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Video 3: What Other Conditions Exist Along With ADHD?

Published on Dec 03, 2020 · Last Updated 2 years 4 months ago
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"What Other Conditions Exist Along With ADHD?" is the third video in a eight-part video series on ADHD.

Transcript

Hi! My name is Meaghan, and I’m with the PASS Study at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. In this video, we are going to be learning about other conditions that exist along with ADHD. Let’s get started!

To begin, take a moment to think about besides ADHD, what other difficulties are you concerned about in your child? If you want, you can pause the video and jot down your thoughts on a piece of a paper. Okay, moving on.

In previous videos, you learned about different types of ADHD symptoms like having difficulty paying attention and following directions, or talking a lot, interrupting others, and fidgeting with hands or feet. You also saw how these symptoms can lead to challenges in school, at home, and in relationships. But these might not be the whole picture.

Looking at the list you made, besides ADHD, your child might also be having difficulty with learning, defiant behavior and conduct, processing and expressing emotions, sleep problems, motor or vocal tics, and/or rigid behaviors.

You see, it is very common for children with ADHD to have other mental, emotional or behavioral concerns. In fact, more than half of children with ADHD are diagnosed with at least one other condition, and these are what we call "coexisting conditions".

Altogether, a child’s ADHD symptoms can overlap and interact with these other conditions, and this can make diagnosis and treatment more complicated. It is recommended that during your child’s ADHD evaluation, your child’s healthcare provider also tests for these other conditions. Let’s now review some of the most common coexisting conditions with ADHD.

Learning Disorders: While many children with ADHD have a hard time in school, learning disorders can make it more difficult to master skills in certain areas like reading, writing, or math. These learning difficulties are not related to ADHD or lack of intelligence or effort.

Defiant Behavior and Conduct Problems: Children can sometimes act defiant or uncooperative. In particular, children with ADHD often show defiant behavior and may be diagnosed with another condition, known as oppositional defiant disorder or ODD. Children with ODD are easily annoyed or angry, frequently argue with adults, deliberately annoy others, and seek revenge. Some children may have more serious conduct problems and may be diagnosed with conduct disorder. These children engage in more severe behaviors like running away, bullying or fighting, stealing or damaging other people’s property.

Emotional Difficulties: As ADHD disrupts your child’s everyday life, it is understandable for your child to feel upset or have low self-esteem. Some children with ADHD have more persistent emotional difficulties like anxiety, in which they experience excessive fear and worry about a number of things, or depression, in which they frequently feel sad, hopeless, or worthless, or lose interest in things they used to enjoy

Sleep Problems: Parents and caregivers of children with ADHD often report that their child has trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, and/or not getting enough sleep overall. Sleep problems can make ADHD symptoms worse as sleep-deprived children are more likely to misbehave or lose focus. At the same time, ADHD and taking ADHD medication can make it harder for children to go to sleep. 

Tic Disorders: Children with ADHD might also experience uncontrollable and repetitive motor tics. They might also experience vocal tics or a combination of motor and vocal tics for different periods of time. 

Rigid Behavior: It’s true that some children with ADHD have trouble focusing or are easily distracted. It is also common though for children with ADHD to become intensely focused or “stuck” on one activity for a long period of time, such as watching TV, playing a game, or some other activity that they find interesting. This rigid focus makes it difficult to switch between tasks or make smooth transitions. If this is combined with other difficulties with communication and social interaction, this may be a sign of autism spectrum disorder. 

Here are this video’s key takeaways. Most children with ADHD have at least one other psychological disorder, and these are what we call coexisting conditions. Common coexisting conditions with ADHD include: learning disorders, defiant behavior and conduct problems, emotional difficulties, sleep problems, tic disorders, and rigid behavior. It is recommended that your child’s evaluation for ADHD includes assessment for coexisting conditions. Please contact your child’s healthcare provider if you have any concerns about ADHD or other disorders. Thank you for watching! In our next video, you will be learning about school supports for your child.