Any form of ADHD testing is going to involve symptom sorting?
Does your child easily lose concentration?
Do they have problems finishing their tasks?
Do they constantly fidget?
Are they constantly on the go?
Do they forget things?
Are they disorganised and easily lose things?
Do they tend to interrupt when you are speaking and not hear what is said to them?
Do they have a poor academic record?
These are the kind of questions that form the basis of ADHD testing. The main approach is a system known as Connors scale and if your child has consistently shown these kind of symptoms over a six month periods they will probably be diagnosed as having ADHD.
Many parents are desperate for help by the time their child is being tested. It may also be the case that the school are pushing for the child to be tested and parents are not happy about the situation.
Why does this happen?
Well usually your child will behave very differently at home to at school. There can be many reasons why a child can present ADHD symptoms at school but not at home.
In my experience there can be many reasons for this but one of the reasons could be down to early undiagnosed glue ear problems. When I was working as an educational advisor supporting behavioural problems in young people I had the privilege of knowing a very experienced head of school nurses. She was able to l look at a class register of children she didn’t know and from their records of early hearing problems she could pinpoint the children who would be presenting the symptoms of ADHD and she was right every time.
The reason why? Early undiagnosed glue ear!
What happens is at such a formative stage of development the child cannot hear very well because the ear canal is often blocked. This means that they are unable to develop across the full range of sounds and when they get older when sound builds up in say a school hall with high ceilings or in a nosy classroom, they cannot information process the sounds and become overwhelmed with the noise. The kicking off behaviour is typical of this reaction.
One of the most effective techniques that I have used and evaluated for ADHD is using auricular candle therapy, otherwise known as Hopi Ear Treatment.
When you observe a child prior to having a treatment for 15 minutes and watch the number of times they come off tasks – then give a treatment and observe the number of times they come off task again, afterwards it is always substantially less distraction. Behaviours improve and a calmness is restored.
This is where traditional types of ADHD test fall down – they do not address the underlying causes of symptoms