15 Questions to Ask After Your Child’s ADHD Diagnosis

Your child’s evaluation resulted in diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). What now?

Though we have best practices and recommendations for helping children with ADHD in school, at home, and in other realms of life, there is no singular strategy for helping parents immediately navigate next steps once the diagnosis is established. These resources are a good place to start:

Your Next Steps

• Read through this after-the-diagnosis road map
• Understand the full range of ADHD treatment options for children (you can also jump to “How do I treat my child’s ADHD?” below)
• Talk to the school about getting academic services for your child
• Explain ADHD to your child

ADHD that occurs with one or more conditions is called complex ADHD. About 60% of children with ADHD have at least one co-occurring condition.¹ The most common comorbid conditions include anxiety, depression, autism, tic disorders, behavioral/conduct disorders, and learning disorders.

Asking this question shows the diagnosing professional that you’re aware of the statistics, and that it’s likely that your child has something else going on apart from ADHD. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that providers screen for comorbid conditions as part of a patient’s ADHD evaluation. To that end, how will your doctor look for other conditions or rule them out?

Additional Resources

• Understand: What Is Complex ADHD?
• Read: When It’s Not Just ADHD — Symptoms of Comorbid Conditions
• Resource Hub: ADHD Comorbidities and Related Conditions

The provider should have conducted a comprehensive evaluation to determine what else could explain your child’s behaviors — not just that it’s not ADHD. If there are no clues or signs, seek a second opinion or a re-evaluation in six months.

Related Resources

• Read: My Child’s Doctor Got It Wrong
• Read: 10 Commonly Misdiagnosed ADHD Symptoms
• Resource: The ADDitude Symptom Checker

Multimodal treatment that comprises ADHD medication, behavioral parent training, and educational interventions is the gold standard for ADHD treatment in children. There are other options for managing ADHD on top of these treatments, including (in no particular order) ADHD and executive function coaching, occupational therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for ADHD, and lifestyle changes.

Your first conversations about treatment might be on ADHD medication, followed by parent training and school plans.

As you explore ways to manage your child’s ADHD, keep in mind that you’ll likely run into “treatments'' that are not at all evidence based. Navigating treatment decisions starts with being informed about which interventions are proven to be effective and safe in treating ADHD — and which aren’t.

Related questions:

• What role will the diagnosing professional play in treatment? It’s not a guarantee that the professional who diagnosed your child’s ADHD will be the one to treat it, too. The diagnosing specialist, for example, might be able to prescribe ADHD medication, but you’ll likely have to go to another provider for behavioral parent training.
• Who can prescribe and manage ADHD medication? Pediatricians, developmental pediatricians, neurologists, psychiatrists, and nurse practitioners are among the medical professionals who can prescribe ADHD medications. Keep in mind that your pediatrician may refer your child to another specialist, like a psychiatrist, to prescribe medication depending on the complexity of your child’s case.
• What is behavioral parent training? How does it work?
  • Which BPT programs are most popular among ADHD families?
• What is an IEP? What’s a 504 plan? They are the main types of educational supports available to students with ADHD. Broadly, the IEP provides services, while a 504 Plan provides accommodations.
• What is ADHD coaching? An ADHD coach can help your child develop skills and strategies. Coaching is, as of yet, unlicensed and unregulated. If you are interested in ADHD coaching for your child, be sure that the coach has a strong philosophy for working with neurodivergent children.
• Will my child need a treatment team? Your child’s ADHD treatment team should comprise parents, teachers, clinicians, and other specialists treating your child’s ADHD. Ask the diagnosing professional about who should be on your child’s treatment team.

ADHD medication should mitigate 60% to 90% of your child’s symptoms. If that’s not the case, the doctor should adjust the dosage or change the medication until there is optimal symptom control with minimal side effects.

 The more you become knowledgeable about ADHD medication — including when your child is expected to use it and what improvement looks like — the better you’ll feel about your treatment decision.

Additional Resources

• Read: A Parent’s Complete Guide to ADHD Medications
• Q&A: “What Are the Long-Term Effects of ADHD Medication on the Brain?”
• Q&A: “Why Are There So Many Different ADHD Medications?”
• Q&A: “How Do Doctors Decide Which ADHD Medication to Prescribe First?”
• Q&A: “Will ADHD Medication Worsen My Child’s Other Condition(s)?”

There’s no single best ADHD medication for children. The best medication for your child will depend on their individual response to it, which factors in the medication’s dosage, duration, side effects, and more. Be sure to ask the prescriber about their process for determining the best medication for your child.

Changing life circumstances, like going from elementary to middle school, may warrant a medication change, which is why I encourage parents to ask the prescriber on a yearly basis, “Do you think my child is on the best ADHD medication?”

Related questions:

• What are the most common side effects associated with ADHD medication? I’ve found that many parents consider appetite suppression to be the most off-putting side effect of medication, which is why I always advocate that parents talk to the prescriber about this particular side effect.
• Will my child have to take ADHD medication forever? The vast majority of children won’t outgrow ADHD and thus need to manage it for life. Still, ask your child’s doctor for their recommendations.

ADDitude Resource Hubs:

• Just Diagnosed: Next Steps
• Can We Treat ADHD Naturally?
• Could ADHD Medication Help My Child?
• How Do I Choose the Best ADHD Medication?
• How Do I Manage Medication Side Effects?
• When and How Should We Adjust Treatment?

The content for this article was derived, in part, from the ADDitude ADHD Experts webinar titled, “The Right Questions to Ask Before, During, and After an ADHD Diagnosis” [Video Replay & Podcast #421] with Norrine Russell, Ph.D., which was broadcast on September 15, 2022.

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Sources

¹ Melissa L. Danielson, Rebecca H. Bitsko, Reem M. Ghandour, Joseph R. Holbrook, Michael D. Kogan & Stephen J. Blumberg. (Jan. 24, 2018). Prevalence of Parent-Reported ADHD Diagnosis and Associated Treatment Among U.S. Children and Adolescents, 2016. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 47:2, 199-212, DOI: 10.1080/15374416.2017.1417860. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5834391/pdf/nihms937906.pdf