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N2K Newsletter


Symptoms of ADHD in Children

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ADHD Symptoms in Children
Symptoms of ADHD in Infants
You may notice some signs of difficult behaviour in your baby or toddler. It may be hard to get them to go to sleep and you may have found yourself pacing up and down with them in your arms to no avail at night. Some babies sleep for a short while, then wake up demanding full attention and nursing for long periods. Even when they do get to sleep, they can have dreadful nightmares.
They can cry and scream to excess, leaving you helpless to know how to calm them down. Some babies are hard to feed and dribble a lot but are very thirsty. They may repeatedly bang their heads against the wall and rock the cot back and forth. Some may begin to walk and run about without going through the crawling stage first. 
Symptoms of ADHD at Pre-school
Once they are able to walk and run around, they may do so excessively, falling over and having accidents. They will find it hard to keep still or settle down when stories are read out and they may attack other children, hitting, spitting and scratching them. They don’t care if they get punished and have no fear of teachers or people in authority. This behaviour is likely to follow them into primary school, where further ADHD symptoms may develop.
Symptoms of ADHD Checklist
Use the tick-boxes below to record your observations. This is not intended as a scientific study, nor is it a test for diagnosis, but is merely a simple way of noting down your child’s behavioural patterns for your own information. ADHD tests are available but they have to be carried out by professionals using the accepted criteria.
Action Points
Keep an eye on your child if you suspect they are behaving differently to children of their age group and development.
Use the ADHD symptoms checklist and note symptoms and the regularity.
Begin to keep a diary so that you have an accurate record of incidents, meetings with professionals and action taken. It will give you a good picture of the train of events and outcomes, which you may later need to refer to.
If contacting teachers, it’s a good idea to put your intentions in writing so that you have copies of letters detailing all your actions.
If your child’s behaviour is impairing the quality of their life and of those around them, and disrupting the atmosphere in your home, it may be time to ask for a diagnosis.

Symptoms of ADHD in infants

adhd-symptoms-children.jpg

You may notice some signs of difficult behaviour in your baby or toddler. It may be hard to get them to go to sleep and you may have found yourself pacing up and down with them in your arms to no avail at night. Some babies sleep for a short while, then wake up demanding full attention and nursing for long periods. Even when they do get to sleep, they can have dreadful nightmares.
They can cry and scream to excess, leaving you helpless to know how to calm them down. Some babies are hard to feed and dribble a lot but are very thirsty. They may repeatedly bang their heads against the wall and rock the cot back and forth. Some may begin to walk and run about without going through the crawling stage first.

Symptoms of ADHD at pre-school

Once they are able to walk and run around, they may do so excessively, falling over and having accidents. They will find it hard to keep still or settle down when stories are read out and they may attack other children, hitting, spitting and scratching them. They don’t care if they get punished and have no fear of teachers or people in authority. This behaviour is likely to follow them into primary school, where further ADHD symptoms may develop.

Symptoms of ADHD checklist

Print this page and use the tick-boxes below to record your observations. This is not intended as a scientific study, nor is it a test for diagnosis, but is merely a simple way of noting down your child’s behavioural patterns for your own information. ADHD tests are available but they have to be carried out by professionals using the accepted criteria.

Symptoms 

Sometimes 

Often

Never

Accident prone

 

 

 

Aggression

 

 

 

Allergic reactions

 

 

 

Anxiety

 

 

 

Clumsiness

 

 

 

Depression

 

 

 

Disruptiveness

 

 

 

Dreaminess

 

 

 

Emotional immaturity

 

 

 

Fidgety

 

 

 

Forgetfulness

 

 

 

Handwriting difficulties

 

 

 

Hyperactivity

 

 

 

Impulsiveness

 

 

 

Inability to complete tasks

 

 

 

Inattentiveness

 

 

 

Interrupt conversations

 

 

 

Irritability

 

 

 

Lack of concentration

 

 

 

Language (or speech) difficulties

 

 

 

Learning difficulties

 

 

 

Low self-esteem

 

 

 

Mal-organisation

 

 

 

Mood swings

 

 

 

Non-conformity

 

 

 

Poor co-ordination

 

 

 

Restlessness

 

 

 

Sleep disorders

 

 

 

Specific learning difficulties

 

 

 

Talkative (overly so)

 

 

 

Unafraid of danger

 

 

 

Undetermined handedness

 

 

 

 

Action Points

  • Keep an eye on your child if you suspect they are behaving differently to children of their age group and development.
  • Use the ADHD symptoms checklist and note symptoms and the regularity.
  • Begin to keep a diary so that you have an accurate record of incidents, meetings with professionals and action taken. It will give you a good picture of the train of events and outcomes, which you may later need to refer to.
  • If contacting teachers, it’s a good idea to put your intentions in writing so that you have copies of letters detailing all your actions.
  • If your child’s behaviour is impairing the quality of their life and of those around them, and disrupting the atmosphere in your home, it may be time to ask for a diagnosis.
Extract taken from ADHD - The Essential Guide. For more information on ADHD and the symptoms in children, take a look at the book - available now in eBook, printed book and large print formats. Buy the printed version and get the eBook free!