074: Don’t Let ADHD Ruin Your Holiday
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Holidays are challenging for kids with ADHD, and for their parents. Schedules are different, excitement is high, big gatherings are routine, and that's the only thing that's routine. Yikes! This frenzy guarantees some struggle. It's really easy to get tangled up in the fallout of a lot of new things and people, a ton of sensory overwhelm (hello, Uncle Buck's loud voice and Aunt Mildred's heavily perfume aura), and the excitement of impending gifts, so close you can almost touch them. Don't let a focus on the traditional and neurotypical celebration expectations ruin your holiday, because — let's face it — our kids are kids, but we are the ones with the storybook visions and the inflexible expectations.
In this episode, I'm talking about what parents can do during the holidays to prevent letting ADHD (or autism) ruin the spirit of the season. Listen in now and plan for a truly happy holiday.
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Host of Beautifully Complex. I help stuck and struggling parents (educators, too) make the pivots necessary to unlock success and joy for neurodivergent kids and teens, themselves, and their families. I'm honored to be part of your journey!
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Hi Penny…. I attended the autism summit and something you said has really stuck with me. You mentioned that you got your son evaluated multiple times before he got diagnosed with autism spectrum…. what is the advantage of the diagnosis? My son ( adopted from China at 17 months)…has ADHD… at the very least ( he is 11 now). Our tutor told me she thinks he is on the spectrum. He has gotten so much testing… but wondering what the advantage is?
The advantage for us was understanding some of his challenges and behaviors better, which meant we could address them more effectively. I actually pursued the diagnosis because I thought educators and teachers would finally take his challenges seriously (so many don't understand ADHD or think it's an excuse). It didn't help educators understand better or take his challenges more seriously, but it did help us as a family.