Tag: <span>Behavior problem</span>

problems paying attention in school - ADHD or Anxiety?
Anxiety School • • • By Jeffrey LaPonsie 0 Comments

Problems paying attention in school – Is it ADHD or Anxiety?

Your child is having problems paying attention in school.  The teachers are concerned because your child doesn’t seem to be able to focus in class.   He seems to need to have instructions read to him multiple times.  Your child’s school just has you on speed dial about his level of activity. The school talks about how impulsive or active he is.  He blows up over minor problems and its getting in the way of making friends, or doing well in class.  By now a couple of people in your child’s life have talked to you about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).  When children have ADHD their difficulty attending is due to a neurological condition.

Some children who have problems paying attention in school have Attention Deficit Hyper Activity Disorder:

ADHD is a common neurological condition in children which impacts their ability to attend or focus. The overlap between anxiety and ADHD symptoms is often overlooked.  Anxiety symptoms are often mistaken for signs of ADHD—this is especially true in young, elementary age boys.  While the inability to concentrate or sit still may at first look appear to be ADHD, the question of why your child cannot attend is important.

ADHD or Anxiety – Why children have Problems paying attention in School?

The root of your child’s inability to attend is one of the most important questions parents, families, and teachers can ask—why is my child having problems paying attention in school? Concentration problems that stem from anxiety are rooted in emotion.  Children with anxiety are preoccupied by worry or are busy anticipating what is coming next.  These children’s preoccupation with the future or what could happen is not compatible with what is happening right now—kids who are worrying have trouble concentrating or listening.

Symptoms of inattention, distraction, fidgetiness and what appears to be boredom may actually be signs of anxiety.

Helping children who have problems paying attention in school

The help and support that children with anxiety need as opposed to children with ADHD is different.  Counseling for children with anxiety often involves evaluating anxious thoughts, helping kids feel safe, and avoiding reinforcing avoidance or providing reassurance which reinforces anxious thoughts or avoidant behavior.

It can be incredibly difficult to tell when children who are having trouble concentrating at school are suffering from anxiety or ADHD.  When parents and teachers are uncertain mental health professionals can assist in parsing the two apart, or knowing when both mental health problems may be coming in play with challenging children in the class room.

 

jeff laponsie LMSW kalamazoo

 

 

 

 

Jeff LaPonsie LMSW

Jeff LaPonsie is a clinical social worker at Kalamazoo Child and Family Counseling, PLLC. He provides counseling to children and families in the Kalamazoo, Portage, South West Michigan area. He is passionate about helping challenging children and frustrated parents. Jeff has over seven years of experience working with at risk youth. His clinical expertise includes working with children with behavioral, anxiety, attachment and trauma related disorders.

Read more

 

Oppositional Defiant Disorder - Child Counseling Kalamazoo
Parenting • • • By Jeffrey LaPonsie 0 Comments

Challenging Children: a New perspective on Children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder

Viewing behavioral challenged differently:  Helping Children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder, and other behavioral challenged kids

Disruptive, manipulator, attention-seeking, stubborn, spoiled-brat, resistant, button-pusher, defiant, and bad kid.  These are all descriptions that are used for behaviorally challenging children by frustrated adults. Oftentimes challenging children are diagnosed with psychiatric disorders, such as oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), bipolar disorder, reactive attachment disorder (RAD) or conduct disorder (CD).  While these diagnoses serve to validate that your child is challenging in a way that is remarkable, they do not always help in getting to the root of the problem.

Oppositional Defiant Disorder or  lacking skills – Kids do well, if they can. 

Ross Greene, Ph.D, psychologist, and author of The Explosive Child believes that  Kids do well, if they can.  Even challenging children are doing the best they can in the midst of a explosive episode.  The idea that children choose to throw a tantrum, scream and cry for hours is simply untrue.  What does a kid get out of crying for two hours, getting a headache, and feeling so sick that they feel like they need to throw-up?  The answer is: nothing.

The solution

The idea that kids do well if they can is a wonderful perspective that allows parents of challenging children to see their child’s behavior with compassion and patience.  Additionally, challenging children and their parents need to be on the same team.  The alternative perspective is an adversarial one, where kids are being willful and naughty to spite their parents. In short, this sets up kids and parents to be opposite ends of the field.  The good news is that when we look at a child’s behaviors closely, it’s clear that parents can help their challenging child in a way that no one else can.

Most challenging children don’t misbehave all of the time, only some of the time. Looking at when and why they misbehave is important to understanding how parents can help.

Common reasons why challenging children misbehave:

  1. Lacking or delayed socio-emotional skills: These children often lag in skills needed in a situation where their peers are more adept. Like being flexible, having frustration tolerance, or having problem solving skills. Simply put, you can think of lagging skills as the answer to WHY do children misbehave?
  2. Unsolved Problems: These are situations in which there are demands or expectations that overwhelm the skills a child has to respond appropriately.  Most importantly, identifying unsolved problems answers the question, WHEN do children misbehave.

By  identifying lagging skills, and unsolved problems, parents can work collaboratively to help challenging children solve their problems proactively. Ultimately, helping children with oppositional defiant disorder, and other behavioral disorders begins with viewing their challenging behavior in the context of when and why.   Sometimes parent benefit from coaching and support around managing difficult or challenging behaviors in children.   Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is an evidenced based treatment for young children (2-7) with behavioral problems.

References:

Greene, R. W. (2014). The explosive child: A new approach for understanding and parenting easily frustrated, “chronically inflexible” children (5th ed.). New York: HarperCollins.

jeff laponsie LMSW kalamazoo

Jeff LaPonsie LMSW

Jeff LaPonsie is a clinical social worker at Kalamazoo Child and Family Counseling, PLLC. He provides counseling to children and families in the Kalamazoo, Portage, and South West Michigan area. He is passionate about helping challenging children and frustrated parents. Jeff has over seven years of experience working with at risk youth. His clinical expertise includes working with children with behavioral, anxiety, attachment and trauma related disorders.

Read more