Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Symptoms, Diagnosis, and MFT Therapy

Running head: ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER
ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

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ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER
Introduction:
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) can be described as the brain disorder
that is usually identified by an ongoing pattern of inattention as well as hyperactivity that is seen
to interfere with that of the functioning and development (Clayton et al., 2016). This assignment
will mainly discuss the important suspects of the disorder in children and would also highlight
the different signs and symptoms that remain associated with this disorder. It would also show
how MFT theory can be applied in such scenarios to help families manage their children with
ADHD successfully.
Symptoms and other aspects:
Symptoms as well as signs of ADHD can be classified into three important categories.
The first category is called inattention. Here the child with ADHD is seen to get easily distracted
and they do not follow directions or finish tasks and do not listen attentively. They do not pay
any attention and are often seen to make careless mistakes. They forget about daily activities and
also face problems in organizing daily tasks (Li et al., 2016). They are often found to lose things,
tends to day dream and many other actions. Other category is called hyperactivity where children
are seen to squirm, fidget or bounce when they are sitting, does not stay seated and they also face
trouble in playing quietly. They are always seen to be running or climbing things and they are
also seen to talk excessively. Another important category is the impulsivity which includes
having trouble waiting for his or her turn and blurts out answers and even interrupts others.
For the diagnosis of ADHD under the classification method of DSM-5, an individual
person should be displaying at least six symptoms and those individuals who are over the age 17
must present them with five symptoms from both the categories for Inattention and

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Hyperactivity-Impulsivity. Moreover, the symptoms should be persisting for at least 6 months
and should be also inconsistent with that of the one’s developmental level. In category of
inattention, the symptoms present in DSM V are mainly seen to include not paying close
attention to details and also difficulty in sustaining attention (Lamberti et al., 2016). Other
symptoms are not listening when spoken to directly, not following instructions or finishing
schoolwork, facing difficulty in organizing tasks, avoiding sustained mental effort, losing
important things and being forgetful and easily distracted. Another category under the DSM V is
the hyperactivity- impulsivity. The representing symptoms of the child to be considered to be
suffering from ADHD, are fidgeting, leaving seats, running about, difficulty in playing quietly,
talking excessively blurting out answers before questions being completed, difficulty in waiting
for turn, interrupting and intruding on others (Politte et al., 2018). The diagnosis under DSM V
should be comprising of the different symptoms stated above and should be present before the
age of 12 and should be present across two or more settings like schools and homes. Clinical
impairment also needs to be shown in social, academic as well as occupational functioning.
Case study:
Ryan is a 7 year old boy who is suffering with ADHD. He has become very difficult to
control now because of his hyperactivity as well as impulsivity. The teacher had fixed up a
meeting with the parents where only his mother Pamela had attended. The meeting was mainly
because the teachers wanted to sit together with the family and develop out plans to manage
Ryan at school and both at home as they were failing to handle Ryan. Pamela was seen to
breakdown in front of the teachers stating that she can no more manage Ryan at home. She has
become frustrated and often feels like running away from the house. Ryan never seats calmly at
one place and is often found to run throughout the house. Pamela cannot engage him in any

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hobbies as he is always in motion of “on the go”. He is seen to talk constantly non-stop and
never listens to his mothers. Pamela said she feel helpless and cannot understand how to manage
Ryan. She stated that she does not get any help from her husband Dan. Dan is also upset about
the situation of the house and does not return home at all. He does not help her in managing
Ryan. In place, he tries to avoid his responsibilities in the name of work at office. His father had
also started taking alcohol because of the stresses at his house because of Ryan. This had made
the teachers consult one MFT therapist to help the family cope with the problem.
Beginning the therapy process including initial assessment using MFT theory:
Marriage and family support also called the MFT is a form of psychotherapy that mainly
helps in addressing the behaviors of all family members. It also addresses the varieties of ways
by which such behaviors that are seen to affect not only each of the individual family members
but also the relationships that are shared between family members as well as the family unit as a
whole. The treatments are mainly seen to be divided between the time allocated for the
individual therapy as well as the time spent on the couple or the family therapy or both when
necessary. Studies have found out that the range of various types of physical and psychological
problems which can be successfully treated by MFT are parent and child conflict, marital and
couple conflict, eating disorders and weight issues sexual dysfunction, alcohol and drug
abuse, grief, distress, and even different types of the children’s behavior problems, and issues
with eldercare, such as coping with a parent’s or grandparent’s dementia (Johnson et al., 2016).
The therapists are also seen to work with different types of mental health issues like depression,
anxiety as well as schizophrenia of the family members that also impact the rest of the family.
Here, the children is suffering from ADHD which is a behavioral disorder suffered by children
that impacts both parents as well as the other families affecting the relationships within each of