“One must be something to be able to do something.”    
                                                  Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“Generally he seemed OK– although he fidgeted restlessly, and talked a blue streak, even while we were talking to him. His mind seemed to scan everything in sight. But we assumed that was why he was able to learn things so early in life. He was always so advanced. Yet school was always a struggle for him. We were bewildered. When our son, Brent, was in third grade, we received the call we had been dreading for two years. His teacher told us that he wasn’t going to make it through the school year. She cited several difficulties with his behavior such as frequently leaving his seat, distracting others. She said he failed to follow instructions, and rarely attended to his schoolwork or complete assignments. Now what?”   
In the last few decades, a lot of attention has been paid to a limitation known as, “Attention Deficit Disorder” (ADD). This classification has come to define a group of “symptoms” or undesirable behaviors characterized by: excessive motor activity such as fidgeting and self-stimulation, running and fighting; excessive talking, frequently shifting activities or eye-contact; behaving in contrast to issued instructions and failing to completely perform tasks. Although some psychologists find it useful to classify it by the relative presence of hyperactivity (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder vs ADD), what is most prevalent in ADD, is the difficulty one has sustaining attention and processing information.

Observable at virtually any age, including as an adult, this condition is most often identified with childhood, (thus the term child vs adult attention deficit disorder in adult) when environmental demands to attend to a limited range of focus increase with the onset of school. Typically, the child has difficulty processing the sudden onslaught of new information and becomes lethargic in these contexts, “turning off.” The child may then engage in a variety of self-defeating activities that distract others, including hyperactive behavior. 
ADD is not a disease! There is no known “cause”; no single diagnostic test which establishes its presence while simultaneously ruling out other diseases.  However, there are neuropsychological testing procedures available for assessing the relative presence of it’s characteristics. Recent research investigators have found comparative differences in neurological events– especially brain wave activity– between children identified as showing symptoms and those absent of such symptoms. Furthermore, the neurological patterns inherent in those with ADD seem to occur in families. 
Interestingly, one’s neuro-biological state– how that individual holds himself to be in the world– or the structure of his experience, has become fundamental in a relatively new approach to addressing attention deficit with and without hyperactivity.  In essence, function follows structure.  More of this later…
Attention Deficit Disorder Medication
There have been a variety of treatment modalities for ADD, such educationally based remediation, support groups for parents of children with the condition; and psychotherapy. But the most commonly used treatment has been medication, especially with those ADD children who also manifest the hyperactivity component. The most commonly prescribed medication is Ritalin.
There are others such as, Concerta and a newer medication, Strattera. All contain some degree of side effects.
Ritalin is a mild central nervous system (CNS) stimulant. There is no conclusive evidence about how a CNS stimulation alters behavior in ADD individuals, yet by increasing arousal, it seems to temporarily suppress hyperkinetic activity. Additionally, children who take Ritalin frequently demonstrate increased concentration on schoolwork. However, there are some difficulties inherent in the long- term use of medications such as Ritalin. The effects only last as long as the drug is in the system. Essentially, symptomatic relief is produced with only a short-term carryover. Moreover, between dosages, parents frequently report a “rebound” effect of heightened ADD symptoms, especially hyperkinetic activity. The task thus becomes one of rushing to administer the next dose of medication in order to minimize this effect. This often produces a child who constantly appears lethargic, who may seem complacent with few interests, or speak with little voice inflection (flattened affect). Other side effects that have been reported include gastrointestinal distress and/or insomnia.
Attention Deficit Disorder and Treatment
The fact that ADD symptoms, including hyperactivity are conventionally treated with stimulant medication may suggest insufficient neurological arousal in these children. Accordingly, a useful goal of any therapeutic intervention might include some form of neurological stimulation. In recent years there have been numerous instances of research-documented success using “neurofeedback”– a therapy that realigns brain waves– to improve concentration, as a function of performance, and reduce hyperactivity.  Brain waves are electrical impulses produced by the brain’s nerve centers. The four basic types: delta, theta, alpha and beta, distinguished by the speed at which they fluctuate (cycles per second), are associated with various brain functions. Essentially, neurofeedback is used to teach children with ADD how to suppress the waves associated with daydreaming (theta) and boost those associated with concentration (beta), by monitoring their brain wave activity. In an enlightening description by one researcher, Dr. Seigfried Othmer, a child, seeing his own brain waves misbehave, tries to get them under control. Gradually, as he becomes able to do so, his academic skills may improve; and hyperactivity decreases.
The MythoSelf Process
Most recently, The Mythoself Process, developed by Dr. Joseph Riggio, has been utilized with children facing this limitation.  Though parents and teachers believe children with “ADD” do not (or can not) pay attention, they actually do!  They pay attention, “in-time” meaning, in the moment.  After all, many children carrying this “diagnosis” are very bright and seem capable of performing exceptionally well in some context of their choosing.  In contrast, what is desired from them by the adults in their lives is to pay attention “through time”, or in terms of an on-going task now and on a regular basis into the future.  Applying this model (Mythoself Process)  begins with the somatic form of the child, or the way he knows himself to be, first evident in his body. This is the neuro-biological form mentioned previously and is evidenced through eye-accessing cues, micro-muscular and postural shifts, breathing changes and movements, however slight, among other things.  It is how someone holds himself to be in the world.  Given the kinds of interactions with that world experienced by a child with ADD (ADHD), he is likely manifesting an inhibitory somatic form or a way of being oriented around what is not happening.  So the initial task is to get him to experience a more “excitatory” somatic form, or one consistent with who he is at his “best”, rather than what is limiting him.  Generally, using this model, the child is rapidly shifted toward a positive framework of what is possible for him to attain, rather than identifying and attempting to treat what is not working.  Then the task becomes one of teaching him/her to hold this state “through time”, rather than momentarily, “in time.”