I was utterly exhausted when our daughter was a baby. She never stopped moving when she was awake. Even now at age 7, she never really stops moving, her energy is limitless. At age 4, the doctors confirmed what we already knew, our daughter has ADHD.
The ADHD diagnosis came as no surprise but it did explain our exhaustion.
Keeping up with a neurodivergent child can have some side effects. Coming to terms with what life looks like parenting a kid with ADHD can be a process. Three years after receiving her diagnosis, we are still finding our way through each day
Nowadays the exhaustion is more a mental one than a physical one. A tiredness brought on by so much anxiety, so much worry and planning, and constant changing courses. Having a child with ADHD means spending countless hours trying to find the right therapies, the right meds, the right plans and teachers and activities, the right friends, the right foods, etc. for her to be successful.
I often times envy friends who have “easy” children. Children who just go with the flow, who they can send to school and know they’ll be successful, send to lunch and know they’ll eat, send to play and know they’ll make friends without any problems. There’s such a luxury to parenting an easy child that you don’t even know how exhausting the alternative is. I watch moms that just drop their children off to friends or play dates or activities without a second thought, and I’m envious.
BUT then our girl brings home the most gorgeous painting from art class and I wonder how a first grader even knew how to paint like that, or she learns a dance move in two minutes with little to no help, or strikes up a full adult conversation with the check-out person who she remembers to call by name. I watch her find things she’s passionate about and work tirelessly to master them. I watch her fully immerse herself in her latest hobbies until she is a pro at whatever it may be.
The amount of hyper focus she can have on preferred tasks is mind blowing.
She masters skills I could never dream of having, even at age 7. I see her mind work out-of-the-box and creative ways and it’s staggering to me how truly amazing she is. Then I remember I wouldn’t trade this child for any “easy” parenting in the world. Then I remember what I always knew… that I would go to the ends of the earth for this curly-haired kid every day of the week, exhaustion be damned.
Parenting any child is not for the faint of heart, but this October, for ADHD awareness Month, I’m sending special love to all the ADHD parents who are in the trenches daily, advocating for their children. We want you to know we see you and support you every month of the year, just like you do your children.
If you feel you need more resources for your ADHD parenting journey here are a few of our favorite trusted, informational sites.
