Healing ADD

8/12/2019 Healing ADD

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The Breakthrough Program

That Allows You to See

and Heal the Six Types of

Attention Deficit Disorder

Daniel G. Amen , M.D.

(, I' I 'l l I NA M' X SON S ■ NI 'W \ 0 H K



The ADD Story 2 9

legislation. We are at least better at thinking about it and talking

about it. I alone lecture thirty to forty times a year to professionals.

Over the last ten years we have seen strong interest in the medical

and mental-health community to learn more about ADD and get

beyond the myths and the hype of ADD.

As far as excess television is concerned, the research is very clear:

Kids who watch the most TV do the worst in school. TV is a “no

brain” activity. Everything is provided for it (sounds, sights, plots,

outcome, entertainment), and the brain doesn’t have to learn or

make new connections. Like a muscle, the more you use your brain,

the stronger it becomes and the more it can do. The opposite is also

true: The less you work it, the weaker it becomes. Repeatedly en

gaging in “no brain” activities, such as TV, decreases a person’s abil

ity to focus. In addition, the pacing of TV has changed over the past

thirty years. Thirty years ago a thirty-second commercial had ten

three-second scenes. The same commercial in 2000 has thirty one-

second scenes. We are being programmed to need more stimulation

in order to pay attention.

Video games are another problem. I have seen that many ADD

children literally become addicted to playing video games. They

will play for hours at a time, to the detriment of their responsibili

ties, and go through tantrums and withdrawal symptoms when

forced to stop. A recent study on brain-imaging and video games

was published in the journal Nature. In the study, PET scans were

taken while a group of people played action video games. The re

searchers were trying to see where video games worked in the brain.

They discovered that the basal ganglia (where dopamine is pro

duced in the brain) were much more active when the video games

were being played than at rest. Both cocaine and Ritalin work in

(Ins part of the brain as well. The reason that cocaine is addictive

.ind Ritalin is not is related to how each drug is metabolized. Co-

( . l i n e h a s a powerful, immediate effect that stimulates an enormous

r e l e a s e o l i l i e neurotransmirter dopamine. The pleasure this brings

r a p i d l y lades, l e a v i n g t h e a d d i c t wanting m o r e . Ritalin, on the

o f l i er l i . i nd , w o r k s s l o w l y , i i k I i k m r , n o l n g l t o r p l e a s u r e f r o m t a k i n g



C H A P T E R 6

Type 2:Inattentive

ADD

he second most common type of ADD

is Type 2: Inattentive ADD. Unfortu

nately, many of these people never get

diagnosed. Instead they are labeled slow, lazy,

spacey, or unmotivated. While Type 1 people

bring negative attention to themselves with

their hyperactivity, constant chatter, and

conflict-driven behavior, inattentive ADD

folks tend to be quiet and distracted. Rather

than cause problems in class, they are more

likely to daydream or look out the window.

They are not often impulsive and are less

likely to blurt out inappropriate things.

They are frequently thought of as couch potatoes who have trouble finding interest or

motivation in their lives. Girls seem to have

this type as much or more than boys.

As in Type 1 (Classic) ADD, dopamine is

generally considered the neurotransmitter

involved in inattentive ADD — although, in

this case, its imbalance is felt by another areaof the brain.

It cad the following lour examples of Type

The sufferer:

Is ea sily distracted

Has difficulty sustaining

his or her attention span

for most tasks in play,

school, or work

Has trouble listening

wh en others are talking

H as difficulty following

through

(procrastination) on

tasks or instructions

Has difficulty keepin g

an organized area (room,

desk, book bag, filingcabinet, locker, etc.)

Has trouble with time,

for example, frequently

late or hurried, tasks

take longer than

exp ected, projects or

homework are "last

minu te" or turned in late

Has a tend en cy to lose

things

Makes careless

mistakes, with poor

attention to detail

Is forgetful

Daydream s excessively

Com plains of bein g

bored

Appears apathetic or

unmotivated

Is tired, sluggish, orslow-moving

Is spacey or seems

preoccupied.



21 0 Healing ADD

activity in the prefrontal cortex and temporal lobes. To run pro

grams effectively, you must first optimize the hardware— the brain.

But once a computer’s hardware is optimized, it still has program

ming needs. Many people with ADD, because of their hardware

(brain) problems, never fully loaded the programs (information)

they needed. Once the brain is optimized, it is important to input

strategies that help people with ADD be more effective in their

family, school, work, and social relationships.

In Chapter 2, we discussed how important it was to assess ADD

in a bio-psycho-social fashion. Treating ADD is best done in the

same way. It is essential to optimize the ADD brain (biology), themindset of an ADD person (psychology), and the interactions be

tween the ADD person and the world (social). Ignoring any of these

factors can cause treatment failure. Here is a brief summary of ADD

treatments. Many of them are expanded in subsequent chapters.

Effective ADD Treatment

k Biological

Psychological -------Social



Enh ancing ADD Brain Function 21 5

requires three things: information, self-esteem, and a sense of con

trol. Education has a powerful effect on each of those three criteria,

and obtaining accurate information is the critical first step.

Correcting Automatic Negative Thoughts

Negativity is one of the hallmark features of ADD. As Eve said,

many people with ADD use negative thoughts as a form o f self

stimulation, but this habit predisposes them to depression and iso

lation. In Chapter 24, I will teach you how to identify and rid

yourself of the negative thoughts (I call them ANTs— automatic

negative thoughts) that invade your life.

Targeted Psychotherapy

For many people with ADD, there are a number of psychological is

sues that need to be addressed. Without the proper biological treat

ment, psychotherapy can be a fruitless and frustrating experience

for both the therapist and the patient. I have consulted with many

ADD patients who have been in psychotherapy for years without

much benefit. When they were placed on the right medication or

supplements and diet, however, psychotherapy brought about dra

matic improvement in just several weeks. I am not dismissing psy

chotherapy as a necessary component of treatment for children,

teens, and adults with ADD. It is often very helpful. It does, how

ever, need to be in combination with the right biological treatment.

The following are some psychotherapy themes that are essential in

dealing with the ADD patient.

Breaking Up Erroneous Belief Patterns

Many people with ADD may have erroneous, negative beliefs that

sabotage their chances for success in the present. For example, they

may believe that they'll fail in school (because that was their expe-

rien<e before they were treated), so they will not try. Or they may

believe ili.it rhey are doomed to have poor relationships (again, be-

c.uise i Ii.ii was i licit c x p e n c m c before I real i n c n l ), so they will en-

g.ii'c in f l i c s.ii nc l e p e l i f i v e l > c h . i v i n i \ ill,II i mp a i r I hc i r ab i 1it y to



2 2 4 Healing ADD

concentration. Especially for people with ADD, the solution is a

higher-protein, lower-carbohydrate diet.” A better breakfast for the

group would have been cheeses, hard-boiled eggs, or whole-grain

bagels with cream cheese. I finished my lecture by saying, “If youwant ro concentrate this afternoon and have good energy until din

nertime, have no simple carbohydrates at lunch. No bread, no pasta,

no potatoes, no rice, and no sugar. Have something like a stir fry

withour the rice, a Cobb salad, or a cheeseburger without the bun.”

Many people who took my suggestions about lunch came up to me at

the end of the day saying how amazed they were by their energy and

concentration.Dietary interventions are important in treating all types of ADD.

Food can be used like medicine. It can have a powerfully positive ef

fect on cognition, feelings, and behavior, but ir can have a negative

effect as well. In fact, the right diet can decrease the amount of med

ication needed. However, the wrong diet will do the opposite. In

1992, Joseph Egger reported in the British medical journal Lancet

that 116 of 185 hyperactive children had a positive response to a

low-allergen diet (higher in protein and lower in simple carbohy

drates) supplemented by calcium, zinc, magnesium, and vitamins.

Over and over in my clinical practice I have found that diet matters.

When I can convince my patients to eat this way, they notice

better mood stability, better focus, less distractibility, more mental

stamina, and less drowsiness in the late morning and midafternoon.

Here are strategies geared toward using food as a positive force in

ADD treatment.

A D D F O O D I N T E R V E N T I O N S

For the purpose of creating an ADD-friendly diet, we’ll divide food

into four groups: water, protein, carbohydrates, and fat.

Water

T h e h u m a n b o d y is t w o t h i r d s w a t er . W a t e r is a n e s s e n tia l p a n o l

e v e r y f u n c t i o n i n r h e b o d y , i ni l u l l i n g b r a i n b l o o d l lo w . u ul <e l !



2 2 8 Healing ADD

chain omega-3 fatty acid known as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

This particular essential fatty acid must be part of your diet and is

required, not for only maintaining healthy nerve synapses, but also

for the development of new brain pathways. It has been shown inrodent studies that diets high in DHA increase the levels of both

dopamine and serotonin in the frontal cortex.

H E A L T H I E S T F O R M S O F F A T S

Olive oil

Canola oil

Grapeseed oilAvocados

Nuts, such as Brazil nuts, macadamia nuts, almonds, cashews, and

pistachios

Fish oil

In using food as medicine, it is important to maintain a propet

balance between proteins, carbohydrates, and fat. Many people withADD have too many simple carbohydrates in their diet. Not only

does this aggravate ADD symptoms, it upsets the body’s metabolic

balance.

All ADD types, except Type 3 (Overfocused) ADD, do better on

a higher-protein, lower-carbohydrate diet. That’s the exact opposite

of the way that most people eat.

S I M P L E S T E P S T O AD D D I E T A R Y S U C C E S S

1. Eat three meals a day and one or two snacks. Breakfast is im

portant. It gives fuel for the morning and increases metabolism

and blood flow. Make sure there is some form of protein in the

morning (such as lean meat, cheese, cottage cheese, eggs, nuts, or

ptotein powder). Snacks are also important to help maintaingood energy and concentration.

2 . Eat protein at each meal. ( A s w e h a v e s ee n p r o t e i n is lo i m d in

m e a t , e g g s , c h ee s e, m i ls , a n d b e a n s . ) P r o t e i n c o n t a i n s i l ic a m m o



Self-Hypnotic Reprogramming for Su cces s 3 6 3

ported; some people prefer to lie flat, perhaps w ith som eth in g sup-

po rtin g th e knees and under th e head. If you find th at you tend to

go to sleep while listening ro the tape, then it is probably better to

sit up— and if you still fall asleep, sit in a straigh tback ed chair. The

actual script to read into the tape recorder is in boldface type.

S T E P O NE : E N T E R I N G T H E D E E P L Y R E L A X E D ,

S E L F - H Y P N O T I C S T A T E

H ello , [pu t in your name}. . . . W e are h er e to c lear y ou r m in d ,

r e la x your s oul, b r e a k t h ro ug h o ld ba r r ie r s , a nd p rog ra m s uc -

cess. Pick a spot on the wall a l i t t le above your eye level and

stare at it. [You may find it helpful to put a little thumbtack there

to look at.] As you focus on th is spo t , be co m e a w are o f the fact

tha t the re 's no o ther p lace tha t you need to go a t th i s m om ent ,

no th ing e l se tha t you need to do , and no problem tha t you

need to so lve r igh t now. T here fo re , you can g ive yourse l f p e r-

m iss ion to relax. C on t inu e to look a t tha t po int , and as you do,

I am going to begin to count , s lowly, f rom one to twenty.

As I co un t , say the n u m b er to yourse l f , si lent ly , in your

m ind . You may f ind i t he lpfu l to p ic ture each nu m be r as you

count i t .

[Leave a couple of seconds between each number.]

O n e . . . tw o . . . th re e . . . fo u r . . . five . . . six . . .

N o tice yo ur eyelids b e g in n in g to feel heav ier and heavie r. . . .

Seven . . . e ig h t . . . n in e . . . te n . . . e le ven . . . tw e lv e . . .

N o tic e h o w th a t sp o t in th e d is ta n c e is fad in g o u t o f focus

and yo ur eyelids are feel ing s ti l l hea vier an d heavier. . . .

13 . . . 14 . . . 15 . . . 16 . . . 17 . . . 18 . . .

Your eyelids are feel ing so heavy, they feel as though they

really want to close.

19 . . . 20 . . .

lak e a deep b reath in . . . an d as you let tha t bre ath ou t , let

v o u r e y e l i d s s l o w l y ( l os e .

| S i >i i ii - | ><o | i | ( m i . i v ,n I I I . i l l y 111 i d i l l . I I l l i i y r r l . i \ m i i n i l I I l e y l e . i v e



3 6 4 Healing ADD

their eyes open through the entire experience. If you choose ro do

this, simply keep them focused on that spot and don’t be concerned

that your eyes stay open in spite of your voice saying they are

growing heavier. After a while, you may find that your eyelids will prefer to close.]

In a moment, I’m going to ask you to take three deep

breaths, and with each breath in, feel relaxation flowing in

like pure, white light. And with each breathing out, let your-

self feel the feeling of letting go. "With each breath in, say,

silently, to yourself, “With each breath in, I breathe in relax-

ation,” and with each breath out, say the words “With each

breath out, I let my body breathe out all tension and all the

things that may interfere with my becoming totally relaxed

and comfortable.”

Now take a deep breath in, repeating to yourself, “With

each breath in, I breathe in relaxation.”

And as you let this breath out, repeat, internally to yourself,

“With each breath out, I let my body breathe out all tension

and all the things that may interfere with my becoming totally

relaxed and comfortable.”

[Take a few slow, deep breaths in and out, and get a sense of the

speed with which you will need to read these words to yourself.]

Now take another deep breath in, feeling the coolness of

the air as it enters through your nostrils, and repeat silently,

“With each breath in, I breathe in relaxation.”

And as you let this breath out, let it be a feeling of letting

go, and repeat, “With each breath out, I let my body breathe

out all tension and all the things that may interfere with my

becoming totally relaxed and comfortable.”

Now take a deep breath in, repeating to yourself, “With

each breath in, I breathe in relaxation.” As you let it out, imagine you are a balloon letting out all the air, becoming

completely flat and relaxed, and say to yourself, “With each

breath out, 1 let my body breathe out all tension and all the



Self-Hypnotic Reprogramming for Success 3 6 5

things that may interfere with my becoming totally relaxed

and comfortable.”

Now let the air do the breathing for you, just as it does

when you’re asleep at night, and feel how your chest and ab-

domen gently rise and fall with each breath, letting each

breath continue to relax you from head to toe.

Now, as your body continues to relax, close your eyes really

tight, as though you were trying to keep soap out of them.

Hold them tense for just a few seconds, and feel the tension in

your eyelids.

Now, slowly let the muscles of your eyelids relax . . . re-

lax . . . more and more relaxed with each breath. [Five second

pause]

Notice how much your eyelids have relaxed already. They

will continue to relax. And perhaps you will notice your eyes

gently rolling upward behind your eyelids, and your eyelids

feeling so relaxed, they just don’t want to open at all. Now, as

your eyelids become more and more relaxed, imagine ripples

of relaxation flowing outward from your eyelids, like ripples flowing outward from a stone thrown into the water . . . flow-

ing into your forehead . . . through all the muscles of your

face . . . relaxing your jaw muscles and your lips . . . and flow-

ing down through your neck and into your shoulders. Feel

your shoulders releasing any tension; you may even feel them

lower just a tiny little bit as the muscles relax.

Now feel the relaxation flowing down through your shoul-ders and your arms . . . flowing throu gh your chest and

through all the rest of your body. With each rising and falling

of your chest and abdomen, your chest becomes more relaxed

and all your internal organs are becoming more relaxed. Feel

that relaxation flowing through your pelvis, relaxing all your

pelvic organs . . . and flowing down through your thighs and

your knees . . . your legs and your ankles and your leet . . . all

ilie way down io the lips ol your loes. Imagine your body is



36 8 Healing ADD

[After you have completed your description of your haven, your

special place, say:]

As you listen to the rest of this tape, imagine yourself

spending time in your haven, perhaps walking about, explor-

ing it, enjoying it in any way that you wish.

[These first few steps should take about five ro ten minutes. Af

ter you have finished with these initial sreps, read rhe following af

firmation phrases into your tape recorder, modifying them to better

suit your situation or that of your child. Read them slowly and

clearly, with a firm feeling of certainty: Read it with a voice that

sounds as though you truly believe it, whether you do or not at thismoment in time. Soon you will begin to believe it, and as you be

lieve it, it will happen!]

S T E P T W O : G I V I N G Y O U R S E L F P O S I T I V E

A F F I R M A T I O N S

With each breath in, breathe in warmth and relaxation . . . and with each breath out, release all the t ens ions and worries

that disrupt life. Say to yourself:

“Day by day, I’m feeling better and better in every way. I’m

feeling more control in my life.

• I have clear goals for my relationships: to develop and nur-

ture kind, caring, loving relationships.• I have clear goals for my work (or school): to do the best I

can every day.

• I have clear goals for my physical health and mental health:

always to do things to keep my body and my mind healthy.

• I focus energy every day on accomplishing my goals.

I expect to succeed in whatever I do. I am able to see myself

succeeding at tasks before 1 start them . In this way, 1 program

myself for success . . . and I see success. I understand lhai su c-

cessful people someiimes make mistakes and have failures



Self-Hypnotic Reprogramming for Succe ss 3 6 9

along the way. I do not expect perfection, but I learn from

each mistake.

Every day, in every way, I am becoming the best person I

can be. I learn from others. By learning from others, I expand my horizons on a daily basis.

I prepare carefully for each of my tasks and projects. I set

myself up to win and I have let go o f the old pattern of putting

off tasks and thereby setting up failure. Every day I’m becom-

ing more and more organized. . . . Organization is becoming a

vital part of my nature. I realize that when I put something in

its right place in the beginning, I am more likely to find it

when I need it.

Every day I am becoming more focused, more alert, more

wide awake and more filled with energy. Every day I’m be-

com ing m ore interested in what I am doing, in whatever is go-

ing on around me, and the people around me. I work smart as

well as hard, focusing my energy on the goals I have set for

myself.

I am more flexible . . . more adaptable . . . more willing and

able to change as needed. At the same time, I am more disci-

plined . . . more thoughtful.

My environm ent m atters. . . . I will seek to be a positive

force in my environment everyday. I surround myself with

positive people, and people who believe in me. Similarly, I am

more positive with those around me. I can step outside myself

and understand the feelings of others, and I see things from

their perspective as well as my own. I am free of fear of com-

petition with o thers. I feel wonderful when I w in; when I do

not win, I learn. Competition spurs me on to be as good as I

can be.

More and more, I accept myself as I am and I accept others

as they are. . . . 1 accept things as they are, not as I think they

should be. 1 com prom ise when it is necessary. 1 eliminate the

ANTs ;iiul thoughts whenever they enter my mind. I own

m e , .uul I a m id lonlrol ol m e . . .uul I live with (lie i n n e r



Self-Hypnotic Reprogramm ing for Su cces s 3 71

Four, three . . .

Bringing the feelings of energy and relaxation with you as

you come up . . . filled with energy and ready to do whatever

you want to do next.

Two, one, zero.

Take a deep breath in. As you let it out, let your eyelids

open and think to yourself, wide awake . . .

Feel your body beginning to stretch and move.

Now get up and walk around the room, and make sure

you're fully wide awake before you do anything else.

The total rime of the tape will be from fifteen to thirty minutes, de

pending on the pace of your voice, images, etc.

Now that you have made the tape for yourself or your child, lis

ten to it once every day. This is important: The first few times you

will find out how your body will react to the relaxation. Some

people become so relaxed that they doze off to sleep for a bit. If that

happens to you, great! Listen to the tape before you go to bed, or

when you can catch a nap. Some people find that it takes them a

while to be fully with it; they remain very relaxed for several min

utes afterward, as if they were waking up from sleep. If the tape af

fects you that way, you want to make sure that you’re clearly awake

before you do anything that requires full concentration, like driving

a car. Others can listen to the tape anytime, anywhere, and feel a re

laxed energy flow through their bodies.

The most important thing is that you listen to your tape every

day. You can change the content of the tape in any way that you

think will be beneficial to you. This is your rape. Use ir ro

strengthen your life.

Information on other self-hypnosis cassettes tan be lound at our

Weh site at ii'icit'.tiHicnt/iiin.ioiii or on Dr. Miller’s Well sue .it

i c l t ’t r . /

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Healing ADD