Inattentive ADHD: Just Like Winnie the Pooh

Winnie the Pooh is the classic picture of Inattentive ADHD. In other works we have called this "Space Cadet" style ADHD. These are people that suffer from "brain fog" as they go through their day. Although Pooh is very lovable and kind, he is also inattentive, sluggish, slow-moving, unmotivated. He is a classic daydreamer.

People with this type of ADHD are often easily distracted, and have problems staying focused on boring tasks, like homework or cleaning. Their ability to pay attention to a task that is not interesting, or is hard, is limited. They will often daydream when others are talking to him/her, They will often lose things, and cannot find anything that they have just put down somewhere. They are often late. And they are often easily bored.

This type of ADHD is caused by the prefrontal cortex of the brain actually slowing down (instead of brain activity speeding up) when placed under a work load, like reading or doing homework. This part of the brain looks normal when "at rest" but actually looks like it is starting to fall asleep when asked to "go to work." This makes it very hard to pay attention to school work, get homework done, listen to the teacher, clean your room, and so on.

We have actually observed this hundreds of times with subjects on an EEG. When at rest, the brainwave activity is pretty normal. But once the subject is asked to read, or to do a math worksheet, the subject's brainwave activity begins to look like the subject is falling asleep. This sure makes school hard for these students!

Winnie the Pooh style inattention is seen mostly in girls. It responds well to stimulants, such as ritalin and adderall, but other interventions work well also. We recommend our Eating Program to start with. In addition, we recommend ATTEND for ADHD symptoms and MEMORIN for increased focus and concentration to task.

The ATTEND contains L-Tyrosine. It also contains GABA, DL-Phenylalyne, Ginko, Pycnogenol and Grape Seed Extracts, 5-HTP, pregnenolone, DMAE, and more. See the ATTEND ingredients list. The MEMORIN contains more Ginko, plus lots of Phosphatidyl Serine and other phosphatidyls, and more pregnenolone. Together these nutraceutical medicines can make a very positive impact on children and teens, without the need for stimulant medications.

Douglas Cowan, Psy.D., is a family therapist who has been working with ADHD children and their families since 1986. He is the clinical director of the ADHD Information Library's family of seven web sites, including http://www.newideas.net, helping over 350,000 parents and teachers learn more about ADHD each year. Dr. Cowan also serves on the Medical Advisory Board of VAXA International of Tampa, FL., is President of the Board of Directors for KAXL 88.3 FM in central California, and is President of NewIdeas.net Incorporated.

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