Ensuring your child with ADHD gets the best possible help and treatment can be a frustrating process. Often you will find yourself being forced to advocate for your child in a way that you did not expect when you saw yourself as a parent.
If your child has an ADHD diagnosis, you are past the first hurdle. Too often, parents are forced to fight with educators and doctors to convince people their child isn’t just poorly behaved but has a higher issue.
Once you have a diagnosis, you will need to get your child in ADHD therapy. Therapy programs specific to ADHD will help your child learn healthy coping mechanisms for their feelings and impulses. The treatment will also help them to respond appropriately to other children and adults that may not understand their condition.
It is best to find a program or practice with experience, specifically in helping children with ADHD. The problems these children face are unique, and they should not be grouped in with other children. Too often, children with ADHD are expected to control their behaviors, and educators have been known to ignore or minimize their IEP requirements.
Working with counselors that are experienced and explicitly educated with ADHD will not only benefit your child directly but will also provide you with the resources and knowledge to advocate for your child and to help your child while at home and dealing with everyday issues.
Parents also learn the best ways for their child to respond and react in stressful situations, so they can help their child when things are starting to get out of control. This training may even help the parents to identify the signs of when a situation is becoming too stressful for their child, so they can intervene before their child starts reacting.
Unfortunately, many children get denied the help they need early on due to misdiagnosis. When parents vocalize concerns they have with their child’s behavior, they hear it is normal. Particularly with boys, parents are often told they need to be patient with overly ruckus behavior, or they need to be stricter with discipline.
The early misdiagnosis can cause children with ADHD to suffering school, at home, and socially. The initial misdiagnosis may cause years of problems if the parents are not able to or do not pursue a second opinion. A medical malpractice attorney can help parents determine the extent of the damage done due to misdiagnosis and get the compensation they need to provide their child with the ongoing treatment necessary to help them.
School interventionists, tutors, counselors, and qualified caretakers quickly get expensive, and parents without the financial means to provide everything necessary for their child may feel the mental and emotional pressure of guilt as a result. No parent should have to decide not to provide their child with the best care possible due to cost. While some may balk at the idea of getting a lawyer, if your child has suffered due to the mistake of a healthcare professional, then your child deserves compensation that will allow them to get the ongoing help they need.
There are varying levels of ADHD, and the extent of help a child will need may vary significantly. As a parent, it is essential to talk to experienced and educated counselors and professionals to get a clear picture of what your child needs. Do not rely on the opinion of a single doctor or educator. Too often, doctors and educators are working on the pressure of time and financial expectations, and going the extra mile for a single child is not part of their agenda. Parents must act as advocates for their children.
