Analysis of critical incidents and shifting perspectives: transitions in illness careers among adolescents with ADHD.

Adolescence represents a developmental period during which the severity of mental health problems for children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) might change. It is a time when teens are consolidating their self-identity and possibly questioning the label of an ADHD diagnosis, treatment, and types of interventions. In this study we investigated the shared critical events related to help seeking reported by 8 teenagers with ADHD, their mothers, and their teachers and how the reported events and constructed shared focus on specific problems might explain teenagers' transitions in their illness careers.

What "Dr. Mom" ordered: a community-based exploratory study of parental self-care responses to children's ADHD symptoms.

Little is known about family initiated self-care interventions in response to symptoms of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and how self-care may co-exist with professional treatments. This paper explores parental self-care strategies for children with hyperactivity or attention problems, and examines factors and domains that influence their use from the mixed method perspective. As part of a longitudinal cohort study of ADHD detection and service use, caregivers of a representative US community sample of 266 children at high risk for ADHD completed a questionnaire that assessed five self-care strategies (behavior modification, coping, diet, over-the-counter medication use and religious practices), and made open-ended inquiry about discipline changes in response to behavioral concerns.

Exploring help-seeking for ADHD symptoms: a mixed-methods approach.

Objective: Gender and race differences in treatment rates for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are well documented but poorly understood. Using a mixed-methods approach, this study examines parental help-seeking steps for elementary school students at high risk for ADHD.

Methods: Parents of 259 students (male/female, African American/Caucasian) identified as being at high risk for ADHD completed diagnostic interviews and provided detailed accounts of help-seeking activities since they first became concerned about their child.