ADHD: The Hyperactive Child

The term hyperactive or hyperkinetic has been used for diagnostic purposes for a large number of children, whose behavior is characterized by a surplus of motor activity, attention disorders, and a diminished ability to control emotional reactions, inadequate to the stage of evolution in which they are. In other words, hyperactive children show an excessive amount of energy, are agitated, and have serious concentration problems.

The causes of this disorder are biological (dysfunctions of the nervous system), and its manifestation and evolution are influenced by many factors, such as negative life events or interpersonal relationships. This disorder is more common in boys and begins before the age of seven, but the diagnosis is most often at school age when the child is closely monitored both in the family and in the school environment.

Eternal winner at play

A hyperactive child has a special problem and is a child with special needs. Although he may have normal intelligence, his school performance is diminished compared to other children of the same age, this being influenced by the difficulty of concentrating, any visual, auditory, or olfactory stimulus distracting his attention.

The hyperactive often have feelings of inferiority, because he is labeled as strange, unstable, he is blamed by his parents, teachers, or colleagues, who do not understand him and punish him. The child tries to find compensation for the lack of appreciation and manifests himself by aggressing his relatives or colleagues, being concerned to attract the attention of an adult.

Not only can learning be difficult, but there are also many other activities such as dining, playing, sleeping, or visiting. At the table, the hyperactive gets up from his chair several times and wants to be heard by everyone when he tells something. Play, visits, guests can highlight everything negative about a hyperactive child: jealousy, whining, shouting, agitation.

The therapeutic process

All those who relate to the child must be involved in the therapeutic process: parents, teachers, psychologists, doctors. An agreement is required on educational principles, which must be the same in the family as at school. Parents should constantly encourage their child after each task performed, rewarding him.

Teachers need to know that these children need more explanations for each new element until they assimilate it, and how to solve problems in a hyperactive child is an impulsive one: he does not think about how to solve them and does not plan anything. . From a medical point of view, the hyperactive child should be consulted by a specialist familiar with this syndrome. Some doctors advocate for a variety of treatments that eliminate the use of medications.

High doses of various vitamins, diets (giving up artificial food additives and first of all drastically reducing refined sugar), and special therapies (movement therapy, child psychotherapy, play therapy, family therapy) were used to treat hyperactivity.

Homeopathic remedies

Where allopathic medicine gives unsatisfactory results, homeopathy can solve, over time, the problems of the hyperactive child. Among the remedies that give great results in these cases, I will list only Aconite, Rhus-tox, Chamomilla, Argentum Dinner, Lachesis, Arsenicum album. I will exemplify by comparing two of these remedies and noting some subtle differences so important to the correct homeopathic diagnosis.

Arsenicum album is suitable for children who are usually restless, move from one place to another, always do something and show anxiety even when the situation does not require it.

Although they are always active, they quickly run out, fatigued, and the need to stretch. They have a strong personality, tyrannically imposing their will or terrorizing their entourage with their exaggerated pretensions to order. They are perfectionists, which is why there are problems related to school, for fear of failure. The child feels the need to exercise permanent control over his parents, colleagues to dominate them) or over the objects around them (cleanliness and order). Situations in which they cannot exercise control lead to anxiety.

In the evening, sleeping can become a problem, as the child has a ritualistic behavior (for example, check if the door is locked). If teachers' demands on them are exaggerated, they may have regular tics or headaches.

Exaggerated sensitivity

The symptoms of the Chamomilla remedy are almost identical to those of Arsenicum, although they are completely different kinds of children. And the child who needs Chamomilla has hyperesthesia, excessive sensitivity to noise, pain, people, and motor agitation.

The child who needs Chamomilla has extreme hyperesthesia, the pain seems unbearable, he is angry at everyone and he struggles and hits the people around him. The motor agitation is intense, the child walks from one to another and is dissatisfied with everyone, he finds no relief in anyone, as was the case with Arsenicum.

The Chamomilla baby is also very sensitive to noise, and when it is disturbed, it starts screaming and kicking. It's a different reaction. Arsenicum is agitated, moving from place to place, while the baby Chamomilla is especially relieved by passive movement, for example when carried in his arms he stops crying. This kind of movement is not to the liking of the Arsenicum child.

The baby Chamomilla is never calm and is unhappy with whatever he does. He doesn't move from one occupation to another, but he gets bored and throws away objects. He never puts a toy back where he got it from, but throws it on the floor and takes another; if you ask him to put the toy back on, he'll start screaming.

Typically, Chamomilla children become more agitated as evening approaches, are more nervous and difficult, and do not fall asleep until midnight when their fatigue subsides. When upset, the child turns red in the face and has a hotter head. Unlike Arsenicum, Chamomilla babies are warm.

Remember!

The dosage of homeopathic remedies indicated in the treatment of hyperactivity is a field of finesse, the homeopathic doctor being the one who will make the adaptations depending on the vital energy of the child, the duration of the disease, or any associated manifestations.

I would like to emphasize that it is not advisable to prescribe these remedies on allopathic principles because in the case of homeopathic remedies the whole pathogenetic picture of the remedy must be taken into account.

The best therapy is always the one that is directly oriented to the child and his special problems.