The 6 Symptoms of a Child with ADHD

ADHD is also known as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. This is the name that is used to diagnose a group of behaviors that are found in not only adults, but also children too. Some people may say that it's hard to diagnose children because all kids can be hyper and fidgety.

The term ADD, also known as attention deficit disorder, was more commonly until the name was changed to ADHD back in 1994 by the American Psychiatric Association. ADHD is more prevalent in boys than it is in girls.

So what are the symptoms of a child with ADHD?
A child with ADHD who is inattentive will have at least 6 of the following symptoms:

• Easily distracted
• Has a hard time following instructions even if they are simple
• Forgets things
• Has a hard time paying attention at home and at school
• Has a difficult time dealing with activities that require planning ahead of time
• Losing things
• Is disorganized
• Doesn't seem to listen
• Doesn't pay attention to details

Now a child who is hyperactive will show signs of at least 6 of the following symptoms:

• Has a hard time waiting his turn
• Is very fidgety
• Always seems to be on the go
• Can't seem to play quietly
• Talks too much, even speaking out of turn
• Can't sit still in his seat
• Blurts answers to questions
• Interrupts others when they are talking

So what causes ADHD?
Kids who have ADHD don't create enough chemicals needed in their brains. The lack of such chemicals causes them to be disorganized in thought and action.

Despite what some may think, the following do not cause ADHD:

• Video games, whether violent or not
• Excessive TV watching
• Bad parenting skills
• Lack of vitamins
• Too much or too little sugar in the diet
• Allergies
• Fluorescent lighting

Now you know what the symptoms of a child with ADHD are.  They tend to show at least 6 of the above symptoms.

3 Different Types of ADHD and Their Symptoms

In this article, we are going to discuss the many different symptoms of ADHD. There are many symptoms because there are 3 different types of ADHD.

The most common type of ADHD is combined ADHD which involves all symptoms. The second type is hyperactive-impulsive ADHD which involves hyperactivity without inattentiveness. The final type is inattentive ADHD which is also known as ADD. It involves impaired attention and concentration.

The Main Symptoms
The main symptoms of ADHD fall into three categories: hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention.

Hyperactivity Symptoms
Such symptoms may start to appear in kids as early as preschool age. These symptoms include:

• talking excessively
• fidgeting in their seats
• always seemingly on the go
• getting up to walk or run around constantly
• having a hard time playing or doing activities quietly
• running or jumping when it's inappropriate

Although school-age kids display some of the same behavior, they don't do it quite as often as kids with ADHD.

Impulsivity Symptoms
These symptoms include the following:

• constantly interrupting or intruding on others to the point of causing issues in the classroom or workplace
• being very impatient
• starting up conversations at the wrong time
• blurting out answers before questions have been completely asked
• having a hard time waiting their turn

Such symptoms tend to cause accidents such as bumping into things or knocking things over. Kids with these symptoms may do potentially dangerous things without thinking of the consequences.

Inattention Symptoms
These include:

• not listening to others
• having a hard time paying attention to details and making careless mistakes
• not focusing on the conversation at hand
• being easily distracted by irrelevant things that would normally be ignored by others such as trivial noises
• forgetfulness of normal day-to-day activities
• shifting from one uncomplete project or activity to another
• procrastination
• having disorganized habits
• inability to focus on activites that require concentration

Now you know what the main types of ADHD are as well as their symptoms.