If you look up “causes of ADHD” on the internet, you’ll find a lot of talk regarding video games being a contributing role in the growing number of children diagnosed with ADHD every year.
It might be tough to differentiate reality from fantasy when so many individuals have an opinion on the origins of ADHD.
Let’s begin by discussing why some individuals believe that playing computer games causes the development of ADHD. This theory is based on the concept that video games teach the brain to concentrate primarily on tasks that provide high stimulation. Almost every ADHD parent has noticed a significant difference in their child’s ability to focus while they’re playing computer games versus doing just about everything else. When children with ADHD play video games, they might be so concentrated that they appear to have no ADHD at all. As a result, it’s natural to wonder whether playing video games had harmed their capacity to concentrate on tasks that don’t require a lot of stimuli.
Lack Of Sleep Found In Children Playing Video Games:
When children with ADHD begin playing computer games, they become hyper focused, to the point where they have difficulty stopping when it is time to do other. This implies that they will:
They are more prone than children without ADHD than those who play video games till late in the evening, resulting in inadequate sleep. Sleep deprivation makes symptoms among kids with ADHD much worse, according to study after research.
Have A Higher Chance Of Having Problems With Their Parent:.
The difficulties that parents face in attempting to supervise and control their children’s video game activity frequently result in major disputes between parents and adhd children. these confrontations increase over time, wreaking havoc on family connections. when family relationships are strained, oppositional conduct becomes more prevalent.
You’ll face higher opportunity expenses:
Excessive video gameplay comes with what psychologists call “opportunity costs.” Every minute a child invests playing games in the video is indeed a minute that he or she is not doing something else. They have missed an opportunity to strengthen their social skills if the missed activity involves a chance to play with some other youngsters offline. When the missing activity is connected to academic (such as reading or engaging in the after-science program), they have squandered a valuable chance to improve their cognitive skills. When the skipped activity is also something physically active, they’ve lost out on an opportunity to get some exercise that will help them manage their ADHD symptoms throughout the day. These lost chances add up over time, causing ADHD symptoms & functional deficits in children who play video games excessively, as opposed to children who do not play video games only or play them in moderation.
What else should parents do now that they know that playing computer games does not cause ADHD but can make symptoms worse? Should they completely prohibit their youngsters from playing video games? This question does not have a one-size-fits-all response. Can a child who already uses video games on a regular basis do so in moderation without causing ongoing conflict with their parents? If this is the case, then just a reasonable amount of online gaming (for instance, 30 minutes per day or one hour per day on weekends) be enough. If that’s not the case, as parents discover that the child is exclusively interested in video gaming, doesn’t seem to be interested in anything else, or there is a lot of friction at home about online games, then play in restriction may not be a choice – at least not at the moment now. In these cases, I strongly advise parents to consult with such a mental health specialist to devise a strategy for removing computer games for a certain period of time (usually 3-6 months) before slowly reintroducing them with a set of basic rules. If your youngster has been playing computer games excessively, making these changes can be quite difficult. If you are worried about the impact video games are having upon your child, helping a child with adhd and family, seek help from a mental health expert.
