Listen even when you are free
How does going on the long Passover vacation affect children with attention deficit disorder? How can you prepare in advance for long days devoid of routine? And why do parents mistakenly think that treatment can be stopped? Dr. Esnat Zafarir, who helps children and parents with attention deficit disorder in collaboration with iCON, the app for managing the disorder, with special tips for parents:
After a routine with short holiday interruptions, the era of vacations begins - going on a long Passover vacation, and then a routine that is intermittently interrupted on Memorial and other days, which will end with the long holiday, is a challenge for parents of children with attention deficit disorder. If at the beginning of the year, clinics for the treatment of attention deficit disorder are busy, then between the holidays And during the holidays themselves, parents as well as the children themselves think that there is no point in monitoring and treatment, while precisely in situations of departure from the routine there is an added value to monitoring and monitoring. A situation of sharp transitions between vacations may be confusing for all children and even more so for children with attention deficit disorder. How can Dealing with the long holiday meals and days devoid of routine? One of the most important elements is not to stop monitoring and treatment, to continue to monitor, track and adapt the treatment to the vacation days. Here are some tips:
A vacation from school is not a vacation from the disorder
Since the disorder manifests itself in a very strong way during the school year, when the children are required to listen in class and perform tasks, the parents' natural tendency is to link the disorder to the field of studies. Therapists and doctors experience the month of September as a very busy period, about 50% more meetings with patients who come to balance/correct dosage, renew treatment or prescription. Some parents continue with the previous year's dose, and only then check if a change is necessary. It is important to understand that this is a mistake. Attention deficit disorder has a wide range, its treatment should not guide the child to success in studies but rather help and improve him in all areas of his life. The disorder manifests itself on other levels, such as family and behavior, which the children were born with long before they were required to sit at the school table. In this context, of sharp transitions between vacation and school routine, between events such as travel and family visits during the holidays, one must listen to the child himself and examine and assess how he will specifically react to these changes, how well he will behave in a balanced manner, and have his hand on the pulse at all times, because coping is a way life.
In this context and from the difference between the children, it is necessary to consult about stopping or continuing taking medicine during the vacations and holidays, each child is different, there are children whose disorder is complex, and it is not possible to stop taking the medicine even on vacation, and as a result, there will be difficulty in the family unit in a way that will cloud the enjoyment of the holidays and the vacation. While there are children for whom it is possible to waive the medicine on vacation, and allow them to enjoy it and the vacation. Decisions of this type must be made in an informed manner, while learning from the child and with the help of counseling, guidance and constant accompaniment. Thus, the quality of life will improve when the parents know how to deal correctly and internalize the disorder over time and in a thorough and broad way, in addition the child may feel a positive effect on the self-image and the feeling "who I am and what I am".
During holidays or studies: monitoring and follow-up are recommended at all times
Monitoring and tracking the progress of attention disorder treatment is extremely important. In attention disorder, there are unique and different factors for each person that affect the level of the disorder, and thus also the conduct. These factors may be due to various reasons and their early identification will help to deal with the disorder and may relieve your child in a faster way than you can imagine. However, it is clear that the daily circumstances do not always allow parents and caregivers to assess the factors, thus identifying cause and effect trends. The good news is that today, there are digital and additional tools, which allow easy and friendly not to remember but simply to record. One of the recommended examples is the iCON application that allows you to record - with the help of status questionnaires and customized reminders, and get a complete situational picture. Thus, depending on what is required for your child and depending on the results of the monitoring and the guidance you will receive using the tool, you will be able to make informed decisions. It is very important to be careful and be consistent in using this tool or any other tools you choose, in order not to divert the follow-up results and harm the treatment process.
Even on vacation: keep a daily routine and a supportive environment
For children suffering from attention deficit disorder who have difficulty meeting goals and tasks, whether the daily tasks related to self-functioning and a family environment on vacation or whether at school, a routine framework and an understanding of how the day should be conducted, will help them to function more relaxed and efficient. You can use the tools of worksheets, a friendly diary or a task sheet. learn together how to organize a school bag or alternatively the bag to take on vacation, what is the agenda and its importance and decide on an actual agenda, what are the bedtimes and of course monitor and verify not only if they have completed academic tasks or assignments at home, but also if what is expected of them is indeed appropriate for them and change accordingly our expectations and conduct in favor of preventing frustration on their part. Even during free time, it is recommended to set a time limit for going to bed, for example, and even try to share and agree together with the children in advance on these issues.
True for all times: embrace your child and allow him to learn and love himself
The attention disorder will accompany your child throughout their life and will be an integral part of their daily dealings even when they are adults and you will not be around. Therefore, it is important that you give your child the tools to cope correctly, share with him the components of his weakness, the results of the follow-up you perform, and teach him how to cope and relieve himself. You will be able to explain how to identify frustration that is about to arrive, or hyper-activity and the time when it needs an outlet. This is essential information that will ease your child's frustration, and will help him acquire tools to deal with it correctly, in the present and in the future, that will help him learn when to take the medicine and, among other things, also monitor his own behaviors and know what to expect in his behavior and when to expect it.
The author, Dr. Esnat Zafarir, a specialist in pediatrics, is certified by the Ministry of Health to diagnose ADHD. She is an independent doctor at a private ADHD clinic in Pardes Hana.