ADHD with Anxiety, Worry, Hypervigilance
Nervous, Anxious, Hypervigilant, and ADHD
ADHD comes in different types or styles, and depending on what areas of the brain are impacted there are a variety of symptoms. Some children and teens with ADHD are characterized for their seeming so agitated, nervous, or worried all of the time. They are easily startled or scared, and they are often thinking negative thoughts.
Once again we turn to the stories of Winnie the Pooh and friends at the Hundred Acre Wood to identify this particular type of ADHD. Pooh's friend Piglet is a good picture of these children and teenagers with this type of ADHD. Piglet is that small, almost frail character from the Hundred Acre Wood. He is a great friend, and very loyal.
But he is always worried, nervous, and startles easily . Sometimes he is so nervous that he stutters. So it is with some kids with ADHD.
This type of ADHD is very similar to the rigid and over-focused Rabbit type of ADHD, except that with "Piglet type of ADHD" the child's mid-brain is so over-aroused that the child is hypervigilant and very easily startled.
He may be talking all of the time, and is probably touching everything in the room. And, this child is nervous or worried, or anxious. He has trouble shifting attention from one activity to another, and he frequently "gets stuck" in loops of negative thoughts.
He can be obsessive, and very inflexible.
In this type of ADHD some stimulants, or too much use of L-Tyrosine to increase dopamine production can actually make the problem of over-focus worse. So be careful.
Interesting Videos on Other Possible Causes to Symptoms Similar to ADHD, Anxiety, and Worry from a variety of sources
ADHD OCD Anxiety Diagnosis? Brain Function Beyond Labels
www.corepsychblog.com ADHD Medication Dosage Strategies too often overlook this Important OCD-like presentation - Cognitive anxiety is the most frequently overlooked subset of ADHD and isn't in the current diagnostic manual - *the Paleolithic Bible* ...
Alternative Treatment Strategies for Piglet style ADHD
- For best results use our Eating Program along with the nutraceuticals recommended below. Eating the right foods is very important no matter what kind of treatment intervention is being used, but is absolutely critical when trying alternative medicines or treatments are they are not as potent as pharmaceutical medicines (of course they don't have the harsh side-effects either). Don't use as much caffeine in the protein shake as we recommend for other situations.
- We also strongly recommend using Essential Fatty Acid supplementation (Omega Oils) while using the nutraceuticals below. We no longer recommend fish oils due to potential mercury content. The inexpensive way to do this is to use equal amounts of Flax Seed oil and Primrose oil to get the right combination of Omega 3s and 6s.
In addition, we recommend for Anxious, "Piglet" style ADHD the following for adults. Children can take less:
- ATTEND for ADHD symptoms, take only 2 capsules per day. ATTEND contains GABA, DL-Phenylalyne, Ginko, Pycnogenol and Grape Seed Extracts, 5-HTP, pregnenolone, DMAE, and more. See the ATTEND ingredients list here.
- EXTRESS for symptoms of impulsivity, temper, restlessness, and anxiety take 4 or more capsules per day. Originally developed for people with Anxiety Disorders, this is a great product for these symptoms in ADHD. EXTRESS contains GABA, DL-PA, 5-HTP, and St. John's Wort.
Together these two products give the best combination of homeopathic medicines, amino acids, vitamins and minerals, essential fatty acids, lipid complexes, and more, for the alternative treatment of Piglet style ADHD.
Back to "adhd DIFFERENT types" index
This book section: The Different Types of ADHD
Douglas Cowan, Psy.D., MFT is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Tehachapi, CA who has been a counselor to children, teens, and adults helping them to overcome ADHD, find relief for depression or anxiety, and solve other problems in life since 1989. He served on the medical advisory board to the company that makes Attend and Extress from 1997 through 2011, and he is the Editor of the ADHD Information Library online resource at http://newideas.net/. His weekly ADHD Newsletter goes out to 9,500 families. Visit his website at http://DouglasCowan.me for more information on achieving greater health, personal growth, Christ-centered spirituality, stress management, parenting skills, ADHD, working out the stresses of being a care-giver to elderly parents and also being a parent to teenagers, or finding greater meaning in retirement years, Dr. Cowan can be a valuable resource to you.
Counselor counseling Tehachapi for ADHD, depression, anxiety, and more.
Douglas Cowan, Psy.D., MFT
27400 Oakflat Dr.
Tehachapi, CA 93561
(661) 972-5953
ADHD with Anxiety, Worry, Hypervigilance
Blood Test for Anxiety Disorders?
When the Detroit Tigers placed pitcher Dontrelle Willis on the disabled list last Sunday (3/29/2009) with the diagnosis of "anxiety disorder" it was very interesting to me for two reasons:
First, because my nephew Casey Fien was trying to make the Tigers as a pitcher and we had just recently returned from a trip to spring training to follow the Tigers and watch Casey pitch and we have started following the Tigers very closely; and
Secondly, because of the reports that although Willis had not reported any symptoms of an anxiety disorder, he was diagnosed solely through the results of a blood test, according to news reports.
I must confess that I had never heard of a blood test for anxiety disorder, so I began looking around the internet for information to see if this was true, or if the Tigers were just trying to find a reason to put Willis on the DL so that they wouldn't have to pay all of the $11 million owed him for this season.
Here is what I discovered, and it may be helpful to you if you or your child with ADHD also has symptoms of anxiety, panic, rigid thinking, or OCD...
While WebMD doesn't know about any blood tests for anxiety disorder, they write: "Although there are no laboratory tests to specifically diagnose mental illness, the doctor may use various tests to make sure something else isn't causing the symptoms. If no other illness is found, you may be referred to a psychiatrist or psychologist, mental health professionals who are specially trained to diagnose and treat mental illnesses."
Our local family practice doctor doesn't know anything about a blood test for anxiety disorders either.
However, over three years ago (January, 2006) a research team from Hebrew University in Israel announced the development of a blood test for anxiety disorders. The blood test looks for abnormally high levels of the neurotransmitter Acetylcholine (ACh) by measuring the levels of related enzymes. According to the website, "(the) team found more than a 90% correlation between people who were diagnosed with higher than usual anxiety by a psychologist and people with abnormal AChE, BChE and PON levels."
The entire 2006 article is here: http://www.isracast.com/article.aspx?ID=45 and it is worth the read. There is also a 2005 report on the research here: http://blogs.zdnet.com/emergingtech/?p=47
Hebrew University, through Yissum Research Development Company, which is the technology development company of the University, then applied for a patent on the blood test in April of 2006. They were just awarded the patent on February 24, 2009, which would mean that the test would be commercially available soon if not already.
The patent award is here: http://www.pharmcast.com/Patents200/Yr2009/Feb2009/022409/7494783_Anxiet... and it gives very detailed information about the test. How do you buy stock in this?
As of March, 2007, the University of Iowa was also developing a blood test for anxiety disorders based on the genetic profiles of individuals that they hoped would be commercially produced. Their study was publishes in the American Journal of Medical Genetics, and according to reports, "The team compared gene expression in lymphoblasts (immature white blood cells) culled from 16 participants with panic disorder and 17 participants without the disorder. The study found many genes were more expressed in people with panic disorder than in people without the condition. Similarly, the study found many genes were less expressed in people with panic disorder."
The entire 2007 article is here: http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/03/06/blood-test-for-panic-disorder/66...
Other blood tests focus on thyroid functioning and adrenal levels, both of which, if not functioning correctly, can cause anxiety related symptoms.
It will be interesting to see what 2009 will bring in the development of improved technologies to diagnose and treat anxiety disorders, as it will be interesting to follow the career of Dontrelle Willis. We wish him well.
Other Opinions on Anxiety Disorders and Diagnosis
How we help with anxiety, depression & mood disorders | Ame
Dr Daniel Amen discusses how the Amen Clinics can help with treating depression, anxiety attacks & other mood disorders. Please visit www.amenclinics.com for more information.