It's Not One Size Fits All: Finding Your Path with ADHD
Spring 2021 • Mom2Mom
Devon Pickens Founded ADHD Parent, a support group for parents of children with ADHD. Here, she discusses finding her path with her 7-year-old son.
By Devon Pickens
Reading has always been my favorite subject. Before setting my heart on social work I actually majored in English. For me, it was all about being able to create a story that would be timeless. Leaving my mark on the world through my words. Little did I know the universe had a different route for me to take in order to get there.
Over the last year or so I have ran a blog and Instagram page sharing my journey as an ADHD parent. My son is 7 and was diagnosed with the condition just a few months before his 6th birthday. The way we navigate neurodiversity has definitely been a rollercoaster but I don’t think I’d trade it for anything in the world.
Before the diagnosis everything was hard. From academics, speech and even motor skills seemed like to be an uphill battle for him at every corner. After months and months of evaluations and appointments, we finally had an answer to all the issues we were having especially reading.
Even in kindergarten, he struggled with sight words and constant blends. As an avid reader, I struggled with the notion that my child would not share the same love I do for the subject. However, I quickly learned that it was not that at all. He simply just didn’t understand the material.
After educating myself on what ADHD is and how it varies from child to child I quickly jumped into building supports that would work for him. I would buy huge picture books of dinosaurs, make flip charts with power rangers, and even create different social stories with children that looked like him.
Just with those individualized modifications, his interest in language soared. Sometimes children with ADD/ADHD are mistakenly labeled as being lazy or unmotivated. While all along they are just bored or unstimulated.
I feel it’s important for any parent with a child that has any type of special need to remember that this is not a “one size fits all” situation. Sometimes you will have to be a visionary or pioneer to crusade the way for your child. This will trailblaze the path for others. Feel free to check out our community on Instagram @adhdparent.
