Introduction
Your child’s doctor will likely suggest behavior therapy as a treatment if attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been identified in them.
Experts believe it’s the first step to properly treating your child’s ADHD symptoms, regardless of their age.
Behavioral therapy differs from both play therapy and psychotherapy. It emphasizes behavior over feelings. It can instruct your youngster on how to transform disruptive, negative energy into constructive ideas and deeds. And as the parent, it begins with you at home.
Additionally, behavioral treatment is not the same as occupational therapy or ADHD coaching. While they could be a valuable asset to your child’s team for certain objectives, ADHD coaches are neither physicians nor therapists. Occupational therapy aids in developing abilities for everyday jobs.
When to Begin
Generally speaking, behavioral treatment is advised by doctors as soon as your child receives an ADHD diagnosis. When a kid is diagnosed in preschool (at the age of four or five), this is typically the only course of treatment. Research indicates that for young children, behavioral treatment is just as effective as medicine. Your preschooler’s doctor may recommend medication if they don’t improve or if they have moderate to severe symptoms.
Play therapy is a technique used by some therapists with young children to help them express their feelings and experiences via play. However, the CDC notes that research has not demonstrated that talk therapy or play therapy reduces the symptoms of ADHD in young children.
Parent Training: The people who are parenting the child—typically the parent or parents—are the primary caregivers for behavioral treatment. The techniques and abilities they’ll need for this activity are taught to them throughout parent education.
For young children with ADHD, it is advised to parent instruction as the only form of treatment. Typically, a parent will see a therapist for at least eight sessions to learn the methods they’ll need as well as to receive support and feedback.
Parents might benefit from stress management education as well. It can assist you in learning how to maintain your composure when your child’s ADHD symptoms are upsetting you.
Teachers and other caregivers who spend time with your kid also provide assistance. The goal is to surround your child with strong role models who will regularly and effectively reward good conduct and discourage bad behavior.
How to Begin
You are not need to see a specialist counselor, however some parents choose for an ADHD behavioral therapist. Parents can receive training in ADHD behavior therapy through courses. Find out from your child’s physician if there are any local classes offered. Occasionally, they are included under titles like:
- Parental behavior management instruction
- Parental behavior education
- Training parents in behavior
- Training for parents
You learn from a therapist in class how to establish and enforce rules and how to deal with the actions of ADHD patients. Typically, classes meet once a week for three to four months. According to research, this training will improve your relationship with your child in addition to helping you both stop their bad conduct.
Objectives of the Intervention
It’s common for kids with ADHD to have difficulty staying still. They could be impetuous and restless. They may find it challenging to concentrate attention as a result. It may also cause disruptions at home and in the school. Through behavioral treatment, your kid can learn helpful skills. They
- Enhance positive conduct
- Restrict disruptive actions.
- Teach a youngster how to calmly communicate their emotions.
Three fundamental steps are taken first:
Give your youngster a specific objective. Be realistic and specific. Ensure that your youngster knows what is expected of them. For instance, do a school assignment by a specific deadline.
Be dependable when it comes to incentives and penalties. Reward your youngster whenever they behave well. Ensure that they are aware of the repercussions for misbehaving.
Throughout their whole youth, use the system of incentives and consequences regularly. By doing this, positive behavior develops.
Particular methods used in behavioral treatment consist of:
- Encouragement that is constructive. Give your kid a reward for excellent conduct. Example: You can play a video game if you do your assignment correctly and on time.
- Token-based system. This integrates the concepts of consequence and reward. This approach is frequently employed by teachers by assigning star stickers, but the same idea should be applied at home as well.
- Reaction expense. Rewards or privileges are taken away as a result of unwanted behavior. As an illustration, you forfeit online time if you neglect your schoolwork.
- Take a break. This standard punishment is frequently used to preschoolers who exhibit misbehaving. For instance, you have to spend some time sitting silently by yourself if you strike your sister.
Teachers at school may compliment your child verbally or offer soothing items that they may hold silently while still focusing on the lesson. For older students, the teacher may interact with them privately throughout class by using hand gestures. Additional methods used in schools, known as accommodations, consist of:
- A new place to take examinations and quizzes
- Taking your child’s desk away
- Extended test-taking periods
- Adapted homework assignments
- A behavioral plan, special education, or social skills classes
- Permitting “escape valve” outlets, such as sending the instructor on an errand to the library,
- Disregarding bad conduct on a selective basis
- Taking away distracting objects like rubber bands and other annoyances
What to Anticipate
Behavioral treatment, whether combined with or without medication, can help your kid reduce symptoms of impulsivity, hyperactivity, and inattentiveness. It can improve your child’s academic performance, but you have to be persistent and consistent. Keep in mind that learning new talents takes time. Don’t anticipate immediate changes. Improvements in behavior might start out slowly. But it should improve with time, effort, and cooperation.
Online counsellor at TalktoAngel are well trained in giving personalized counselling to the child having ADHD. They help in overall development of the child.