Girls with ADHD?

[3rdthoughts]

My DD 6 yrs has just had an initial diagnosis of ADHD - very chatty,poor impulse control and on the go from 6 till 10. Also poor social skills.

Wondering if anyone has an girl with ADHD and any suggestions of sites for information and any strategies you have found helpful.

Also very curious about outcomes for older girls with ADHD as the paediatrician said she was less inclined to medicate girls and that they tended to ''grow out of it'' which made me a bit as it is not what I have been reading - am wondering if she has an old fashioned view of ADHD.

i was given a website its called adhdandyou good website hth xx

My dd is nearly 7 with ADHD. We saw her paed a few days ago and he said girls are generally more complex and difficult to diagnose. We are going back in august to discuss a trial of meds but this has been after a year of appointments. My dd is predominantly hyper/impulsive. adders.org is a good website with a good forum

I'd say your paed is a bit old-fashioned, yes. I got my diagnosis of ADHD at 43... There's a growing awareness that this is much much more common in adults than anyone had realised.

I think (sweeping generalisation, but) girls with ADHD tend to be more often inattentive than impulsive or hyperactive. Just statistically I mean, obviously there are exceptions. Or perhaps it's that their social wiring means they have a better toolkit for managing hyperactive and impulsive traits? And if you have inattentive, as long as it's fairly mild, you do tend to learn coping strategies as you get older. This can push you under the "diagnosable" threshold. I think it's not uncommon to be a shambles at school, sink or swim at Uni, blunder about a bit till you fall into a job that plays to your strengths not your weaknesses and then live fairly happily ever after.

Though your husband will have to be a very very patient man.

Have a look at www.addni.net - it's based in Northern Ireland but it's a good website x

Wow fantastic response thanks !

Dd has ADHD inattentive type and it was a long careful process to diagnose. She is 10 and in Y6. Medication was tried to help support her focus levels, but it wasn't right for dd and we have discontinued with it. It's not inevitable though - the decision is very much down to the parents - it's a tough decision though, but I felt well enough informed to make it at the time and when it wasn't working for us for various reasons it was no problem to stop.

I don't believe dd will outgrow ADHD, but I do believe that as she matures, she will learn strategies which will help her control her impulsiveness so that she is percieved well socially. The biggest problem for dd is the co-morbid SpLD and dyspraxia which are impacting on her learning, so she needs considerable support at school. We have just secured a statement for her, so at least the support will be safeguarded for transition to secondary.

There is a very good book 'ADHD in girls' available on Amazon which is worth a read.

I agree that children do not grow out of it but like anyone learn coping strategies as they get older.

I wish people wouldn't dismiss medication as some great evil. It may not be right for every child but for my ds it has literally been a life saver- he is the adhd type that climbs on roofs age 3 and runs in front of traffic. I also doubt he would be able to read and write at all now without it.

I have an older ds with ADD who won't consider medication, which is fine, we are finding other ways to help him but thankfully he is not a danger to himself and others like his younger sibling.

DD2 is now 15 and has borderline ADHD the inattentive type and ODD over the last year though she has become much calmer, cooperative and nicer to be around until the age of about 12 we had huge tantrums out of her over the slightest thing.

She has been on medication since the age of 10 and has been told its up to her if she continues once she turns 16.

DS [16] has a dubious diagnosis of severe ADHD, were currently undergoing new assessments with the adult team who think its one of mild ADHD. ASD and possibly a mood disorder or a mixture of 2 or 3.

My ds was small for his age before taking medication, there is also a fair bit of evidence that suggests that it is the lack of sleep (this is when children grow) that accounts for restricted growth. He can easily manage on about 4hrs a night which explains a lot.

I'm glad you are able to cope with your DD without resorting to meds- it is a much preferable situation but I resent the implication that it is a bad choice. I haven't seen any evidence of ill effect that outweighs the considerable benefit it gives him.

It wasn't a decision taken lightly by us or his paed but without it his quality of life would be poor as would his siblings. Their needs were also paramount in our decision. It was never about complying in class, I would never give my son strong medication on that basis alone however aggressive, violent outbursts towards younger siblings/other children and self harm do require serious intervention and his medication is able to turn him from Hyde back to Jekyll.

I don't know what the future holds I can only do what is best for everyone now. I didn't want to medicate either but it isn't always that black and white for everyone.

Girls tend to "grow out of it" ..... not me - at 46 and recently diagnosed I can categorically inform you 'we' do not grow out of it, it just becomes easier to cope with and less obvious. You are able to control any impulses and have learned strategies to help you get organised, concentrate, remember etc I love being me. Also have a son dx adhd and I'm very positive about his 'outcome'. FWIW neither of us are on any meds and don't intend to be

Oh, and fwiw, I am on the meds. And if I had been given the chance to be on them as a child I would have bitten your chuffin' arm off. There is no question whatsoever in my mind that Ritalin would have made my childhood and young adulthood better in pretty much every way.

It's a very individual decision and I think one that evolves as your kid gets older and other strategies are tried and either work or don't. It's totally reasonable to try other stuff first. But I think it's unreasonable to infer from that that Ritalin et al are "dodgy" in some way. The reason it's prescribed so often is that it's very safe and very often effective - which in medical terms makes it pretty much a wonder-drug. The reason for caution is more about the context of giving medication (behaviour & children) than the med itself.

I think the long-term effects is a separate issue tbh. The reason they don't know the long-term effects is because they are talking about long term. Not five or ten or even fifteen years - there are plenty of young adults who have been taking meds that long available to study. They mean continuing medication way past childhood and far into adult life. We know that by then you can develop coping strategies so you may no longer need medication. And by the time our kids are adults, their decision whether to stay on medication will be supported by studies of long-term effects and hopefully with more alternative therapies available than at present.

Possibly I'm a bit gung-ho about meds generally because DD1 has been on a whole range of heavy-duty Epilepsy meds, many of which have grim and sometimes permanent side-effects, and a fair few of which are regarded as "proven safe" if they've been licensed for five or six years.