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Larry Silver, M.D.
Time flies. Your teen will soon be graduating from high school and heading off to college. Finding the right school -- not to mention the means to pay for it -- will be tough enough. If your adolescent has ADHD, you need to address other challenges as well.
Have you made sure that your college-bound teen understands ADHD and how it affects him? Have you explained how medication helps and how to use it, and slowly shifted the responsibility for taking and managing it to him? If so, you are ahead of the game. If not, you have work to do.
What resources or school accommodations might your soon-to-be-freshman need at college? Does she know what services she is entitled to, and what to do if they are not provided? If she is struggling academically, or has an emotional meltdown, where can she go for support? If she feels confused, what should she do?
Finally, is your teen disorganized, or finding it hard to plan his day, never mind a week's worth of classes and homework? If your child runs into these problems at college, he should know that he can call or text you for help. But this approach is a short-term solution. At college, he should know what to do and talk with you only as a last resort.
Here are the key challenges most students with ADHD will face, along with strategies to meet them. Thinking ahead will ensure that your teen's debut in college will be calm and successful.
Next: Make Sure His Meds Are Managed
This article appears in the Spring 2012 issue of ADDitude.
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