Worldwide, regardless of country or race, parents of 2-5% of all children affected by A.D.H.D, struggle to maintain some semblance of normality for their child. This is done by controlling the stimuli, nourishment and environment around their child and considering whether medication is an option for them.
A.D.H.D is no more prevalent now than 100 years ago, it's just better recognized. People have a lot more awareness of mental health and there is a lot more interest in finding out more about A.D.H.D. According to Google trends, the searches in 2019 for Methylphenidate - medication are up by 170%, Attention deficit Hyperactivity Disorder - Mental disorder are up 140%, and natural alternatives to Adderall are up by 70%. This clearly is an area where parents or patients themselves are heavily invested in making the right choice for their situations.
Do you have to medicate your child? Natural Remedies vs. Medication
Many parents today want to avoid medications.
This can be because of fear (warranted or unwarranted) of the potential addictive nature of the medications themselves, or a desire to ensure that their child gets maximum nutritional benefits of their diet.
Personally, I was very resistant to medicating Master 9 because of fear. I had heard so much about how this person and that person got addicted to their medications, and how much they were struggling to get through each day. We tried everything from removing gluten, switching to A2 Milk, limiting exposure to video games, strict bedtimes and routines, with melatonin supplementation to get to sleep each night. For a while this actually helped us, but then things started to go haywire. School was ringing constantly, Master 9 was getting into massive amounts of trouble and lashing out continually.
We felt as parents that we didn't have a choice but to medicate him. Unfortunately by medicating Master 9, we entered the zombie zone! He was a shell of himself, and struggled to eat, losing precious kilos that he couldn't afford to.
Unfortunately A.D.H.D can quite often be partnered with 1 or more comorbidities which can include learning disorders, Oppositional Defiance Disorder, Anxiety and depression, Autism Spectrum Disorder to name a few. We found that Master 9 had Auditory Processing Disorder with hypersensitive hearing as well as A.D.H.D, which is why the medications weren't working for him.
I find it interesting as a wife and parent of A.D.H.D that most information that I come across these days is showing both the medicated and non medicated options available. There are multiple practitioners out there including Dr. Josh Axe, Dr. Sheila Kilbone & Dr. Laila Masson who are all very reliable experts in the field of A.D.H.D.
One of the most interesting things that I find is that they are all strong advocates for a very clean diet, with a focus on anti-inflammatory foods and good quality vitamin and mineral supplements.
The best advice I can give as a parent who has been struggling to get results for Master 9 for the last 8+ years, is stick with it and keep pushing for more information if something doesn't fit the typical description of the condition. Some medications will work for some children, whereas they can work less effectively for others.
Do your research thoroughly and make the decision that is right for you and your family.
If you do decide to medicate for A.D.H.D remember that medications react differently from person to person. It is a very personal thing and can take time to find the right solution for you.