Benefits of Outdoor Play for Kids With ADHD and Mood Disorders

Kids have lots of energy. Kids with ADHD have even more energy. And when you mix in a mood disorder with the ADHD and multiply that by two because there are two kids dealing with the same things, it can really get interesting. 

One of my favorite ways to deal with this is to get outside. Get outside and move. A lot. For hours. As often as possible. Spending time outside is simply part of our routine and it is expected. It is non-negotiable. If the weather is nice we are going outside. And when the kids get used to the idea it becomes a welcome part of the day. As you can see from our schedule here we currently have around four hours a day scheduled to be outside. This varies with the seasons of course but as much as possible we try to get out of the house. 

Being outside offers a lot of benefits for a child with abundant energy and the need to move a lot and make a lot of noise. There are fewer restrictions to constantly have to be reminded of. There is room to run and jump and throw things and climb things. There is freedom from the constant reminder to "use your inside voice." For a child who is struggling with remembering all the rules while dealing with all the erratic brain signals this can be very freeing. 

Many children with ADHD and mood disorders may also benefit from the neurotransmitters and endorphins that are produced in the brain during exercise. The neurotransmitters dopamine, neurepinephrine and seratonin are lower in children with ADHD. These substances can also benefit those with symptoms of mood disorders. So all that running and jumping and throwing and riding has not only the benefit of burning off some energy but also producing some pretty important substances in the brain. 

Studies have also shown that some children's ADHD symptoms are milder after playing in green spaces. There is something about being out in nature that seems to quiet the brain and help control the random impulses that are so problematic for children with ADHD.

And all these benefits are free for the taking. Just open the door and head to the backyard or nearest park or playground and have fun!

SOURCES

ADHD and Exercise

Exercise and Bipolar Mood Disorder

For Kids with ADHD, Regular 'Green Time' is Linked to Milder Symptoms

Looking Beyond the Labels

We are a unique family. Probably unique in several ways (Isn't every family?) but one of the ways I want to write about today is the presence of all the labels we live with in our house and my love/hate relationship with them (the labels, not the people.)

In our family we carry the following labels - ADHD (3 people), mood disorder (2), Noverbal Learning Disorder, also known as NLD (1),  Obsessive Compulsive Disorder or OCD (1), Intellectual Disability or ID (1).  And some days I think maybe we could throw a few more labels in there just for good measure but I'm really not sure I want to pursue it. 

On one hand, I know these labels are necessary, and help to identify what is going on and give a clearer idea of what we can do to help make things better. 

But, there are also times when these labels frustrate me. They frustrate me because once a label is applied it is far to easy to look at the label rather than the unique, wonderful person who is really there. It is so easy to get so caught up in medications, and therapies and services and appointments and evaluations of every kind and to lose sight of the child. It can also become easy to use these labels as excuses instead of expecting each child to be the very best version of themselves they can be. 

More and more I find myself looking away from all these labels and everything that comes with them and simply asking God who it is He meant for this child to be and how I can be an instrument to help them become that person. And often  that does include therapies and medications and I have no problem with that. But I also believe it is only a small part of the total person.

Of course, this means I have to spend time truly understanding and knowing each child. Sometimes it means working really hard to find ways of doing things that will work for this person. Often it requires looking at some things from a totally different perspective, a complete paradigm shift. And that's okay. That forces me to grow and learn and change and become more than I would ever have become without this mental exercise. And then, because I know how hard it can be for me make that shift, I have a better understanding of how hard it for the child to make the shift from his/her way of perceiving the world to understand mine. 

I often remember what a doctor told me one day when I was on a quest to make things "better." He reminded me that end of the day (or month, or year) regardless of the official diagnosis, each individual is just that, an individual, and they deserve to be loved and respected as that unique individual. Not as a label, but as a person.  


So my goal is to help each child, whether they have a "label" or not, to become the person they were created to be. I want to provide them with a life that is rich and full of experiences that stretch and enrich the mind, body and spirit. I want to see each of these kids soar. 


Jeremiah 29:11 applies to each person equally regardless of labels.


"For I know the plans I have for you" declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~ Jeremiah 29:11

Follow Up Visit with Pediatrician

Yesterday was Michael's follow up visit with the pediatrician. Since Michael's last visit to him we had an evaluation at Kluge Child Rehabilitation Center and a medication change.

I feel like there are small changes in Michael's behavior that make life easier on all of us, but we have a long way to go. Of course I am watching gradual changes and sometimes they are harder for me to see than for someone who has not seen him for a month. Dr. J (as the kids call him) said he saw a big difference and was very pleased. Michael was a lot more cooperative in the office this time than the last time we were there. But when we stopped in the rest room on the way out Michael was everywhere, completely fascinated by the touchless water and paper towel dispensers, running them repeatedly and fighting me when I said it was enough, then turning off the lights in the bathroom on the way out. Then on the way home he threw open the van door. Thankfully we were stopped at a traffic light when he did that, but it scared me anyway. I guess he's going to have to sit out of reach of the door handles from now on. I found myself thinking that I wished Dr. J could see him now and wondering what he would say if he did.

But, I do have to agree that over all we are seeing some gradual changes for the better. Making the decision to go the medication route was hard for me and I pushed it off for a long time, maybe a little longer than I should have. I'm not against using medication if needed but I had to know it was definitely needed. So now we're on 18 mg. of Concerta in the morning and .10mg of Clonidine and 3mg of Melatonin at night. The night time medications are so he (and I) can get some sleep at night. Most nights are much better so far although he did have one night this week that he was awake a large part of the night.

Our next appointments are with speech and physical therapy. Those appointments are on Monday and I'm looking forward to the results of those assessments and any recomendations they can give us.



Michael's KCRC Appointment - Ear Infection, ADHD, and Cerebral Palsy

Back in September during Michael's 5 year physical I brought up some concerns we've having with Michael that I thought we should look into further. Most of the concerns were behavioral - hyperactivity, constant sensory seeking, defiance, poor sleep, constant eating, no impulse control,  etc -  although I also wanted to know if there was a physical cause for some of the behaviors. I also had some questions about his feet and legs, to me they looked like they were not properly developed and he occasionally complains of them hurting although he does have an unusually high pain tolerance. I've seen him calmly take a bee sting, his only reaction being to calmly state "that bee stung me" and he doesn't even flinch for shots.

His pediatrician (who is my favorite pediatrician in the whole wide world) agreed that there was reason for concern and referred us to Kluge Children's Rehabiliation Center for an in-depth evaluation.

Tuesday afternoon was our appointment at Kluge and we left with a diagnosis that I was expecting and a couple that I was not expecting.

The first diagnosis is ADHD. I expected that and have already been working on things at home to manage that along with his medications. While it is time consuming and sometimes energy draining I familiar with ADHD through working with other kids and I'm comfortable working to manage it. She changed his medications, adding Concerta in the morning and Melatonin at night with his Clonidine.

The second diagnosis is temporary and easily treatable. When the Dr. looked in his right ear said he has a "massive ear infection." I knew he was starting with a cold but he had not complained at all of his ear hurting and when Dr. Hensen asked him if it hurt he said it didn't. I asked him again later that evening and he still said it didn't hurt. There's that high pain tolerance again. So he's on antibiotics for the ear infection. Again something I'm familiar with and completely manageable.

The third diagnosis was the one that really surprised me and the one I'm still processing and finding information on. When Dr. Hensen checked his legs and feet the first thing she said was "He has cerebral palsy!" Cerebral palsy had been discussed when he was a baby and we were doing physical therapy to help him become mobile but when he became mobile and really began to make progress in all areas it was dropped and never brought up again. There was never a diagnosis and my understanding was that it was not an issue. So along with the Prader-Willi and the Down Syndrome testing that all came back negative, I thought Cerebral Palsy had been ruled out.

Initially she said the Cerebral Palsy was only in his lower extremities, but when she rechecked his arms she said he did have mild signs there as well. This all knew to me, so I don't know if I have all the terminology correct, but this is my basic understanding of what she was telling me.

So, we are now working on making appointments with the following professionals - physical therapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist, genetecist, pediatric developmental specialist specializing in cerebral palsy. Plus follow up visits with his pedeatrician and the Dr. we saw Tuesday.

She described the cereabral palsy as mild although I'm not sure if the mild referred only to the upper extremities or upper and lower. She also described it as spastic. I guess the upcoming appointments with therapists will help us to understand the true severity and extent and make a plan as to how to manage it.

All through this two hour appointment Michael was very active and fought nearly everything the Dr. tried to do. I love how the staff at Kluge is so understanding and tries to make things as simple as possible. They worked with Michael to get him through everything and even allowed him to play games on the doctors phone.

There is also a nice sized play area for the kids to go to while the adults finish talking about everything and it is often staffed with volunteers who play with and do crafts and stories with the kids.

So, I guess now, we move forward, learning, treating and growing.

One thing I do know is that Michael has been a miracle from God from the beginning. When he was a baby there was little hope from the doctors that even if he survived everything he was going through as a baby - born at 27 weeks gestation - he would ever learn to walk and talk. I believe God will continue to work in his life and that we can trust Him to guide us in every step.

I am interested in any information and experiences anyone else has with Cerebral Palsy and ADHD and the therapies involved, as well as any other advice and tips and stories.

A Child Is More Than His Symptoms

Do not mistake a child for his symptom.

~ Erik Erikson ~

This quote that I found this morning describes our philosophy here at Walnut Acre. We currently have kids here with symptoms and diagnosis of so many different kinds.

~ ADHD

~Autism

~ Developmental Disabilaty

~ Bipolar Disorder

~Speech Delays

~ Nonverbal Learning Disability

~ Blindness in one eye

~ Asthma

~ Dyslexia

~ Possible seizures (still in the process of figuring this one out)

~ Allergies

~ Aspergers
~ Learning Disabilities

There's probably more to this list but that is what comes to mind at the moment. And while each diagnosis is important in helping me to understand the individual child, I try to be careful not to let it be the focus of what I see when I see that child. Because even though it is so easy to focus on the diagnosis, the diagnosis is not the child. It is a way (sometimes a very flawed way) of helping me to understand some of the child's behaviour, but it does not define who the child is at their very core.

My goal is to make this be a place where each child is free to be the person God made them to be without undue attention to a diagnosis. Because the diagnosis is a part of the person, but that is all, just a part. For each child it is sometimes a bigger part than others, but always, it just a part, not the whole of the child.

How does this translate into daily application?

 ~ By listening to the child's hopes and dreams as well as the fears and concerns and treating them with respect.

~ By taking into account the strengths as well as the limitations of each child and planning the days activities and routine accordingly.

~ By providing activities and resources that help each child build on their interests and strengths.

~ By teaching each child to value the uniqueness of each person in the group.

~ By sharing the positive moments of the day with the parent in the presence of the child.

This is just a short list of ways to show that the child is respected and valued with all the strengths and weaknesses that are unique to him/her. There are many ways to allow a child to be the person they were meant to be including but certainly not limited to a diagnosis.

Because at the end of the day this is still true and bears repeating -

Do not mistake a child for his symptom.

~ Erik Erikson ~