An experience that
simulates the challenges
encountered by individuals with
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity
Disorder (ADHD).

The simulation is designed for use with a CD player and stereo headphones, although any stereo system will suffice. Participants will receive a series of aural commands and be required to perform a task on a protocol form (included in the booklet).  The recording includes distracting stimuli and the protocol was designed to provide some visual distraction.  The modes of distraction are increased by having participants sit in very undersized or oversized chairs (I have used the tiny kindergarten seats) and use very undersized or oversized writing utensils. These physical and visual distractions make the task a multiple modality experience and help increase awareness of how difficult an assignment can be when other sensory stimuli must also be filtered in addition to the distractions within the primary task at hand.

NOTE:  This product is NOT intended as an intervention or treatment for ADHD.  Please see the section entitled Suggestions if your child has been diagnosed with ADHD.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) describes a set of behavioral symptoms and is currently characterized in one of three types: Inattentive Type, Hyperactive Type, and Combined Inattentive/Hyperactive Type. This condition has carried a number of different monikers throughout the years, including ADD. Whatever you choose to call this condition, think of ADHD along a hyperactive or attention continuum. We all experience levels of inattention; we are all at least a little hyper at times. When these conditions exist within an individual to such an elevated degree that they significantly interfere with school or work performance and become quite debilitating, we then may consider the behaviors beyond the normal range and in need of possible intervention. Researchers have not yet identified a cause for this condition, although the prevailing thought seems to be that ADHD has a biological basis that is exacerbated by certain environmental conditions. In other words, no one is to blame, but school, work, or home environments can be modified to make things better.

Problems in filtering perceptual stimuli have long characterized the deficits associated with ADHD. Individuals exhibiting ADHD features typically have trouble filtering extraneous information so that they can focus efficiently on tasks at hand. Hence, these individuals often seem to flit here and there, moving quickly from one thing to another, becoming easily distracted by extraneous stimuli. The ADHD Audio Simulation exaggerates this filtering deficit in order to help others better understand these challenges.

How can filtering difficulties make attention difficult? A simple way to understand is to imagine the incredible amount of sensory information assaulting our bodies every second. While reading this, you may hear conversation somewhere else in the room or in a room next door. You may hear traffic, the television, or even the low droning hum of florescent lighting. Besides the sounds, there may be visual activity arriving in your brain right now. Rays of sunlight across the room, a sharp glare on the paper, the movement of children through your peripheral vision. And what about the tactile sense? Is the room hot? Is your chair uncomfortable? Does your back hurt? Now, what about other things on your mind? Do you need to get the oil changed in the car and finish that project at work? What’s for dinner and did the kids get their homework finished? You must, somehow, filter the incredible amount of information arriving right at this very moment in order to read and understand this sentence. That filtering process is necessary to focus and is an operation that seems deficient in individuals with ADHD.

A word should be added regarding the positive aspects of ADHD. This condition appears high among creative, intuitive, productive, and highly energetic people. Diagnosis and treatment helps these individuals accentuate the positives and contain the negatives. While the disorder is certainly more complex that a few paragraphs can attempt to summarize, there is substantial research affirming that by whatever name, ADHD is definitely real. Identification and treatment helps to clear the noise and make life more enjoyable for these individuals.

• Make sure the diagnosis carefully considers information from multiple sources and that other explanations of behavior are ruled out.  Several observations by parents and professionals should be made.

• Educate yourself about ADHD.  Read books and articles about this condition and join support groups or mailing lists if available in your area.

• Consider a combination of medical and non-medication intervention.  Learn about the different medications available as well as different parenting styles and other behavior management skills that have been demonstrated to be helpful.

• Help your child develop an awareness of his/her individual strengths and weaknesses.  Help them understand how they might use strengths to help manage their own behavior.

• Participate in the ADHD Simulation to gain a better personal awareness of what this condition might be like.  Encourage your child’s teachers to participate and help them better understand ADHD.

Click here for a more detailed review on ADHD.

About the Author:

Braden Davis is a certified school psychologist working in several small school districts of the St. David, Arizona Consortium. He holds an Ed.S. degree in School Psychology from the University of Arizona and is a member of the National Association of School Psychologists. He has also spent over a decade in the audio-visual field and has worked as a musician, recording engineer, and audio-visual technician. His research interests include ADHD awareness and intervention, and creative writing in therapy. He and his wife, Melanie, have four daughters and one son.

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  (reset 9/23/03)
Equifax

http://www.youngs.org/mdavis/adhd