ADD and DRUG ABUSE and ALCOHOL

The Link between ADD and Drugs and Alcohol     Alcohol, drugs, and ADD are frequent companions.  Virtually every study we have seen supports this conclusion, and it certainly holds up in our clinical practice.  Using alcohol and drugs is an “easy” way to deal with difficult situations.  As one of our twenty-year-old patients put it.  If you are numb, failure is not so painful.  Alcohol and drugs slow down the racing mind and provide a sense of calm.       More children with ADD develop problems with alcohol and drugs than do children without ADD.  This carries over into adulthood, as most late adolescent substance abusers become adult substance abusers.  Retrospective views of the problem reveal that alcoholics frequently have a history of childhood hyperactivity.     Dale Walters, Ph.D., former director of training for the Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kansas, traversed the U.S. during the 1990s teaching clinicians how to treat alcoholism and drug addiction with neurofeedback.  He worked closely with Eugene Penniston, Ph.D., who developed a specialized treatment protocol for alcoholism.  The treatment was later expanded to include drug addiction and to treat Vietnam Veterans with post-traumatic stress.  This treatment protocol has been shown to be the most promising treatment for alcoholism and drug addiction to date, with an astounding 20 percent relapse rate.  Prior to this neurofeedback protocol, a 20 percent relapse rate was unheard of in the treatment of addictions.” pp. 26-27.   From Getting Rid of Ritalin by Robert W. Hill, Ph.D. and Eduardo Castro, M.D.       Addiction and ADHD protocols in neurofeedback are very effective.  If you have questions about your situation, call Drs. Kelsey for a consultation.