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Autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are commonly co-occurring conditions with significantly elevated prevalence rates. Though they are distinct, people with diagnoses of either autism or ADHD often struggle in similar situations.

Every stage of life is defined by developmental milestones that are shaped or complicated in some way by the symptoms of ADHD.In children, ADHD symptoms and traits like hyperactivity, distractibility, and impulsivity can influence behavior and performance in the classroom, with friends and family, and out in the world.Below is an overview of the ADHD experience in childhood, including essential skills, parallel ADHD-related challenges, recommended treatments, and positive parenting strategies from experts that apply to all aspects of this stage of life.In grades 1 through 6, students work to build a rock-solid academic, social, and emotional foundation in the following areas:[Self-Test: ADHD Symptoms in Kids]Positive reinforcement is particularly powerful at this stage of life. When elementary students constantly face punishment and disappointment from parents and teachers, their confidence and self-concept are destroyed. Set a time to discuss undesirable behavior after the immediate, stressful moment has passed.

Parents, especially of younger children, comprise the first line of defense against behavioral problems because they are truly the agents of change. This is not to say that parents are at fault for behavioral problems, but rather that their influence over the solution cannot be overstated.When caregivers are well-versed in the tried-and-true approaches proven to remedy ADHD behavioral problems, it leads to a positive parent-child relationship and to a happy, healthy, and successful child who is better equipped to cope with ADHD symptoms and other challenges.These behavioral techniques should follow a hierarchy that looks like the following:[Click to Read: How to Reinforce Good Behavior]Despite many reminders, your child won’t get off their video game and go to bed.

“Watching this made me think I might have ADHD.”“All of a sudden I think I need to get checked.”“Do I call up my doctors or what?”These are just three of the nearly 33,000 comments posted on “The Difference Between an ADHD ‘Actor’ and a Person Who Truly Has It,” a one-minute-long TikTok video by @xmaaniiix, a young Hawaiian with 290,000 followers but no formal training in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.Still, her personal and engaging video has received 2.2 million likes — nearly as staggering as the 2.6 million likes showered on “ADHD in Girls,” a video by self-proclaimed “mental-health advocate” @peterhyphen. His collection of #ADHD videos has garnered an impressive 9.7 million likes, though he cites no sources and likewise has no medical credentials.The #ADHD channel on TikTok — the social media platform comprising short video clips of coordinated dances, hopeful singers, and bored quaranteens — now boasts 2.4 billion views.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD or ADD) and all of its various symptoms almost universally complicate and encumber life for those who have it. While diagnosis at any age is helpful, early detection can make coping significantly easier, as it allows individuals to get the help they need to properly manage ADHD much sooner.Unfortunately, racial disparities in diagnosis and treatment of ADHD are rampant. White children are much more likely to be diagnosed than are children of color, who are continually underdiagnosed for ADHD.