Some experts say they are disappointed the new guidelines don’t recommend behavioral treatment first for more children, before stimulant medications like Ritalin or Adderall.
When children are diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, stimulant medications like Ritalin or Adderall are usually the first line of treatment.
“You hear of losing your child’s personality, and they become a shell of themselves, and they’re not that sparking little kid that you love,” Brett Knapp said. “I didn’t want to lose that with Brody, ’cause he’s an amazing kid.”“I was all for stimulants at the very, very beginning just because I know what they can do to help a neurological issue such as ADHD,” Ashley Knapp said.
A behavioral intervention can range from cognitive therapy to school support. It can be as simple as parents setting up a system of expectations reinforced by rewards or punishments. But the techniques — things like counting to keep him on the task of putting away his toys, and rewards like time playing legos after he finishes a chore — are helping him, she admitted.
A new study co-authored by Coles took it further. It found that children ages 5-13 with ADHD who received therapy first often needed less medication. And 37% of the children who got therapy first didn’t end up needing to take pills at all.
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