By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.
“Mindfulness improves your ability to control your attention. In other words, it teaches you to pay attention to paying attention. Mindful awareness can also make people more aware of their emotional state, so they won’t react impulsively. That’s often a real problem for people with ADHD.” – Carl Sherman
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is currently epidemic in the US. Roughly 6.4 million American children have been diagnosed with ADHD and 6.4% of American children are being treated with medication. There has been a 42% increase in the diagnoses of ADHD in the last 8 years. It should be emphasized that this increase in diagnoses probably represents an increase in awareness and willingness to diagnose ADHD rather than an increase in cases of ADHD. “Many children who like to run and jump may be high-energy. But that doesn’t mean they are hyperactive. To count as ADHD, symptoms have to be on the extreme side and have to cause problems in the child’s life. Also, they have to have been doing this for at least 6 months.” – WebMD
What can be done about this huge problem that is affecting such a large proportion of American children and adults? The most common treatment is drugs, like methylphenidate, Ritalin, which helps reduce symptoms in about 30% of the people with ADHD. Unfortunately, the effectiveness of the drugs appears to be markedly reduced after the first year. In addition, the drugs often have troublesome side effects, including nervousness agitation, anxiety, irritability, sleep and appetite problems, head and stomach aches, nausea, dizziness, and heart palpitations. They can also be addictive and can readily be abused. If that’s not enough using drugs that alter the brain in children during the time of brain development is fraught with long-term risks. So, drugs, at present, do not appear to be a good solution, only affecting some, only for a short time, and with unwanted side effects. Is there a better way?
There are indications that mindfulness training may be a more effective treatment for ADHD. It makes sense that it should be, as the skills and abilities strengthened by mindfulness training are identical to those that are defective in ADHD, attention, impulse control, executive function, emotion control, and mood improvement. In addition, it is a relatively safe intervention that has minimal troublesome side effects. In today’s Research News article “The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Therapies for ADHD: A Meta-Analytic Review.” See:
or see summary below. Cairncross and Miller performed a meta-analysis of the published research literature (10 articles) on the effectiveness of mindfulness training for the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). They found that mindfulness training produced a significant decrease in inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity with moderate to strong effect sizes. These effects occurred regardless of whether children or adults were treated and whether self or observer ratings of behavior were used.
These are very impressive and clinically important findings. Mindfulness training appears to be a safe and very effective treatment for ADHD. Since, mindfulness training is targeted at improving attention to the present moment, it is not surprising that it might reduce inattention. Mindfulness training also improves executive function, cognitive control and emotion regulation. This combined by the reduced inattention decreases impulsive behavior, keeping behavior better regulated by thoughtful intentional processes rather than abrupt emotional reactions. Hence, mindfulness training can increase self-regulation which is the primary problem in ADHD. “Individuals with ADHD become more vulnerable to allowing strong psychological processes overpower their present-oriented experiences by capitulating to transient stimuli.” (Cassone, 2015, pg. 154). By increasing the ability to focus attention mindfulness training can help to overcome this central problem.
Given the problems with drug treatments, the ability of mindfulness training to reduce inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity in both children and adults could markedly alter the standard treatment for ADHD. So, mindfully address attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
“Mindfulness is a skill we can build. When we practice mindfulness, we practice awareness, non-judgement and stillness of mind. It seems like an excellent tool to help us learn to channel all that attention we have when we have ADHD.” – Jeff Rasmussen
CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies
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Study Summary
Molly Cairncross and Carlin J. Miller. The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Therapies for ADHD: A Meta-Analytic Review. Journal of Attention Disorders 1087054715625301, first published on February 2, 2016 as doi:10.1177/1087054715625301
Abstract
Objective: Mindfulness-based therapies (MBTs) have been shown to be efficacious in treating internally focused psychological disorders (e.g., depression); however, it is still unclear whether MBTs provide improved functioning and symptom relief for individuals with externalizing disorders, including ADHD. To clarify the literature on the effectiveness of MBTs in treating ADHD and to guide future research, an effect-size analysis was conducted. Method: A systematic review of studies published in PsycINFO, PubMed, and Google Scholar was completed from the earliest available date until December 2014. Results: A total of 10 studies were included in the analysis of inattention and the overall effect size was d = −.66. A total of nine studies were included in the analysis of hyperactivity/impulsivity and the overall effect was calculated at d = −.53. Conclusion: Results of this study highlight the possible benefits of MBTs in reducing symptoms of ADHD.