ADHD has had a major impact on the lives of everyone in our family for the past 16 years. Our son
exhibited symptoms of severe ADHD from a very early age, so we focused on reinforcing positive
behaviour and mindset. However, then he entered the school system. From Grade 1 to Grade 8 our son
was shuttled around the school system in SEVEN different schools, as there was no appropriate program
or supports in place to help him to succeed. Our son, who was once a bright, happy, friendly child, has
given up now as a result of the school system’s complete inability to provide him with a learning
environment that would meet his needs and the seemingly insurmountable educational and social
results of that failure. On top of his educational challenges, because he was moved around so much, he
was unable to form lasting attachments and make good friends. He’s now convinced that nothing will
work, nothing will help, he’s not going anywhere and therefore there’s no point in continuing to
try. Now, on top of the ADHD, we have a child who is anxious and depressed and who has completely
withdrawn from family and friends. We are faced every day with a boy who is justifiably angry at the
world and who acts out that anger in ways that are destructive to property, to other people and to
himself. No matter how we try to help him, our son is resistant to any sort of intervention, and we are
very worried about what the future holds for him. Had our son had access to early and effective medical
care and educational resources, I’m convinced that our lives would be very different today
Take advantage of this unique opportunity to have your voice heard by the Ontario Government on ADHD issues that affect your family. Minister Lisa McLeod, the Ontario Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services, recently informed the public that the Ontario Government is open to also hearing from families of children with other disabilities through the Autism Consultation process. ADHD has been listed as one of the diagnoses. In the month of May 2019, the Ontario Government is providing three ways for you to participate in this consultation process.
You can register to participate in one of three Town Halls, (access the link for dates and instructions) where you can participate live during a phone call. They are asking that you restrict your comments to 30 seconds. They are only allowing one hour for these town halls and warn that they may not have enough time to hear everyone in the queue. Staff from the Ministries of Children, Community and Social Services, Education and Health and Long-Term Care will be listening in during the sessions.
Another option is participation in a 20 minute online survey.
The third option is to write to them through
Email:
autismconsultations@ontario.ca
Or
mail:
Ontario Autism Consultations
Ministry of Children Community and Social Services
Communications Branch
7th Floor, 438 University Avenue
Toronto, Ontario, M7A 1N3
The deadline for a mailed submission to be posted and to participate in the survey is May 31, 2019.
I read the Toronto Star article, Group worries kids with other disabilities forgotten amid autism crisis with much interest and I must say also some frustration. The below information was sent to
I wholeheartedly agree that many children with disabilities are being left out of this discussion while at the same time I applaud the parents of children with Autism for making their voices heard. We are still working at getting more parents of children with ADHD to speak out about the continued lack of recognition ADHD received in Ontario schools. Thankfully we now have some parents who are willing to speak out, but many parents unfortunately are still affected by the myths, stigma and judgment that surrounds ADHD. Hence out latest ADHD Speaks Campaign
The issues that are front and centre in the media at this time are some of the issues that we have also been discussing with Ontario Ministries of Education for almost two decades. Similar to students with Autism many students with ADHD are being excluded from a full day of education in our Ontario school boards. ADHD is the most common neurodevelopmental disorder seen in children world wide, with incident rates at least double or triple that of Autism. And while some students with Autism can be severely impaired, students with a severe case of ADHD are more impaired than a student with mild Autism. The two disorders also frequently co-occur in the same child.
Although many of the learning and self-regulation impairments that students with ADHD experience are very similar to those of students with Autism, ADHD is not included in any of categories of exceptionality that the Ontario Ministry of Education uses to categorize stud nest with special leaning needs. This has resulted in many school boards using this as an excuse to not IPRC students with ADHD leading to inadequate resources for students with ADHD. The situation is so bad that physicians report that parents are coming to them asking for a diagnosis of Autism rather than ADHD, because they know that this will get their child access to some learning resources.that these kids desperately need. Of course this is not a discretionary choice on a physician's part, but how sad that it has come to this.
One of our major asks of the Ontario government's Ministry of Education is that ADHD be included in the categories of exceptionality. Since learning disabilities, Autism and ADHD are all neurodevelopmental disorders that impair learning, it would only make sense to group these disorders together in one category.
While on The Agenda, prior to the election, this was a promise made by Christine Elliott. Please access this link to view the interview, https://www.tvo.org//video/programs/the-agenda-with-steve-paikin/promises-for-special-education. This segment followed an interview on the Agenda with CADDAC.
In addition, because ADHD is not included in a category of exceptionally many teachers do not view ADHD as a serious learning risk, when we have abundant research that clearly indicates that it is. We see 8-10% lower scores in literacy and numeracy for these students and far higher drop out rates, even though most are smart enough to go on to post-secondary education. Educators are also not receiving adequate training on classroom teaching strategies and accommodations that are beneficial to all students but essential to those with ADHD.
We have released several policy papers on ADHD and education over the years. Here is or latest paper, https://caddac.ca/adhd/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Education-Policy-Paper-FINAL.pdf
Join the discussion about this post on our Facebook page , or become involved in our ADHD Speaks Campaign.
Heidi Bernhardt
https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2019/03/14/group-worries-kids-with-other-disabilities-forgotten-amid-autism-crisis.html
What we have discovered is that when asked to speak out about ADHD for ADHD Speaks those who have lots to say often become tongue tied. But, when we ask them to respond to a specific question on ADHD, they can’t seem to stop talking.
So since we want to hear and share your voices often, for the next several months CADDAC will be sending out different questions over our social media platforms and through our subscriber mail out systems, twice a month.
All you have to do to have your voice heard is to simply send an e-mail with the question and your written responses to resources@caddac.ca. Or join the discussion on our Facebook page.
We won’t add your name to the message unless you specifically instruct us to do so.
By sending us an e-mail with your response you will be giving us permission to share your message on our web site and over our social media platforms.
Here are the first two questions,
If you want to respond with an audio or video recording here’s how,
Send your video and audio clips and written stories via our WE TRANSFER LINK
Instructions on how to upload a video via WeTransfer
Send us all the responses you want!
Please add your voice to the ADHD Speaks campaign!
Heidi Bernhardt
About 75 people attended the live show featuring Patrick McKenna on Saturday night and if the laughter and tears was any indication everyone had a great time. Interestingly about two thirds of the audience were not conference attendees, which was unexpected but great bonus because it meant that we were reaching even more people in nova Scotia. The improve group was a blast. People were in stitches. I laughed so hard tears were running down my face. Patrick’s featured presentation “Is it me or the ADHD?” was inspirational and obviously hit home for many of the attendees. There was much nodding and also some tears in the audience. A young man pulled us aside at the end saying he wished he could stay and chat with Patrick but had to head out. He shared that he and his Dad attended with his Mom's insistence, so he was not too happy about attending. But, after hearing Patrick speak, so much had resonated with him that he now knew that he needed to think long and hard about getting an assessment making some serious changes. I guess we can’t ask for more of an impact than that!
Heidi Bernhardt
We get it! Sharing a video of yourself talking about ADHD on ADHD Speaks is scary!
Many parents who talk to us at length, sharing their frustrations and heartaches, are afraid to speak out about ADHD in public. They have let us know that while they would love to share their stories online they are concerned about their child who just wants to stay under the radar. This is totally understandable. Kids with ADHD get centered out far too often and not for their successes – most often just because they have ADHD. So who would want to make their child the poster child for ADHD.
We have a solution!
Be as creative as you like! We want your stories anyway you want to share them!
The long term goal is that eventually everyone will feel comfortable talking about ADHD, but as parents and grandparents of kids with ADHD and adults with ADHD we understand that speaking up about ADHD is scary.
"ADHD Speaks" is a marathon and not a sprint. CADDAC understands that it will take time to make this happen and we want to let you know that we are in this for the long haul.
CADDAC is committed to changing the understanding and perception of ADHD.
We hope you’ll join us on this journey in any way that makes you feel comfortable!
