Living with an ADHD Sibling
Your sibling with ADHD needs your help, too, especially when your parents are making a living to provide food and shelter to your family. Just like your parents, you can also undergo ADHD parent coaching for a few weeks and start taking care of your sibling. ADHD, also known as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), is a chronic condition defined by the Mayo Clinic as a combination of problems in sustaining attention, overactive, and impulsive behavior. Here are five tips that you can teach your sibling after attending classes about ADHD parent coaching.
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Keep things in perspective
Some of the actions of your sibling are attributed to the disorder. If you keep things in perspective, you will know how to deal with this properly. Remember that most of the time, the actions of your brother or sister is not intentional. For example, if your sibling is overwhelmed by the amount of homework assigned, you can help him or her break down tasks into realistically manageable pieces. If there are so many tasks at hand, you can teach your sibling to start with the most manageable tasks first. In this way, more things will be accomplished, plus there would be more energy for challenging and time-consuming tasks.
Make compromises
Create possible expectations for your sibling. If you divide the chores at home and see that your brother or sister has accomplished most of the tasks, then you can compromise to have these non-urgent chores done at a later date. Your sibling may be trying his or her best with all the resources on hand; this is where your open-minded understanding needs to be channeled. At most times, school is tough for a person with ADHD. If your sibling has too much homework, you can delay doing other activities for later and focus on one task instead.
Follow a routine
When your parents are not around or if they need help around the house, making sure that your sibling sticks to a routine will help him or her stay focused and organized. As with ADHD parent coaching, you can also remind your sibling to do a particular task if she or he has forgotten to do it. Further, you can check on your brother or sister if the tasks at the allotted time are done. Remember, one of the goals is reducing distractions in your sibling’s routine.
Encourage exercise
Channeling this extra energy in productive ways can help your sibling develop values and techniques for coping. Encourage your brother or sister to find a sport with constant movements which can address their extra energy. Some of these sports are basketball, tennis, or hockey. Other sports that your sibling may enjoy, which can also improve their attention is martial arts. Better yet, science shows that exercising not only strengthens the body but also makes a person happier.
Believe in your sibling
Sometimes, knowing that a loved one believes in you and in what you can do is enough motivation for a person to act on their goals. Let your sibling know that you believe in her or him. Acknowledge their successes; however small these may be.
Your sibling may be unable to perform some tasks because of ADHD. In observing your sibling’s struggles and helping him or her cope with his or her ADHD, you may also find yourself being more prepared to handle the things in life that matter.