Author: Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

Course Notes: The ADHD Brain

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

ADHD is a neurobiological developmental disorder that impedes one’s executive functions, but what causes it? ADHD has long been a subject of intense scientific scrutiny, from its origins to whether it’s even a real thing (it is, btw). However, with an explosion of research on the topic in the last 20 years thanks to the completion of the human genome project in 2003, we’re getting closer to solving to the riddle of what triggers the disorder that affects millions of children (and adults) worldwide.

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Course Notes: ADHD

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

This year, I started the process of becoming an ADHD certified rehabilitation services provider (ADHD-RSP). That means a bunch of certification courses on the disorder, the latest research, meds, and management. Let me just say that the lecture content has been quite eye-opening. ADHD is way more complex than I previously thought and it’s generally misunderstood, even with the decades of research and the ever-growing amount of information available these days. So for the next two weeks, I’ll be sharing what I’ve learned and hope that it will shed some light on what ADHD is, how it affects our kids, and effective ways to address it. Today, we’re breaking down the disorder; from its name, misconceptions, and how it’s diagnosed.

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Two-Week Check-In (Mary’s Version)

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

It’s been two weeks since my son officially became a second grader and so far, things are off to a good start.  Thank goodness.

Last year was a bit of a mess. The first two months of his first-grade year were tumultuous, with frequent reprimands and constant negative feedback from the teacher. He started to loathe going to school, feeling like he was a bad kid and couldn’t do anything right. And then she abruptly quit, leaving his class to have a substitute teacher for the next three months. Turns out there were more kids in the same boat. Fortunately, the school was able to find an amazing educator who brought back his love of learning and school in the second half of the academic year.

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A Bundle of Nerves: Kids and School Anxiety

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

If you saw Inside Out 2 over the summer, then you know that Anxiety is the main antagonist but not necessarily the villain. The film does a great job explaining this complex emotion and why it has a notable presence in our kids today. Being former gifted kids, we’ve definitely felt academic anxiety in high school; but is this really occurring for our elementary kids?

Fears and worry are typical for kids as they grow and experience the world, especially when it comes to school. A 2023 survey reported that 86% of school-aged children worry, mostly on a regular basis (once a week or more), with majority of their concerns (64%) being school-related.

Although the term anxiety has become a catch-all for any emotion related to apprehension or unease, it’s helpful to know the variations and their differences:

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The Audio-Visual Club: Kids and Audiobooks

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

“I want people to stop saying, ‘I didn’t really read it, I just listened.’ Stop that. If you listened, you read it. There’s no right way to absorb a book.” – Reese Witherspoon

I enjoy reading a physical book. My husband, however, does not. He prefers putting on his headphones and listening on Audible. He told me that he’s “read” three books over the summer. He’s not the only one in my social circle to count listening to an audiobook as reading. Friends will tell me they’ve read a 560-page novel over the weekend (you what?!) and then clarify that they listened to it during their road trip. Even Patti will simultaneously juggle multiple books for her book club and Child(ish) Reads posts, a feat made easier with paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats.

As audiobooks become more mainstream, it got me thinking about the trickle-down to kids. Is listening to a book the same as reading one? Can children benefit from this type of auditory medium or would it hinder their ability to read? Inquiring minds would like to know.

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