THE HYPERACTIVE CHILD
The week I was obtusely determined to talk about Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, because I am very tired of the saturation of Attention Deficit cases everywhere, it seems like Concerta is passed out like “a party gift” and the poor children are popping pills without complaining.
The performance of a differential diagnosis between hyperactive symptomology and a hyperactive child is essential. In consultation I have seen many children diagnosed with "Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder" when they were in fact "very nervous" or the excess of motor activity kept them sufficiently occupied not to think about what hurt them the most. Working with them, the most traumatic issues that they kept hidden with their feelings which were totally denied, being able to express them and give them a proper emotional outlet, had its effects and their "hyperactivity" subsided.
It seems to me that when children and adults with traumatic issues avoid talking about them or talk about them all the time, it is for some reason, or to avoid the mental suffering or "vomit up what happened to them" which means that there was no psychological elaboration work done.
Other times I have found diagnosed hyperactivity masking depression. Children are that way, sometimes they feel sad but instead of displaying their sadness they become irritable.
Other times the symptoms of hyperactivity are linked to the intersubjective, to their relationship with "another person", it is not uncommon then to observe how a small child becomes "hyperactive" as a way of "bringing" the mother out of a case of depression, although it seems like fiction this happens in the real world and as professionals we find ourselves with these cases when we are look beyond the symptoms, if we only stick with the "hyperactivity" diagnosis and we prescribe a little pill, we are washing our hands of the emotional issue that many times is much more distressing to the parents.
All this leads me to the question: "to what extent does Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder" perform the function of "removing guilt" from the parents? Which is to say, how many parents feel so distressed about "having done things badly" that they prefer a diagnosis that places the entire burden on the child?
We can also find the opposite, parents who want to attribute an emotional cause to "Hyperactivity Disorder" because in this way they feel that they can do something to change it, if the psychologist works with the child it can be resolved and unfortunately this is not always the case. They can help them a great deal, but it would be to accept this characteristic of the child.
The inattention and impulsivity are very characteristic of these children who are often severely judged by adults: "they only concentrate when they want to or when they like something", that the child is only able to "do their best" in a given moment, this does not mean that they can always do it. Teachers brand them as "lazy". There is no worse condemnation or cruelty than to attach a "negative identity" to a child who is constructing their own.
For them to stay focused in class requires an enormous effort and they often end up being exhausted after the effort it takes to be attentive. In general they are distracted by any external stimulus. The hyperactive child does not go unnoticed because they are very disturbing, at school, at home, etc. there is always far too much noise around them.
When there are other pathologies within the attention déficit symptomatology, but they are more serious pathologies, then the disorder would included the ADD, I am referring to schizophrenia for example, generalized developmental disorder, etc.
In any case, it seems to me, that what we need to do is perform a thorough diagnosis and not hesitate to dedicate more time if it is needed, the child deserves it.