Is Attention Deficit Disorder A Learning Disability?

If your child has been diagnosed with ADD or ADHD you may be wondering if that means that he is learning disabled as well?

Well, not exactly. When we talk of the term 'learning disability' then what we generally mean is that it is a perceptual disability -like autism or visual processing disorder.

Attention Deficit Disorder (With or without hyperactivity) shouldn't be treated as a learning disability, because it isn't.

A child with Attention Deficit Disorder is perfectly capable of understanding and using the information presented to him.

Attention Deficit Disorder doesn't really obstruct the learning process although it can sure feel like it at times, both for you and your child.

Attention Deficit Disorder is often mistakenly lumped together with other learning disabilities into one category. A person who is suffering from ADD can absorb the information he sees, process it and even store it in his memory - just like any other person.

"Then what's the problem"?, you may ask.

The problem with a person with ADD is attracting and holding his attention for long enough so that he can absorb the information to begin with.

This leads to all kinds of problems, at school, at home and for adult ADD sufferers, in the workplace as well.

Once he is able to focus and concentrate, his performance in school, at home and in the workplace dramatically improve.

But sometimes ADD or ADHD can co-exist or be mistaken for a learning disability or some other processing disorder. Dyslexia, auditory, vision and speech problems could all be mistaken for ADD, or a child might have ADD might co-exist with one of these problems.

A thorough check-up by a pediatrician will help immensely.These problems must first be rules out before treatment for ADD is sought.

Once you are sure that your child is indeed suffering from ADD, then you need to consider all the various treatment options, such as medication, supplementation, brainwave entrainment, behavior modification or a complete holistic treatment option that combines many of the methods above.