WILDDCHILDD75
06-18-2004, 10:32 PM
my son has adhd and i want to get him off the meds. has anyone had a child and used this method instead of giving them the regular meds? we've been through almost all the meds on the market and he either get hateful or doesn't want to eat. i want a kid not a zombie. thank you
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heathsmom
06-21-2004, 12:49 PM
I don't know if karate can make that much of a difference, but I have been told that it helps with focus and discipline. My son will be 5 next month, and I am thinking about starting him in some classes.
sawbuck44
06-21-2004, 02:59 PM
My son, now 12, was on Ritalin for 4 months. For a short time he tried dexedrine. Neither one really helped him and actually caused more issues/side effects. I put him in karate when he was 6. Stayed in karate for a almost two years. Both my sons moved on to other activities, band/baseball/aggressive skating. I do believe that he learned a lot from karate. There are many professionals that say when a child is ADD they do better in a sport such as karate because it is not competitive. My son learned discipline, and patience. I think it's a great idea to put him in karate. It was a lot of hard work to help our son who was never really diagnosed with ADD. It was teachers that commented year after year on his social behavior that led us to believe he may be. In the end we decided to do behavioral modification which worked well. We did not have formal training although my son attended a social behavioral class one summer. The main thing my husband and I needed to do was to respond to him without anger. Redirection and keeping him busy so he wouldn't get in trouble worked. He also does better when there is no clutter in his environment. Even though now he is always leaving clothes on his floor, you can see him feel more comfortable in his room when it is clean and spotless. Routine is another big thing. Daycare when he was between 6 and 10 was very hard. He likes kids and they like him but when it gets too noisy or crowded he tends to get angry. Oh, and make sure he's never hungry! Some people can handle hunger, I noticed a long time ago if my son ate a late lunch - he would become extremely agitated and easily angered.
there i go writing a book again!
there i go writing a book again!
michele3968
06-21-2004, 08:12 PM
my son is inattentive type and he has been in karate for 2 1/2 years. it is very good for him and when i initially took him for his evaluation i said i don't think he is add because he is so focused in karate. they said they recommend karate for add kids, but anyway - karate or not - without his medicine he gets 30's - 50's on his tests. on the medicine - without studying 90's. he is supposed to be a gifted child (i know he is very smart), but the administration in his school was considering holding him back.
i hate giving him the medicine - he hates it and it quiets him to a point that drives me crazy, but he does not hear a thing without it.
i am trying to get him into a clinical trial to change to stattera (non stimulant) so that he will be monitored extensively.
thats my story. good luck to you.
i hate giving him the medicine - he hates it and it quiets him to a point that drives me crazy, but he does not hear a thing without it.
i am trying to get him into a clinical trial to change to stattera (non stimulant) so that he will be monitored extensively.
thats my story. good luck to you.
WILDDCHILDD75
06-23-2004, 08:52 PM
thank you all for the information. nice to know i'm not alone in this world of adhd.
Aztec Indian
06-24-2004, 02:22 PM
I work out seven days a week at a gym. I am a 35 year old male with ADD.
Physical activity does not make up the attention deficit difference, however, it does help, and your son may be able to reduce dosage.
However, I seriously doubt it will be a cure all.
I think morning exercises are the most important as far as stimulation goes.
Physical activity does not make up the attention deficit difference, however, it does help, and your son may be able to reduce dosage.
However, I seriously doubt it will be a cure all.
I think morning exercises are the most important as far as stimulation goes.
apinecone
06-26-2004, 10:50 PM
My son didn't do karate but he did do kung fu and liked it alot. He did well at it to a large degree I think because he has good focusing ability and can go over things until he masters them, both of which are important in that sport. And he could use the work on his coordination, but didn't do well at the running and kicking or hitting sports.
That was all to the good, but when he started achieving his self-esteem really elevated. He worked esp. well with the littler kids, 5-8 year olds always looked forward to him coming in on Sat. morning. He always liked little kids and even found that, too.
So, there are other things that might be beneficial.
Not to mention that he wasn't climbing up the stairs and bouncing off the ceiling to the floor off the stair-to-ceiling post- AS MUCH. On the other hand, I kind of missed sitting in my chair with its back to the stairs, cringing as he kathoomped on a swing thru on the way to his room. He did it for awhile because it was nostalgic-- got him a bit prepared for kung fu, as it turns out.
ADD kids-- can't live without'em and can't live without'em!! :wave:
That was all to the good, but when he started achieving his self-esteem really elevated. He worked esp. well with the littler kids, 5-8 year olds always looked forward to him coming in on Sat. morning. He always liked little kids and even found that, too.
So, there are other things that might be beneficial.
Not to mention that he wasn't climbing up the stairs and bouncing off the ceiling to the floor off the stair-to-ceiling post- AS MUCH. On the other hand, I kind of missed sitting in my chair with its back to the stairs, cringing as he kathoomped on a swing thru on the way to his room. He did it for awhile because it was nostalgic-- got him a bit prepared for kung fu, as it turns out.
ADD kids-- can't live without'em and can't live without'em!! :wave:
minnesota_mom
06-27-2004, 01:06 AM
Disciplined physical art is always good for building character, coordination, etc. BUT even before enrolling, make sure you are willing to stick with it. I have a nephew who has been in and out of various activities for years, not because he didn't do well or tired of them, but because my sister refuses to be consistent. Give your son stability! Stick with whatever you enroll him in, and make sure he stays put in one place. Yanking him from one karate school to another, or one sport to another will do nothing but make things worse. My own sons did well with soccer for years, and I made sure they stayed on the same team (except when one league merged with another) in the same town. He's played with the same kids since kindergarten, and compared to my nephew who has been moved around all over the place, well- there's no comparison. Studies and reality have shown it over and over again that the biggest mistake parents make with add kids is to destroy their stability and comfort levels. If you want to get rid of the medications, make sure you have him in an environment conducive to consistency with a regular routine. Karate (or tai kwon do, etc) at the same time each week, in the same place, etc. Otherwise, no sport or martial art will overcome his ADD. Best wishes! :-)
weez
06-27-2004, 09:04 AM
My ADD (inattentive type) son has been studying Karate for two years. I wouldn't say it has helped with his condition but he really likes it. One problem though that to progress through the ranks of karate you need to have a very good level of mental focus. Some ADD kids simply do not have this even with medication. My son's sensei is very strict and my son's being trying to test for his green belt for quite some time but sensei won't let him. He needs to be able to keep his eyes focused straight ahead without glancing around at all etc. It's kind of like having a child with bad hand/eye coordination and putting them in tennis - it may help develop that skill, but they likely won't be very good at it. My son likes karate however and plans to stick with it.
WILDDCHILDD75
06-27-2004, 10:52 PM
the information you all provided has been a great help to me. someone suggest keeping them in one place most of the time and as much as i hate to move i am married to a man who is in the navy so we struggle with that as well. again i thank you all and wish you all good luck with your trials.