NLP Interventions That Work
For ADD and ADHD

Attention Deficit Disorder or attention deficit hyperactive disorder, commonly referred to as ADD or ADHD is a condition that some children and adults experience which manifests itself through numerous symptoms which may include one or more of the following:

Hyperactivity -- They can't stay still. They are constantly moving and fidgeting. They are under chairs or tables or climbing over furniture.

Impulsiveness -- They move or change directions very quickly. They will be doing one thing and then suddenly start doing something else. They "act before they think!"

Distractibility -- They can't stay focused on one thought or task. They will be doing a task and the smallest noise interrupts them.

Lack of organization -- They cannot do the more complex tasks which require them to organize the larger task into a series of steps. Somebody has to tell or show them how to do each step. Forgetfulness -- They forget instructions. They forget to do things or tasks they have been told to do. They will start to do something and forget what they were supposed to do. Procrastination -- They have trouble starting and completing tasks or assignments. They are constantly putting off doing things. They can't seem to "get started."

Often these behaviors surface in school, frustrating both the teachers and the other students who are trying to learn. A student with ADD / ADHD symptoms can be extremely disruptive in a classroom situation.

The current widespread, accepted treatment for ADD / ADHD is medication. Although, for some it may be the only treatment, there are those parents and professionals who question the advisability of putting a child on drugs. Alternative approaches utilizing the use of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) is being pursued by this author. Research using NLP is based on the assumption that it is the child's internal experience or processing that is causing his or her ADD and difficult behaviors. Attempts are being made to determine what that internal experience is and to decide if it can be altered by various NLP techniques and processes, thereby bypassing the need for unwanted drugs. Several articles have been published by the Anchor Point Journal covering this research (Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)--An NLP Perspective, December, 1994 and Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)--NLP Interventions That Work, October, 1995). This is another report on that research.

Potential causes of the ADD / ADHD Symptoms

What causes these behavioral symptoms? Why is it that some people have the ADD symptoms temporarily and in others they persist over time? Is it possible that the symptoms are caused by different life events which need to be treated differently? My attempt to answer these questions follows.

The symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) are generated by the perception that the mind is out of control. This out of control mind can be initially caused by any one or any combination of the following:

1. High stress and anxiety.

2. Emotional trauma -- past or present.

3. Candida Albicans.

4. Attitude -- which can be boredom, or not being turned on to certain activities such as chores or schoolwork, or not knowing HOW to do the required tasks.

5. Communication gaps between the child and parents/teachers.

6. Physical reaction -- to large amounts of sugar or junk food or allergies (usually food).

Factor 3 can be helped by going to a good health food store or to a physician who is knowledgeable about Candida. Books such as "The Yeast Syndrome" or "The Yeast Connection" can also help. Professionals such as Allergists, Dieticians, Physicians, and Psychologists are equipped to handle factors 1 2, and 6. Factors 4 and 5 are covered in parts of the book "Rediscover the Joy of Learning written by this author.

However, the perception or belief that the mind is out of control can be dealt with here by a practitioner of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) and is covered in following sections.

A New Definition of ADD / ADHD I have found that many students are mislabeled as ADD / ADHD. The behavioral symptoms fit many persons (child and adult) who are highly stressed, suffer from trauma, are bored in school or work or who are acting out other behavior problems. Many times teaching students how to learn in school, how to focus, how to organize, how to set priorities and/or how to have a better attitude in school causes the symptoms to go away.

Teaching parents, teachers, and students how to communicate better seems to help a great deal. I have also found that it is important to initially check for allergies, particularly food, and to check out the intake of sugar and/or junk food. I have also found the ADD symptoms in individuals of all ages who have been infected with the yeast germ "Candida Albicans." But the most dominating feature that I have found is the inability to control that mind and the accompanying belief that their mind controls them o that they cannot control their mind. The result of this causes major ramifications throughout the individual and creates far greater problems then previously thought. Because of this I've adjusted my definition of ADD / ADHD.

My new definition is as follows: The symptoms of ADD / ADHD seem to be caused by a loss of control of the processing of the mind which results in symptoms at potentially ALL logical levels. According to common knowledge, Attention Deficit Disorder a set of only behavioral symptoms. When we look at ADD / ADHD through the eyes of the logical levels we can get a sense of why the treatment of ADD / ADHD is so difficult.

Environment Level--The person with ADD / ADHD symptoms can do just fine in some environments and not in others. If they are by their self and without outside distractions, they can stay focused and accomplish tasks. Put them in a school or busy family setting, however, and they will start displaying many of the behavioral symptoms. In fact, in many instances, the environment is the triggering device for the behavioral symptoms.

Many of the treatments or interventions that are attempted are at this level. Students are seated away from other students so they will not be distracted by other activities going on in the classroom. Sometimes students are sent to special rooms that are especially quiet and have few auditory or visual distractions. Sometimes when they are at home they will be isolated in their rooms and told to study there and not be allowed TV or radio. Many with the ADD / ADHD symptoms will attempt to overly organize their environment in order to control the chaos they experience.

Behavior Level--This is the logical level that is most documented in all the literature. The behavioral symptoms of: impulsiveness, hyperactivity, forgetfulness, procrastination, distractibility, and lack of organization are clearly at this level. This level is also where most of the treatments or interventions are undertaken. Taking drugs is a behavior although the purpose for taking drugs is to deal with the next level--to be able to focus or control the mind. Many behavior modification techniques are attempted and are at this level. Learning how to organize their external environment is a behavior. The punishment and reward strategies are also at this level.

Capability Level--Most individuals with the symptoms of ADD / ADHD feel as though their mind is out of control. Their internal experience is moving so fast and thoughts are appearing and disappearing and they feel unable to manage it. They cannot do the same things with their mind that other students seem to be able to do with ease. Learning and other academic tasks are very difficult for them because they cannot control and/or focus their mind. Drugs such as Ritalin are supposed to give them control over their mind and allow them to focus but the results are mixed.

Beliefs and Values Level--Most students with ADD / ADHD symptoms believe that they cannot control their mind or that their mind controls them. They, therefore, are not responsible for what they do. They also develop limiting beliefs about the value of school and learning which guides their behaviors in school. They believe that school is dumb, boring, or at least a waste of time.

Identity Level--Many students who have had ADD / ADHD symptoms a long time develop beliefs about their self which shows up in their self image or self esteem. They believe they are different or weird. Or, they will devalue themselves and think that they are worthless or that nobody likes them or accepts them. They also believe that they are totally discounted and not understood for who they REALLY are. Some rebel and fight back while others become apathetic and withdraw from society.

Spiritual/Greater Systems Level--Some students blame God for creating them differently. Some blame society or schools or family for not being able to help them. They feel as though they have been let down because nobody has been able to help them overcome this malady that they did not ask for. They feel like an outcast from society. They will sometimes strike out at society, families, schools, God or religions (and feel justified).

Obviously, simply treating the behavioral symptoms is not the complete intervention. Nor would it seem that drugs would be the complete answer. There are many issues and limiting beliefs which have to be ferreted out and dealt with in order to have a complete treatment.

Techniques For Working With Students With ADD / ADHD Symptoms--
Teaching Students With ADD / ADHD Symptoms How to Control Their Minds
The student not only has the inability to control his mind they believe that they can't do anything about it. Sometimes their mind terrifies him. This inability to control the mind drives all the symptoms listed previously. This person will still need to learn the things listed above such as how to learn and have a proper attitude toward school, etc, but before he can learn these things he needs to learn how to control his mind and to BELIEVE that he can.

My test for seeing if he can control his mind is to give him some simple tasks to do with his mind. One of these tasks is: Get an internal image of a word he already knows how to spell and hold the image steady while he is spelling it backwards (from right to left). I may gradually increase the length of the words until we have a fairly lengthy word (depending on their age). The person who cannot control their mind will not be able to hold the picture steady enough to do this. The word will fly away, fade away, jump around or simply disappear! And, he can't control the image. There are other people, by the way, who can't spell words or numbers backwards either. But, it is simply a matter of their learning how to do it and not because the word disappears or is out of control in their minds.

I like to start teaching them how to control their minds with simple non-school exercises. A successful and non-threatening way has been to use items such as pets, food, or some other physical item they like and Do Not Connect To School. For example, I might ask them to tell me what their favorite food is and then to describe what it looks like. When they can successfully do this (and I've never had one who was not able to), I assist them in becoming aware that they have an internal image of what it looks like. I then, while using NLP language pattern such as reframes and slight of mouth, start opening up the possibility that they can make their own adjustments in their internal images. I then start exploring sub-modalities with their internal image of pizza or ice cream or an apple (for example). I teach them to change the sub-modalities (size, distance, color, spatial location, brightness, etc) of their internal image.

Once they can do this with an apple, I get them to place a small word or letter on the apple. I sometimes start with only a letter, then two letters, then three, etc. I particularly work on having them make the apple with the letter or word on it bigger and/or closer. After awhile, when they can make a three to five letter word big and close, I ask them to hold a picture of the word (which they previously had trouble spelling backwards ) steady while they tell me the last letter, then the letter right before it, then the next letter, and so on. All of a sudden, they realize that they have spelled the word backwards -- something they could not do only a short while before. I have them continue to spell the word and other words backwards several more times because it gets easier and easier each time they do it. They are usually stunned and they don't know how to think about the new experience. So, I use this time as an opportunity to work on their beliefs about their capabilities and identity, what it means about controlling their own minds, and about school and learning. At this point, it becomes a process of building more instances of success so I give them longer words and numbers to make pictures of and spell backwards until they believe they can now control their images.

At this point, I will either start teaching them how to learn and do the various academic tasks required of them to be successful in school or I will work on the specific symptoms of ADD and teach them how to control them. It usually depends on if the "ADD symptom" is getting in the way of learning how to be successful in school and/or at home.

Changing Limiting Beliefs of ADD / ADHD

Sometimes I have to go for a limiting belief change before anything else will work. An example of this happened just recently. This young man, Jason, was brought to me from out of state by his family. The family had scheduled several days in Oklahoma City and I had cleared my calendar for them. The young man was 12 years old. According to his mother "He was hyperactive and impulsive as a child. At age 6, we had him tested at Children's Hospital for 3 days. They found him to be ADHD with all the symptoms. They medicated him with Ritalin and a wide range of other drugs through age 12. All were unsuccessful or caused severe side effects such as insomnia, anxiety, emotional problems, confusion, tics, etc. In the sixth grade he fell apart. He began showing signs of depression. He talked of death, was angry, frustrated, confused, and had low self esteem."

I had talked to the mother before we started about the possibility of working on Jason's limiting beliefs. This was primarily because of the shortness of time of their visit and the fact that I would not be available for follow-up. She had agreed upon this approach.

I started by asking Jason some questions about school and how he did in school just to build some rapport and to get to know how his mind worked. Shortly thereafter I had him spell several easy words which he already knew how to spell. After he could do that successfully, I had him attempt to spell a couple of them backwards to see if he could do it. The results were inconsistent and slow. Sometimes he could slowly spell them backwards and other times he could not. When I asked him to explain what happened to his pictures when he had trouble he said they disappeared -- just vanished. I would get him to try different sub-modalities such as size, distance, and brightness and the changes seemed to help him stabilize the pictures.

I switched to having him visualize an apple and to learn to move it around in his mind. He was more successful with the apple even when I started trying to get him to picture the word "apple" on the face of the apple. He could do this quite easily. When I started having him print longer words on the apple, he started getting frustrated. He started tearfully saying things, with frustration in his voice, like "I can't do this!" "This is not working." "Why do I have to do this?" and "I want to leave." We took a break. The statement "I can’t do this!" is a limiting belief about his capability.

When we came back from the break, he was really into frustration and anger and he was tired. He wanted to quit. I decided immediately to shift to work on changing his belief. I asked him if he ever believed in the Easter Bunny or Santa Claus. He had. I then asked him if he still believed in them. He did not. I asked him to describe what had happened and asked him to consider how it was possible that he once believed in something and now did not. He described how some friends had made some comments that made him wonder about Santa Claus, then he had thought about how impossible it was for Santa Claus to travel that far that fast, and then he had caught his parents putting presents under the tree.

I told him that those were the natural steps to changing a belief: first, you would start to doubt it because you would experience some counter examples; second, the evidence would build up in support of the disbelief; and then, third, it would become an old belief that you no longer believed. Then you are open to replace it with a new belief which serves you better. I gave him several other examples of times in which he had believed something and had gone through the same process (e.g., Easter Bunny, tooth fairy, couldn't walk or ride bike but then he learned how, etc).

We are constantly adopting new beliefs about ourselves and life and using them until they no longer serve us and then discarding them and adopting newer beliefs which are more relevant," I said. "It is a natural process of growing. One of your limiting beliefs right now is that your brain controls you instead of you controlling your brain. Therefore, when you get bored or frustrated, you act out inappropriately -- and you believe you don't have any choices." "Do you know the major difference between yourself and me?" I asked. "You believe that your mind controls you and I believe that I can use my mind to accomplish anything I want in the world."

Jason went into several extreme counter examples like throwing a football to the moon, staying alive if somebody shot me in the head, and so on... I agreed with him that I probably couldn't do those things but that there were some more simple things where his mind was getting him in trouble and that my mind did not get me into trouble.

"For example," I said "when you get bored in school, you disrupt the class by making noise, moving about, or by leaving the classroom. When I am bored, I figure out a way to entertain myself with my mind. I remember when I first learned to do that," I continued. "I was in the 5th grade and I was having to sit through long and boring church services and not get in trouble. I remembered figuring out that I could sit still while looking at the preacher and daydream in my mind of something I had rather be doing or make up a movie of something interesting. My mother and her friends thought I was very attentive to the sermon. I stayed out of trouble and didn't get bored." "Do you know that I still use that strategy to this day if I have to do something boring -- like work out at the spa o mow the lawn?" I added.

Jason then came up with some more counter examples like "You can't make a million dollars suddenly appear" or "You can't heal yourself if you are sick." I then proceeded to share stories with him of how I had changed a limiting belief about money being evil to a more useful belief which would support my career in helping others. The new belief had dramatically affected my income. Also, I related some stories about how we were able to assist people with allergies, asthma, cancer, etc. by eliciting their limiting beliefs about their health and assisting them in changing the limiting beliefs to beliefs which would empower their own natural healing. I then showed Jason a picture on my wall of myself walking on fire. I told him that walking on fire was an example of how the mind was so powerful in controlling the body. He was surprised and tried to deny it -- but the photo clearly shows flames in the coals.

Jason started thinking about some possibilities and I started clearing some space so I could physically walk him through a belief change process. As Jason went through the process, you could see a physical change in him. His eyes and focus become clearer and more steady. He became totally attentive to what I was doing and the possibilities. He had changed his old belief of "My mind controls me!" to "I can use my mind to accomplish anything I want!"

After we finished, I future paced the new belief into several times in his life where I knew he had previously had trouble, such as when he became bored or angry in school. "Awesome!" was his response. "I can do this!" was another. He said, "This is just like running a movie in my mind and I'm the director."

We then went back to doing some of the spelling words in his mind where he previously could not spell them backwards. He could now spell them backwards easily. We expanded the length of the words. He could still do it. He asked me, "what is the longest word you have ever spelled backwards?" I replied, "Super-cala-fraga-listic-expy-ala-doshas." Luckily he didn't' have me prove it since it had been a long time since I had done it.

We broke for lunch and I instructed him and his mother to play the game of noticing billboards and street signs and spelling them backwards to each other. When they came back from lunch they were happily and easily spelling all sorts of words and numbers backwards. We continued to work on other learning strategies as examples that he could learn how to use his mind to be successful in whatever he wanted.

I also pointed out to him that when he tried to learn something and it was hard that it just meant that he needed to learn another way or that he needed to break it down into smaller tasks. I told him that in those instances all he had to do was "back off for a moment and remember that he could use his mind to accomplish anything." I also reminded him about the time when he was very young and learning to walk and that "that little Jason didn't get frustrated and quit when he fell down then -- and aren't you glad now that little Jason didn't give up back then and that he persisted and kept trying?"

Conclusion

Changing limiting beliefs is one of the most dominant techniques I have found to be effective. When you can make changes on beliefs at the identity or value or eve the capability level, it opens up a whole new world which they haven’t even thought possible before. I consider this the point of real opportunity to be able to have a significant effect of the lives of these severely misunderstood and maligned individuals.

About the Author

Don A. Blackerby, Ph.D. is a former math teacher and college dean and founded SUCCESS SKILLS in 1981 in order to focus on using NLP in helping struggling students in school. In 1996, he wrote a book “Rediscover the Joy of Learning” in which he describes his NLP based strategies and processes on how he helps struggling students including those who have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). Don is not a psychologist, psychiatrist, or medical doctor, he is an educator who is certified in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and practices as a Personal Development and Academic Coach. On a spiritual path he is an ordained minister and registered in the State of Oklahoma. He may be contacted in various ways. His address and phone numbers are: SUCCESS SKILLS, 1517 Walnut Cove Road, Edmond, OK 73013, USA. His phone number is 1-405-330-0164. His fax is 1-405-330-0167. His E-mail is info@nlpok.com . He also has a web site: www.nlpok.com .