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Non-Drug Treatments  can have profound effects on ADHD

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  • CATCH FISH - Increasing dietary Fish Oils, from fish or supplements, has been shown to stabilize brain membranes and decrease agitation.    

 

  • EAT WELL - Increase Potassium and Magnesium intake.  Potassium is found in fruits and vegetables; bananas, oranges tomatoes and coconut water are good sources. Potassium helps calm the brain and allows you to excrete sodium, which means you retain less water.       Magnesium is found in bananas, peanuts, molasses and kale . Magnesium is a natural brain soother, it helps sleep and decreases irritability. 

 

  • LOW CARB - Decreasing carbohydrate, increasing protein have been shown to decrease hyperactivity and improve concentration.  

 

  • SLEEP WELL - Nothing makes ADHD worse than sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation can make even a non-ADHD person have poor focus. By contrast, a good night's sleep can significantly decrease ADHD symptoms.

 

  • STOP using SCREENS - The bright light behind your gaming, FACEBOOK and late night texting screens, tells your brain it's day-time, which means you will have difficulty falling asleep, you will sleep less deeply and you will not feel rested in the morning.

 

  • BE FIT - Physical activity of any kind and competition increase all the neurotransmitters: adrenaline, serotonin, dopamine. It improves focus, energy and motivation. It is unusually common for elite athletes to have ADHD and their choice of physical activity a synthesis of natural talent and self-medication for their low dopamine levels.

 

  • STRETCH - BREATHE - Mind-body interventions like Meditation, T’ai Chi and Yoga, etc, which emphasize deep stretching and belly breathing, increase the brain chemical GABA. GABA downregulates brain circuits... help you to relax, decrease agitation and increase stress tolerance.

 

  • LEARN SKILLS - Coaching helps patients learn new techniques to improve memory, planning, prioritization and organization. 

 

  • TALK to ME - Counselling (psychotherapy) does not specifically improve ADHD symptoms. It is more effective for managing other issues such as anxiety, trauma and depression.

  • FIND your PASSION - Probably the most valuable non-pharmacological treatment for ADHD is to build your life around things that you are passionate about, have meaning or capture your attention. Anything that is fun, challenging, exciting, rewarding or satisfying stimulates dopamine circuits. Passion, like exercise, is not only helpful in the moment, but for a significant amount of time afterwards. This includes a huge range of activities from volunteering to playing with your grand-children to snow-boarding.

 

To be fair, it's important to see things in perspective. These Interventions will not cure your ADHD, and for most people with severe ADHD, these interventions are helpful, but not strong enough to all allow them to return to full function. Seminal research findings, such as those from the Multimodal Treatment of ADHD study, which included nearly 600 subjects, show that the COMBINATION of medical and non-medical treatment can improve ADHD symptoms by 75-80%. That's what you should aim for. Any less, and we are leaving money on the table. 

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