Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
It is not your standard support group. The members don't get together to share their common experiences coping with an addiction, victimization or the death of a loved one.
The members of Warsaw ADD and ADHD Support Group come together to learn from area experts about new research on attention deficit disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
The information helps group members stay on top of the complicated medical and educational research related to ADD and ADHD.
Both disorders can be characterized by serious and persistent difficulties concentrating, resulting in a poor attention span, weak impulse control and hyperactivity.
When parents first discover that their child is ADD or ADHD, their initial reaction could be panic, said Claudia Fussle, group coordinator.
"The group is a neat way to help people out of that panic through education," Fussle said.
Fussle modeled the Warsaw group after a Wawasee association that approached the disorders the same way - a symptom a time.
Fussle compares the disorders to a camel weighed down with a load of packages. Each package is a different symptom of the disorders.
Someone with either disorder can have many symptoms that can be treated individually. By focusing on one symptom at a time, the disorder can become manageable.
When parents first discover their child is ADD, they don't know where to start, Fussle said.
The presenters give parents a place to start by focusing on specific theories of education, reading disorders, and comparison with similar symptoms such as asthma.
Gerald Chabot, Edgewood Middle School principal, recently addressed the group on multiple intelligences. Multiple intelligences help determine the best way an individual learns.
Joan Perzanowski, Title 1 section 504 coordinator for Wawasee Schools, spoke on squitoptic sensitivity syndrome. This syndrome affects vision, making it difficult for the sufferer to read.
Once parents learn about possible problems, the solutions can be simple.
For example, in correcting squitoptic sensitivity syndrome, colored or UV lenses have made it possible for individuals to read normally. The correction can reduce tension for kids and their apprehension toward reading.
With a few of these symptoms in check, teachers and parents may be surprised by the changes.
"Many of these kids are gifted," Fussle said.
She is not the only one who feels that way about ADD kids. An expert from Harvard Medical School said, "ADD people are highly imaginative and intuitive."
Dr. David Hallowell, of Harvard Medical Schools, describes ADD people as having a "feel" for things. "They have a way of seeing right to the heart of matters while others have to reason their way along methodically."
Dr. Steven Ashton will address the group Monday on how the symptoms of allergies and ADD are similar. The public is invited to the meeting, which is at 7 p.m. at Edgewood Middle School.
