HI !
My daughter is 15 months and two weeks and she has less than one second ateention span. She cannot watch tv, read a book , computer or anything!
She is extremely active all day she is on the go! If she wants something and if that is not good than she will bang her head on any where. Please if any one can help I have gone to the doctor as well!
please if any one can help me
Ayana,
If she wants something and gets it, how long does she play with it? If you show her some new interesting toy, how long does she hold it and play? What did the doctor say?
Your daughter sounds a lot like my son (20 mo.) He is very kinesthetic and wants to touch everything, especially anything that he sees me using. When we are eating he wants to touch my cup, fork, plate etc. and throws a fit if he doesn’t get it. So I can appease him or he doesn’t eat (he hasn’t discovered head banging yet, but this is normal behavior for this age.) Most of his day is spent scheming up ways to climb and reach things I don’t want him getting into. He also likes to throw things and uses toys inappropriately, even dangerously. I have spent a fortune on toys that are put away for safety reasons. If I try to read him a book or show him pictures he is more interested in turning the pages than looking at him, and if I leave him alone with a board book it will be destroyed in 10 minutes.
He is very interested in having me carry him around to touch things above his reach; this is especially effective at calming him down if he is very upset (I only use distractions if talking to him doesn’t work.) I have labeled many items around the house and he likes pointing at them and having me read to him that way. I think he just doesn’t get books yet.
Thank you so much for the reply’s It means a lot to me.
The doctor wants to wait and see because she is still too young. I have tried every thing from changing her diet and to sleeping more. But nothing is working out. All day long she is running around, she does not want to be carried around at all.She is very independent she likes to eat on her own if any one tries to feed her she will cry but not eat. Driving is impossible with her she just crys all the way. She does not have any attention span at all if we give her a new toy she will look at and check it for 1 second and throws away across the room. Literally we have to run around behind her she runs very fast and most of the time she does not want any one near her.
If I take her to the park she will try everything just once and off she goes running from one end to another.
I cannot read one page of the book even if there is one workd on it she closes and throws it across the room.
I am very worrried I have not seen any one baby like this. When I take her any place she literally runs and touches everything and if it does not go her way she bangs her head on the floor so hard that when I am protecting her my hands get hurt so much and it is very dangerous.
Please if any one can help me I will really apperciate it. I am so stressed out and worried.
Hi. I’m not an expert on behavioral issues but I just want to share a story about my friend’s adopted daughter. Even as a newborn, she had been a “difficult” baby but only after turning a year old that her mother became concerned with her very short attention span. She would not sit still at all and would not be even be ‘talked’ to because she would be interested with something else after a second. She would also frequently destroy play things and objects inside the house. My friend is ALWAYS running after her and reprimanding her because it seems that ALL she does is either dangerous or destructive.
My friend consulted a specialist and it turned out that her daughter has ADHD. She is under therapy and it helped. I know each child is different but if she can’t sit still even for a second, may I suggest that you have her consulted by a respected specialist. You will thank yourself and ease your worries. Better take care of it NOW than wait and see. God bless and best wishes!
Thank you so much for sharing me your friends story and I will take her to the doctor and see if she can send deep down inside my heart I am very scared.
Ayana,
It sounds to me like your DD is focusing her attention on running, throwing and doing things for herself. Maybe she is more interested in focusing on action than focusing her attention on an object. My DS throws things like that too. He also has to do things for himself, and hated having me spoon feed him so finger foods worked better, for awhile. Now he is onto doing things like me, so he wants to eat and drink like me. He has also developed really good balance and reflexes, we call him “Spider Monkey†because of his climbing abilities. I should really post some video. He is so quick; I think he might grow up to be a ninja. Maybe your DD will grow up to be a surgeon.
Anyway, here is some information on kinesthetic learners and why they frequently get misdiagnosed as ADHD http://www.latitudes.org/articles/learn01.html. Unfortunately many schools don’t recognize kinesthetic learners and don’t create a learning environment that fit their needs. I plan on homeschooling my children, so I guess I will be incorporating a lot of hands on learning into our lessons. (If you don’t plan on homeschooling maybe you can find an alternative school that is more kinesthetic.) As for right now, my DS wants to run around and touch things, so I let him. To expose him to reading I am trying to do something like this http://forum.brillkids.com/general-discussion-b5/photos-of-our-interesting-teaching-methods/ but am having problems finding the time. He already likes the labels I have put up for him to read and touches them frequently and makes this really cute sound of approval when I tell him what it says. I think he will really like having pictures to touch as well.
Here http://school.familyeducation.com/intelligence/teaching-methods/38519.html is another article on learning styles.
i think i have heard of such cases before too … and its to do with ADHD, although the range can be very very wide sometimes … some very mild, others pretty severe … a baby would normal focus their attention on something for a while … at least a few 10s of seconds before throwing … if they just grab and throw, then they could not possibly have focused on the toy or object … its best to seek clarification and treatment asap the earlier they are diagnose and treated the better the effect …
i also heard that certain oil or enzymes was needed, not those often prescribed medically, but some natural herbal or organic oil like omgea 3 or stuff like that that could help … its not just the food or diet but also the subsequent training needed to bring balance or to slow them down … i do fear that most, as i had a friend who worries over her son very much … so i make a point to read up and research on it before my daughter was born, to take note of the things i should observe and what remedies i can do … but its been almost 2 yrs since i read it so a bit rusty now … but the things you mentioned reminded me about the stuff i read …
Hi Ayana,
I have heard from several friends that a children’s calcium and magnesium suppliment was beneficial to their children when they were overactive, also to help them sleep. The omega 3 is a good suggestion as well. Hopefully you are able to take her to a doctor that is familiar with more natural remedies. Dr Sear’s website has all kinds of good information. You might want to start at this link http://www.askdrsears.com/html/4/t040400.asp#T040408
Also you might try keeping a journal or log for a few days noting everything she eats and activities she is involved in, the people that are around etc. This way it may become clear if there is anything in her diet or environment that makes creates positive or negative change.
As far as the head banging – my son used to do this too. I use a technique called a “Locational” which basically gets his attention off whatever is upsetting him and puts his attention onto the environment. Now when he gets mad he sometimes will do a locational on himself. I will see him get ready to bang his head then instead he starts looking around at things in the environment. This gives him a technique so that he can handle the frustration and take control so that he can make himself feel better. It is also effective for those times when he has gotten overly tired to the point that it is hard for him to fall asleep. A link to how to do a ‘Locational’ is http://www.scientologyhandbook.org/SH6_7.HTM
Best wishes! Lisa
Hi Ayana,
You’re not alone my dear. Here’s a big hug ! O ! : )
I have adhd, and it was passed on to my kids. So here’s what I did:
I put us on a daily wild fish diet. Read this for all the details. www.truehealth.org
I have the kids RUN whenever possible, even in safe places inside the house(to get to the table for dinner, or to check the mail with Daddy…anywhere…as long as it’s safe) I ended up turning our toy room into a room with track to run on daily. Diet and exercise help tramendously! I’ve heard moms give their children fish oil, if wild fish was not available. We all had adhd to some degree, and now everyone’s well!!!
IAHP sells wonderful books on this. “The Pathway to Wellness.” is a must have in my eyes! It’s a simple but informative little book packed full of tons of great info! And “What To Do About Your Brain Injured Child”. Glenn Doman says creeping, crawling, and running cure adhd over time and it’s true!!! My kids and I are living proof. Hope this helps!
Let me know if you have any questions regarding the website! I know the founder/nutritionest quite well and can assist you in navigating his greatly detailed website!
Best of Luck!
Autumn
Thanks y’all! It was very interesting to read the replies. I’ve known quite a few ADHD children (mostly preschool and school aged children) and am always impressed at how smart they are. It is true that they often cannot concentrate on one thing at a time. But we figured out that they are great at multi-tasking. Sure, they may be running in circles or climbing over everything, but they are often still able to take in a lot of information. One girl would be crawling under tables, but she could ask intelligent questions and answer questions about what she was taught. We would tell one boy to do a handstand while we taught him something and he could do both at the same time. There are times when we needed to work on self control, and I think the “locational” idea is a great one.
Just want to encourage ayana. Sounds like you have one of those smart children who can process info quickly. I’m sure to keep her attention, things would have to move along very quickly. For teaching, perhaps you can have her do one thing while you also teach her another. 
Hi,
Navigating www.supremehealth.org
First Click on Supreme Health
Then Click on these articles pertaining to ADD/HAD. Located in the column on the left side of the page:
Breakthroughs and Health News
And of course check out:
For Mothers
Let me know if you need any assistance!
Sincerely,
Autumn
I have been thinking about this and wanted to add to my previous posts. I am certainly no expert on what is abnormal behavior for a 15 mo old, nor have I observed your DD. I can’t say for certain that your DD’s behavior is just like my DS’s was at that age. That being said, I do remember 15 months was very difficult for me having twins that were absolutely crazy about getting into everything. They were early walkers so I think that contributed to the madness. They are 21 months now and things are quite different. Just this week my DS is actually interested in books now; he sits on my lap and points to pictures and asks me what they are.
If you are really concerned talk to your pediatrician or Early Intervention. Here http://www.mothering.com/discussions/forumdisplay.php?f=157 is a forum for parenting special needs children. You might find more information and support asking there about your concerns.