“Can ADHD ever be cured with treatment?”
My son is 16 years old and has been suffering from ADHD since birth. He has been on treatment since he was 3 years old, however the condition is still not cured fully. Will his condition ever improve for good or will it continue like this for life?
13 Answers
It might, some kids grow out of it. About a third of kids will continue having symptoms. Healthy habits and structure are very important to develop as many peole with ADHD can and do develop compensation for their deficiencies
Make sure that your son sees a psychiatrist and not just his pediatrician. Therapy and Neurofeedback can be very helpful.
possibly neurofeedback can provide a cure
The short answer to your question is "yes" ADHD can be cured. The longer answer involves knowing exactly what kinds of symptoms your son has suffered - in particular how much has been "behavior problems" and how much has been difficulty with focus and attention. These require different kinds of strategies.
Tony Stanton, MD
Tony Stanton, MD
ADHD can’t be cured. It is manageable with treatment and therapy. A person suffering from ADHD can learn skill to manage his life better with or without medication
Matthew Okeke, MD
Matthew Okeke, MD
Most probably it will not continue. Please continue the treatment until he settles into his life; after that, he may be evaluated whether the treatment should be continued or not, depending on what kind of job he is doing, and what kind of concentration he needs to complete the task.
ADHD can't be "cured" fully. Incorporation of other treatment modalities such as behavioral techniques, coping skills, neurofeedback, biofeedback, meditation, exercise etc.. help to reduce the intensity of the symptoms which allow some to require less or no medications. The response also depends on the severity of ADHD symptoms.
Being a high school student is difficult. Multiple classes throughout the day, some of which may be legitimately boring, would be strenuous for an average adult to sustain the attention necessary for success 5 days a week. However, if there is something your adolescent takes an interest in, I doubt they have significant difficulty in attending to these interesting and personally fulfilling/enjoyable activities. What I tell most families is that their child should, like most people, seek a career in something they find interesting. Once they get out of the broad general education of High School and begin to narrow their studies through college or learn a vocation they are interested in, it is very likely they may require less, and eventually possibly no ADHD medication to succeed.
The underlying neurobiological mechanism that manifests as ADHD shouldn't be expected to change much from adolescence to adulthood. However, some symptoms are more prone to spontaneous resolution than others. Such as hyperactivity and impulse control do tend to improve with age.
The underlying neurobiological mechanism that manifests as ADHD shouldn't be expected to change much from adolescence to adulthood. However, some symptoms are more prone to spontaneous resolution than others. Such as hyperactivity and impulse control do tend to improve with age.
About 65% of people carry it through their adult life. However, the good news is that it can be treated very well.
ADHD is managed with medications along with patient’s coping skill like organization, etc. The medications target to help patients focus better but they don’t reverse the process or cure, meaning that the patient’s will need the medication.
ADHD Cannot be cured. It can only be treated. Counseling helps as well.
Linda Y. Callaghan, M.D.
Linda Y. Callaghan, M.D.
Kids with ADHD often end up on Adderall or Ritalin for life, but here is the most common cause-and-effect steps: 1) numerous childhood infections, especially middle ear, which are 2) treated with antibiotics over and over again. 3) the antibiotics kill of billions of friendly intestinal bacteria, which 4) allows the normal amount of intestinal yeast to explode. 5) This then can lead to all kinds of digestive problems and leaky gut syndrome with 6) systemic yeast and 7) delayed IgG food allergies. All of these steps can be corrected. Remember: the Gut-Brain connection is real, and powerful.
Mikki King Barker
Psychiatrist
It often diminishes with the implementation of positive feedback. Low dose antipsychotics help immensely.
