posted October 25, 2006 10:45 PM            

Does anyone have good info on this.
I've read it can be hereditary. I believe my brother had it. He is deceased. It was the early 80's and it didn't even really have a name.. "hyper" is all I remember. No treatments then either.
He has all the inattention symptoms.

posted October 26, 2006 12:06 AM              

#1. : Leo Sun, Libra Moon, Libra rising.

#2. : Leo Sun, Sag Moon, unknown rising

#3. : Gemini Sun, Leo Moon, unknown rising

#1 and #2 both have Mars Conjunct Pluto. They are very athletic, rebellious, attractive, and a little hot-tempered.

#3 has Sun Opposing Uranus and Mercury Opposing Uranus

All three are really bright.

I think those with ADHD need a lot of mental stimulation, interesting school work as opposed to mindless busy work, and a LOT of physical exercise. Also, a good creative outlet, too, as I think there is a lot of creative energy there.

posted October 26, 2006 02:39 AM            

I don't believe in medication for children unless absolutely necessary (my kids have had maybe 2 courses of anti-biotics in their entire lives). I struggled with my daughter and found some things that really helped without resorting to drugs or extreme behaviour modification.

1. My kids only eat things homemade, I've noticed the PRESERVATIVES (and sugar) in things so simple as bread turn my daughter into a whirlwind of activity unable to sit still. All preservatives, and they're in mostly everything unfortunately.

2. Loads of exercise. I agree wholeheartedly with GLLF. My kids run around heaps at school all day (wish I had their stamina) but they also play tennis, swim, ride their scooters and get out in the yard with the dog (whose also 'hyper' lol).

3. Again, like GLLF said they need mental and creative stimulation. My kids play games like monopoly at night, games that make them concentrate whilst still being fun. And of course they concentrate as neither likes to lose to the other! My daughter will also sing and dance all day if I let her.

posted October 26, 2006 03:21 AM            

In an article published in the January 8, 2002 edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Dr. Robert K. Moyzis and other researchers speculate that early humans with AD/HD traits such as novelty-seeking, increased aggression and perseverance were more likely to survive. These traits have been associated with the DRD4 7R gene. Up to half of AD/HD individuals have this same variant gene, according to Moyzis, one of the authors of the study. More information about the article is available online.

Today, many of these same traits are deemed inappropriate in the typical classroom setting and hence diagnosed as AD/HD. Like their early ancestors, today's AD/HD children are more active and often more aggressive than their peers. These children are always looking for something new to capture their attention. Once they find something interesting, such as a video game, they "lock on" and focus intently on the task. They are often unable to shift their focus to something new.

posted October 26, 2006 03:32 AM            

The Positive Aspects of AD/HD

Most descriptions of AD/HD focus on the negative aspects and neglect to mention the advantages to having AD/HD. They include:

* Creativity
* High Energy
* Intuitiveness
* Resourcefulness
* Tenacity
* Warm-heartedness
* Trusting Attitude (sometimes too much so)
* Forgiving attitude (sometimes too much so)
* Sensitivity
* Ability to take risks (sometimes too risky)
* Flexibility
* Loyalty
* Good sense of humor

Not all persons with AD/HD have all these traits, but to the extent that there is such a thing as the AD/HD personality this list of positive qualities describes the advantageous side of the AD/HD personality. It should be noted that the problems AD/HD causes can be so severe that these positive qualities never gain full expression or recognition. http://www.drhallowell.com/resources/articles/positive_aspects.html

BTW...I am diagnosed inattentive type ADHD.
I also have a history of Dyslexia and Dyspraxia. ADHD,Dyslexia,Dyspraxia tend to be comorbid. 30 percent of Dyslexics have ADHD. Some educators believe ADHD is a rightbrained learning style like Dyslexia.

Sun,Mercury,Venus in Scorpio
Mutable T-Square of Moon in Pisces in 6th square the opposition of Saturn in Gemini in 9th and Neptune in Sagittarius in 3rd
Mercury parallel Neptune
Mercury conj Sun/Neptune midpoint
Mars in Aquarius in 6th
unaspected Uranus which is also my oriental planet

Today's schools are more for the leftbrained types. Their teaching methods aren't fit for us rightbrained types. The teaching method are mainly auditory sequential,but most the students actually are visual spatial learners. There is serious education reform that needs to happen.

posted October 26, 2006 10:24 AM            

Has your son been formally diagnosed with ADHD? If not, and if you feel his inattention difficulties are becoming a problem, then it would be best to visit a doctor who is knowledgable in ADHD. Not all general practitioners know enough about ADHD and they certainly should not be making diagnoses and perscribing medication for ADHD. A good family doctor would refer you to a paediatrician specialising in childhood behavioural disorders who can make an accurate and formal diagnosis, and recommended the best medication. The two main medications used are methylphenidate and dextroamphetamine. ADHD can respond very positively to medication if used correctly.

However, this is ONLY IF your son does have ADHD. Be aware, that problems with attention and hyperactivity can have many other causes which may be treatable without medications. Sometimes they involve lifestyle changes, or using different methods to correct negative behaviours. A good family doctor with or without a psychologist may be able to identify these issues and whether or not a specialist is needed to rule in/rule out ADHD.

Hope this helps in some way,

posted October 26, 2006 10:37 AM              

*A highly afflicted 1st house Mars in Aquarius squaring a stellium of Mercury, Venus, Neptune, & Jupiter on my MC. This Mars also squares a retrograde Saturn in Gemini, making it into a loose (yet still evident) t-square, and...

*Another fixed t-square involving an Aquarian Ascendant, a 9th house Sun in Scorpio, and a 3rd house Moon in Taurus opposition.

As I grow older, I have to will myself to sit down & get things done once & for all. Yet once I start something, I tend to hyper-focus and whatever I'm doing gets my full attention to the exclusion of everything else (such as the passage of time, for example).

The only other really annoying thing about it is that it takes me forever to write anything, although I am an extremely verbal person. It's taken me almost 10 minutes to write this all out. I hate that.

posted October 26, 2006 10:47 AM            

It is all alot to consider....
I would not say that my son is "hyper-active". In fact he is very docile most of the time and is completely comfortable playing by himself...enjoys it really...

He plays soccer and we have begun hockey..so, he does get exercise... He eats like a horse, but is tall and skinny like his father (who can eat anything and not gain weight)...
Of course, being a Virgo myself, we do not have candy, pop, high calorie juices and the like around. I figure they are exposed to this stuff so much away from home that it creates a balance not to have it in the house... He is not sickly, in fact, he had perfect attendance last year in kindergarten.

I will look more into additives... never thought of that ...thank you.

Glaucus.... You said, ****"true ADHD is more of a novelty seeking type trait that includes thinking outside the box."****

That is exactly what his teacher said...

"He thinks outside of the box... which is wonderful. However, there are times he needs to be "in the box" and he doesn't make the connection."
He also has a hard time making eye contact.

He is an original thinker... but when it's time to pay attention to anything to know how to proceed... he is "somewhere else"..
The teacher said that she empties his desk
and only gives him what he needs for the assignment. If not, he will play with something and won't "get" the instructions. This is not working to a great degree because he will just play with his fingers instead.
If he does understand the lesson, he often has a hard time using the information in the practical sense of application. He knows it, but doesn't make the connection in using it.
Her is also ambidextrious.... and accident prone.

Other than, a Scorpio Sun... nothing else fits with what has been posted...
What jumps at me in his chart... is that his Sun is a water singleton...

Glaucus,I would be forever grateful if you would look at his chart? I would however, be more comfortable with e-mailing the birth data.
Let me know if you might have the time?

I'm a single Mom of 2... I just want to do right by him. He's got so much personality and is loving and friendly....
Cute as a button too. with his Leo Moon and Aqua rising..

posted October 26, 2006 10:59 AM            

peripatus....He has not been diagnosed with anything. His teacher was however, not happy that the issues were not brought to my attention last year... In other words, she couldn't believe "it" was missed.
His teacher and I are also friends on a personal level...Otherwise, with the "mainstream" in schools today... problems often slip through the gaping cracks.

Glaucus....

***" A lot of people don't know about auditory processing issues. We get mistakened for not paying attention when we really are when we are just overloaded,confused,and don't remember auditory information. It often accompanies with hearing that is more sensitive than the average person."******

That hit it square on the head!

posted October 26, 2006 11:07 AM            

Discipline! It doesn't matter what I take away... Toys, activities, the stuff he likes best... He does not care.

posted October 26, 2006 11:55 AM            

It all depends on the mood... I tried the "project" way.. Even enlisted the help of my Taurus daughter (who isn't much better as far as the room goes).... He will do very little to help.
We will go along fine for weeks....In that we make it a part of everyday chores... A little picking up is not so overwhelming... and then its not an all day deal to clean up the "dump" as my daughter puts it.
He then just becomes very defiant and won't do it. The Goodwill experience was a single occurance... but just an example of how very detached he can be.

Homework... One on one with me.. he's fine. I've really been contemplating an alternate educational environment... Just not quite sure "What" at this point.

posted October 26, 2006 12:02 PM            

Just curious does he have any other problems in school like reading. 7 is mainly the age that Dyslexia often gets diagnosed. Mine was identified at 4 years old because of my unintelligible speech. Speech problems are one of the early warning signs of Dyslexia.

I would like to look and see if he has any 11th harmonic aspects especially involving Moon and Mercury which are planets that are involved in processing information.

posted October 26, 2006 12:15 PM            

Yes, he is a little behind in reading.... Writing is more the issue... like temperance said....No speech problems.. other than wrong verb tense at times...
In fact, I would say he talks excessively.

posted October 26, 2006 01:27 PM            

The thing is that the severe Dyslexics are the ones that qualify for special education services. The milder Dyslexics don't,and they slip through the cracks. Early intervention is important. I had that myself. Dyslexics children don't get the help until they are doing badly in class. They pretty much wait for them to fail. It's better to remediate the problems as children. Brains are very plastic in childhood,and it's easier to rewire. The older the child gets,the more difficult. Definitely difficult to remediate as an adult.

Does he have the Dyslexic strengths?..especially we think mainly in pictures,strong 3-D visualization ability,have vivid imagination,intuitive,think outside the box,and global thinking.......mainly we are rightbrained,nonlinear thinking types.

I am a person who thinks in pictures nonstop and visualizes nonstop...I even visualize before I do anything all the time...I also visualize to the point that I can visualize myself doing things like I am seeing myself in the mirror. Another thing,I tend to look up towards the left when I am thinking...that shows that I am using my right hemisphere for thinking things out. The neuropsychologist told me that I have very strong visual spatial skills and very good problem solving skills after impressing her with my block design skills.

Also a Dyslexic tends to have problems getting left and right mixed up. I don't automatically know my left from my right. There is like a delay. One time, an optomestrist told me to cover my left eye,and I covered my right instead. This was a year ago. I am 34 right now. Many Dyslexics are lefthanded or ambidextrous. There are a lot of righthanded Dyslexics too,and I am one, but I do some things with my left hand like opening up cans and bottles. I wear my watch on my right wrist like lefties do. I believe that it has to do with me using my left eye more for focusing things. My mother told me that I didn't know which had to use that she thought I was going to be ambidextrous. I am also both left ear and left eye dominant even though I am righthanded,and so I have cross dominance. That shows that I have strong right hemisphere processing. Another thing too, we Dyslexics tend to be disorganized too. That's a trait that overlaps with inattentiveness of ADHD. I always had a messy desk and lost a lot of things over the years.I am the worst person to have to be a secretary. Makes me wonder how many executives who use secretaries are really Dyslexic. hahahahahaa Great with ideas but need somebody else to do the paperwork. hahahahaa

Although their unique brain architecture and "unusual wiring" make reading, writing, and spelling difficult, most people with dyslexia have gifts in areas controlled by the right hemisphere of the brain. The right side controls:

* artistic skill
* athletic ability
* musical ability
* mechanical ability
* people skills
* 3-D visual-spatial skills
* vivid imagination
* intuition
* creative, global thinking
* curiosity

my email is

astynaz@yahoo.com

if you have yahoo messenger,
I can give you a reading. I love constant feedback. It actually stimulates me as an astrologer.

posted October 27, 2006 11:28 AM            

I was wondering if you could tell me what kind of toys/games you liked as a child?
Could you find your toys in that room?
(I did not mean that in a bad way)

Did you play with video games (assuming you are young enough)... did you watch alot of T.V?

posted October 27, 2006 04:47 PM            

Stargazer,

I'd like to add a few more suggestions if I might. I have a bit of experience in this area both personally and professionally.

It can indeed be very frustrating teasing out all the different conditions associated with a child's individual symptomology. Teachers, pediatricians,neurologists etc can be extremely helpful but truly, a treatment team approach is essential in getting to the correct diagnoses.

Working with these issues for many years I can tell you this:

Getting a child "medically cleared" is absolutely critical. Too many people overlook basic things, like visual exams, hearing exams and even occupational therapy evaluations. For most kids with insurance, these steps are covered whereas extremely expensive psychological evaluations are not always covered entirely. The information gained from such evaluations is very, very helpful as you move forward in the diagnostic process. For example, Glaucus mentioned children with Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD) often have hearing sensitivities (called "hyperacusia").

A lot of the symptoms you mention made me think of Non-verbal Learning Disorders (NLD) and Asperger's Syndrome (AS). These disorders are very similar in nature to one another, with AS being the more severe condition. I would definitely recommend looking into these disorders- to educate yourself on behalf of your child.

NLD and AS are very similar and not so easy to differentiate. Many clinicians and schools are unfamiliar with these disorders, though over the last decade or so more and more has been researched and written about them. Several symptoms you noted really jumped out at me - fixating on small objects, even his own fingers, poor direct eye contact, difficulty with writing, his extreme indifference to discipline, being accident prone, solitary play. You did not mention any social symptoms, so I don't know what, if any, significance there is for your son.

Children with NLD/AS have difficulties within social settings. They have tremendous difficulty understanding certain social cues most others learn automatically. Hence, they tend to demonstrate inordinate sensitivity some of the time and conversely they may display total indifference and detachment. They also tend to think very concretely. The occupational eval I mentioned previously is useful in assessing issues with writing, locomotion, visual, auditory and tactile issues. Speaking of tactile issues, I've also seen children with these issues demonstrate "tactile defensiveness" simply put, certain textures a child "feels" are uncomfortable, irritating or unbearable. Having the seam in their sock pressing on their toes in a peculiar way will cause them to remove the shoe to "fix the sock", garment tags have to be cut out of clothes because they "scratch" the skin, certain fabrics are too "rough" and don't feel good. Even some foods elicit this sort of a response because of their texture.

I could go on and on, but I just wanted to put all of this out there to arm you in your quest for the correct diagnosis for your child. It's definitely a battle, but certainly one worth fighting

posted October 27, 2006 05:28 PM            

One thing: keep all the sugar you can out of your boys diet. And give him 1000mg of Fish Oil caps daily (with EPA and DHA). We read labels at the store and check the carb levels. Too much fluoride and mercury/thimerosol (in vaccines) have been suggested as possible causes of AD/HD.....

My little guy is Aries Sun, Leo Asc, Leo Moon -- my email's at my profile if you want to chat offline about the challenges of these boys.....

posted October 27, 2006 05:40 PM            

Please see http://www.linda-goodman.com/ubb/Forum7/HTML/007118.html

posted October 27, 2006 08:11 PM            

You are truly gifted

Maire.....

Thank you for your post....

It's all a bit confusing... I'm somewhat overwhelmed by the magnitude and mutitude of what "it" could be...

you said,
*** Speaking of tactile issues, I've also seen children with these issues demonstrate "tactile defensiveness" simply put, certain textures a child "feels" are uncomfortable, irritating or unbearable. Having the seam in their sock pressing on their toes in a peculiar way will cause them to remove the shoe to "fix the sock", garment tags have to be cut out of clothes because they "scratch" the skin, certain fabrics are too "rough" and don't feel good. Even some foods elicit this sort of a response because of their texture.****

He usually strips to his boxers when he gets home from school... If it's "itchy" he won't wear it and the sock thing... definitely "him"....
picky about food too... Things are "spicy"
to him even though they "really" aren't.

Zala