of your child’s surrounds and plan ahead ane use visual clues to stay on task.
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