Neurologist listed the signs of ADHD in calm children

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can occur not only in hyperactive children, but also in those who seem calm. Such students often "fall out" of the process and cannot concentrate in class, Olga Butenko, a pediatric neurologist at the Medin Medical Center, told Izvestia.

According to the doctor, calm children often have attention deficit disorder without pronounced hyperactivity. They don't interfere with the lessons, but they drop out of the process, for example, they look out the window, they get involved in the task late.

"A child can sit quietly, but mentally absent. Teachers often talk about such people "flying in the clouds," Butenko said.

Another characteristic feature of ADHD in quiet children is the inability to keep task instructions in mind, especially if there are several of them. As the neurologist noted, such children usually complete one item and forget about the rest. Because of this, mistakes appear: the student knows the rule or has solved similar problems many times, but makes a mistake in the control due to a decrease in self-control.

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Psychologists recommend developing cognitive flexibility so that the brain does not age.

"Parents are often confused by unstable academic performance. There is also a noticeable slow pace of work and rapid fatigue, when the child needs more time to copy off the board or finish a test. In everyday life, the child is absent-minded, may forget notebooks, uniforms, and constantly lose things. Because of this, others often blame everything on laziness and lack of effort," said the neurologist.

Butenko also stressed that ADHD has a neurobiological basis. The syndrome develops with a special mode of operation of the prefrontal cortex and related structures that are responsible for attention, memory, planning and inhibition of impulses. According to the doctor, these processes are influenced by dopamine and norepinephrine. With ADHD, dopamine activity may decrease and norepinephrine regulation may be disrupted, so it is more difficult for a child to keep focus and remain productive on monotonous tasks for a long time.

"At home, the symptoms of the syndrome are usually more pronounced due to less external control, greater irritability and fatigue. Lessons stretch into the evening, the child is easily distracted, parents have to constantly check the process, which causes conflicts," Butenko explained.

As the doctor emphasized, if the problem is not recognized in time, in adolescence there may be a decrease in self-esteem, increased anxiety and difficulties adapting to school.

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On February 17, clinical psychologist, psychotherapist, specialist in dealing with dependent and violent behavior, expert at the New Era Development Center, Elena Klen, told how to understand a situation when rapid changes occur in the body and emotions. In such situations, she recommended being patient, remembering her experiences as a teenager and trying to find new points of intersection with the teenager — establishing contact and communication with the child is the responsibility of the parent.

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