My Child's Teacher Told Me That My Child Has ADHD

The first thing you must keep in mind in when you deal with this situation is that your number one priority should be your child. That means your number one priority is not pleasing your child’s teachers and the school principal or anyone else.

The second thing to understand is that a teacher is not qualified to give you such a diagnosis. The teacher is qualified to give you advice to have ADHD looked into as a possibility, but if the teacher is telling you to put your kid on Ritalin or some other drug, then you should put up a red flag. Your child's teacher should know that they are not qualified to make this sort of diagnosis. ADHD is a serious condition, that should only be diagnosed by a medical professional.

Your goal should be to find out as much information about the problem as you can. As with any investigation, you want as many sources of information as you can get.

Even if the teacher is well-intentioned, it would be a mistake to accept his or her opinion as gold. Find out what the problem is for yourself. Talk to your child about the problems. Ask your child why he or she thinks the teacher is coming to you. A lot can be learned from your child if you really listen. At the same time, children like to stretch the truth now and again to keep themselves out of trouble, so don’t accept your child’s opinion as gold either.

Your next step should be to talk to any friends you know who have children already diagnosed with ADHD. See what they have to say. Being a parent with ADHD will naturally teach you how to deal with it. ADHD will also make the parents of a child that has it more knowledgeable about the disorder. A caring parent learns a lot about ADHD through his or her experiences in dealing with it and from doctors who they have met with frequently.

The next step for a parent to take after being approached by a teacher about ADHD is to make a decision for yourself. Instead of going 100% on the teacher’s opinion, form your own opinion. Form this opinion using all of the information you picked up from all of the people you talked to. If you are married or have someone who raises the child with you, then make sure that you work this out together. Having a partner to help you raise a child is a huge bonus so you should use it if you have it.

It is impossible for a doctor who doesn’t know your specific situation and your child’s symptoms to properly diagnose the problem. If you decide that a visit to a professional is necessary, make sure he or she knows everything that you know so he or she can properly diagnose your child.

While it is important not to follow the advice of a teacher blindly, it is also important not to totally ignore the teacher and possibly allow an authentic case of ADHD to go untreated. In the end, it is best for your child if you make a decision based on a large amount of information from many different sources. Keep in mind that no single one of these opinions should decide the issue for you. They should only help you in making your own decision.

Author: Kurt Robinson