Commonly diagnosed in young children, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD is a neurodevelopment disorder that affects the daily lives of children as well as adults across the globe. Those suffering with ADHD might experience trouble while concentrating or focusing, easy distractions, difficulty staying organized, forgetful about completing tasks or difficulty sitting still. While these symptoms might seem like normal childhood behavior, they can be severely affecting your child’s ability to function normally. While both children and adults can have ADHD, it is considerably more prevalent in children aged 5-17 years old. It is so common that the world had over 10 million cases per year and it is continually on the rise.

ADHD can be categorized into major three categories:

1. Predominantly Inattentive

Where the child might have immense difficulty while focusing on the task at hand be it studying, eating or even playing. The child might be easily distracted, so much so that they constantly miss out on major information in class due to daydreaming or shuffling between multiple tasks. This type of ADHD is harder to diagnose, as the child might not be disrupting the class but only losing their focus.

2. Predominantly hyperactive-impulsive

Individuals with this type of ADHD experience hyperactive and impulsive behavior, which is more noticeable. This category is easier to diagnose as the everyday behavior of individuals affected might include constantly fidgeting, interrupting people in a conversation and being impatient for their turn to talk so much so that it might seem like all they want to do is talk about themselves so that they can get the attention.

3. Combined hyperactive-impulsive and inattentive

This is the most common type of ADHD that affects all ages. Individuals with this combination of ADHD exhibit both inattentiveness and hyperactive behavior, which might make it hard for some parents and teachers to get them to behave in a social setting. The inability to pay attention is present in this type. Children might also display a tendency to be impulsive, and showcase above-average levels of activity and energy.

Often, ADHD begins during childhood and follows the individual well into adulthood if left undiagnosed. Even though it is not a condition that can be fully cured, it might sound comforting to you as a parent that it can indeed be kept under check with treatments, therapy and medication after determining which type of ADHD the person might be suffering from.