Hi Folks
I have a friend whose daughter was diagnosed with ADD in her teens.

This is a loving, warm and attractive young person in their mid twenties; I would say they are of average weight and fitness that enjoys a lot of physical activity. She is academically intelligent and would have what I call a photographic memory, she is extremely visual and creative, yet she struggles with being able to look after herself.

This person has a pattern of being very absent minded and self absorbed, they do not consider how their actions affect, not only themselves, their health but the flow on effect on others around them. She unintentionally alienates the people closest to her and then wonders why she cannot maintain long lasting friendships. I am sure there is a lot more going on too, that I have yet to pick up.

They are currently using Ritalin to help control the ADD and often forget to take the medication, I have observed and asked questions, when they forget to take the medication, they feel bad and then they eat sugary foods, as this helps them to regain control of their depressed state. Not sure if there is a medical reason for this or not. When they forget to take the medication they slip into a depressive state for a few days take the medication feel better, forget the medication and repeat the cycle.

Their health is now a concern and they are undergoing tests to determine the cause of a gallbladder related illness and as a part of the treatment possibly remove her gallbladder.

I have used NLP with her for overcoming overwhelm in public places by firing a chain of anchors that allows her to regain a resourceful state when she becomes overwhelmed too much sensory input, like too many different noises.

They have asked me what I can do to help them. I have not worked with anyone with ADD before and I am about to start reading [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Healing-ADD-Simple-Exercises-Change/dp/1887424377/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_k2a_1_img?pf_rd_p=304485601&pf_rd _s=lpo-top-stripe-2&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=039914644X&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX 0DER&pf_rd_r=1QFX3DCP5QBMCPRRQP16"]Healing ADD[/ame] to get a better understanding of the condition.

I thought this forum would be a good place to get some feedback and ideas from people who have used NLP to work with people with ADD. I searched the threads but did not find any previous discussions on ADD, so perhaps this is the first.

Looking forward to your replies

Have a great day

Frederic

Hi Frederic

Don Blackerby NLP In Education A Magnificent Opportunity as had some very good results working with ADD- and he has a good DVD set which would be worth checking out-

J

Cheers Jay, consider it checked out, thanks for the link.

Hi frederic,

I have worked (as a teacher) with numerous ADD labelled kids and I am not convinced it has clearly defined and measurable qualities for the labelling (and installing the associated limiting belief that come with it) a child as having ADD is all that worthwhile.

It was reassuring for me to hear that Richard Bandler agrees with me (see how I pretended to know him to make my post more credible- we do share similar opinions on this but I am sure he came up with his own and never copied me!) mentioning that kids who cannot focus for 10 minutes on a task that they dont want to do can sit for hours with military like attention on their XBOX or Playstation.

I lifted this from the link Jay posted

HYPERACTIVITY--They can't stay still. They are constantly moving and fidgeting. They are under chairs or tables or climbing over furniture.
IMPULSIVENESS--They move or change directions very quickly. They will be doing one thing and then suddenly start doing something else. They "act before they think!"
DISTRACTIBILITY--They can't stay focused on one thought or task. They will be doing a task and the smallest noise interrupts them.
LACK OF ORGANIZATION--They cannot do the more complex tasks which require them to organize the larger task into a series of steps. Somebody has to tell or show them how to do each step.
FORGETFULNESS--They forget instructions. They forget to do things or tasks they have been told to do. They will start to do something and forget what they were supposed to do.
PROCRASTINATION--They have trouble starting and completing tasks or assignments. They are constantly putting off doing things. They can't seem to "get started."

The list implies that 'they cannot' or 'are unable to..' and is full of contradictions.

Frederic, I am sure you know that already but what helped me with ADHD / ADD kids is to treat the kid and not the 'illness'. If you learn about ADD just remember that none of it was written with your friends girl in mind.

I have never had sustained exposure to a child (and now adult) with ADD, in fact, I have never before met an adult who has maintained their label into adult life.

You wrote

"This person has a pattern of being very absent minded and self absorbed, they do not consider how their actions affect, not only themselves, their health but the flow on effect on others around them. She unintentionally alienates the people closest to her and then wonders why she cannot maintain long lasting friendships. I am sure there is a lot more going on too, that I have yet to pick up. "

and I wonder how much of those problems stem from issues that are not related to ADD at all.

Fascinating topic Frederic, please keep us updated as to this young ladies progress and observations you have.

Thanks

Matt

Hi Matt


Thanks for your valuable insight; I had come to the same assumption, which is all they are at the moment. I did a mind body connection workshop on the weekend and after speaking to the presenter he had the same notions as we do. He went further to say by the time they become an adult they generally grow out of ADD.

I think that the first step I will take is to sit down with her and find out what is actually going on for her and discover what she wants to achieve. I have a few ideas where to begin and will keep you posted.

This is a brilliant opportunity for two way learning.

Have a great day

Frederic

Frederic, I spotted this in the news this morning and thought of you.

Here is the link to the full article (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7630926.stm) but I have pasted the content below.

Parents need lessons in how to cope with their children's unruly behaviour, new guidelines on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) say.



The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) says drugs such as Ritalin should be avoided - and must not be given to the under-fives.

Teachers would also benefit from training to recognise and help children with this condition, it adds.

Any primary school class is likely to have a child with ADHD, experts say.

Most of the estimated 365,000 children in Britain with ADHD receive no treatment at all.


But of those who do, most - about 37,000 - are prescribed stimulants like Ritalin (methylphenidate).

Children with ADHD have extreme difficulty sitting still, learning or concentrating.
At school they may find it hard to keep friends and suffer from bullying because of their behaviour. Looking after affected children can be exhausting for parents.
Parenting classes
The guidelines, which cover England, Wales and Northern Ireland, say parent training and education programmes should be offered as a first-line treatment for ADHD, both for pre-school and school age children.




The programmes teach parents how to create a structured home environment, encourage attentiveness and concentration, and manage misbehaviour better.

Drugs remain a first option for children over five and young people with severe ADHD, say the guidelines, but only as part of a comprehensive treatment plan that includes psychological and behavioural interventions.

Dr Tim Kendall, a consultant psychiatrist from Sheffield who is joint director of the National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health and helped draw up the guidelines, said: "There is an over-reliance on medicines.


"Quite commonly, people tend to revert to offering methylphenidate or atomoxetene. When they do that it's not always because there's a good balance of risk and benefits. It's because the child has got what appears to be ADHD and that's what's available. Its easier to prescribe a drug when other options like parent training programmes are not available."

Dr Kendall said it was important to diagnose ADHD correctly, rather than label all bad behaviour as ADHD. The symptoms of ADHD persist in all settings - both at school and at home - and cause real impairment.
Andrea Bilbow, chief executive of the ADHD charity ADDISS, welcomed the NICE recommendations but questioned how helpful the parent training programmes would be to parents.

"Parenting programmes are extremely important, but they need to be specific for ADHD.
"The ones that NICE are recommending were designed for the parents of children with conduct disorder, which is completely different from ADHD," she said.
ADHD symptoms:

Easily distracted
Restlessness
Difficulty remaining seated when required
Difficulty awaiting turn in group situations
Difficulty following instructions
Difficulty in playing quietly
Often shift from one incomplete activity to another
Often interrupts others
Often engages in physically dangerous activities without considering the consequences

Thanks Matt

I had a chat with her the other night. Great learning experience for both of us, we did establish that she had a tick in all the boxes for the ADD symptoms and this was confirmed by a psychiatrist, mmmmm I wonder. Also that its sounds and not pictures that overwhelm her, she has an aversion to exercises relating to her past ADD experiences and belief blocks with the future.

I shared a few ideas, exercises and articles with her that explained that people do grow out of ADD, and she immediately shutdown and became defensive. So there are some very strong beliefs at play.

She is very quick and picked up on some sneaky presupositions and embedded commands, though it may have been a result of being out of rapport, not to sure on that one. I did manage to anchor that this was a two way learning experience for both of us and that the more I learn from her the better that we will be able to resolve your ADD issues.

So I think I need to approach it from the perspective that she has ADD, build some more trust that there might be a solution, lead her out by experimenting with options she is comfortable with. Like anchoring and moving forward from there.

I do have a few ideas of some possible secondary gains, even if these are only ideas made from obsevations and yet to be confirmed. The first being to ask her what she thinks would work.

Have a great day

Frederic

I'm an adult and just tentatively diagnosed with ADD. Although I spent most of my adult life thinking ADD = BS, I've been doing a lot of reading especially of the work of Dr. Amen. It seems pretty clear that ADD is a real thing with a clear physiological basis that can be seen in brain scans.

I'm interested in identifying ways in which NLP might help someone with ADD. It's my understanding that adults diagnosed later in life with ADD tend to also have a lot of emotional baggage associated with it and often self-esteem issues. It seems that whether or not NLP could help overcome the physiologically induced aspects of it, it could be helpful with these other psychological and emotional impacts. And who knows, maybe it can even help with the ADD itself.

One key trait of ADD is that the person can usually focus on something they find interesting but cannot focus on things that they do not want to focus on. What I'm wondering is, what makes a person find something interesting. It seems to me like this might be a chicken and egg sort of thing. It might not be the physiological cause that is causing the lack of interest but the lack of interest resulting in the physioligical impact in the brain. If one could then employ a technique that could "engender interest" at will, then one might be able to mitigate ADD. Just thinking out loud so to speak.

I'm only minimally knowledgeable about NLP. I first heard about it years ago in a book by an army col. named Alexander as well as a book by Tony Robbins. In the last year, I've read a couple of books specifically about NLP.

Thanks,
Mark

The sugary foods thing is possibly because carbohydrates tend to raise serotonin levels.Giving your client more motivation in areas where they have skill deficits would probably be useful.

Hello Frederic!
I have much experience of ADD/ADHD/Dyslexia/Dyspraxia/Autistic Spectrum.

As a therapist, I almost always begin by finding out WHO has the problem ...

because often the problem belongs to relations, peers or other authority figures. The answer to this question tells you who to actually work with.

Then I want to know very SPECIFICALLY what the problem is (rather than buying into the story of how the problem is a problem).

The third investigation is usually centred around what or WHO is stopping the client embracing who s/he is as a unique and wonderful human.

'yet she struggles with being able to look after herself'
How specifically does she struggle?
By what measurement – compared to whom?
Who is making the judgement that she is struggling?
And what does 'struggle' look/sound/feel like?
What sub mods of struggle can be changed?

'they are currently using Ritalin to help control the ADD and often forget to take the medication'
Many ADD/ADHD ers make a choice sooner or later to start running their own brain and stop taking Ritalin, so how is this a problem? And to whom?

Half the adult nation will forget to take their medications form time to time. Who has the problem with this girl forgetting to take hers? The girl? The parents? Others?

'they have asked me what I can do to help them'
By ‘them’ do you mean the girl or the parents?

In which positive ways is this girl being encouraged to take responsibility for her life and DROP THE LABEL?

Many NON ADD/ADHD ers ask for help ... many cry for it.

What is she brilliant at and what can she do more of?

What are the girl’s beliefs about ADD?

Who really benefits from the problem and how?

Who has defined the problem? What feeds this?

What are the facts as separated from the hypnosis/story of ADD.

My advice is that were I in your shoes, I would be wanting answers to these and tons more questions.

Best regards, Kay