I was wondering if anyone else has noticed this. Now please don't think I'm saying that I think TV causes ADD -- I don't! But one (and increasingly looking like two) of my kids are ADHD and when they watch TV, Videos, or DVD's (and we screen them very carefully), they go wild -- physically bouncing off people and things, running back and forth, shouting and later more emotionally reactive and prone to fight.

We've pretty much totally weened them off the tube because the effect is so dramatic. We had company here though and let them watch a video with their grandfolks -- all of us were a little stunned at the aftereffects, especially with the youngest.

Scattered

Yikes!

No, it doesn't affect my kids that way AT ALL, but I only have one ADDer and he's not the least bit hyperactive.

Is it possible that the activity has more to do with the excitement of having company and doing something they don't normally get to do?

That's the only alternative I can think of besides the medium itself.

Yeah, but the company has been here a week and this behavior just happened after the video. It also has happened on previous times when they've watched videos -- that's why we cut them off. Maybe it's just an idiosyncrasy in my family!:rolleyes: I think my kids get so caught up in the emotion of the story and then go off and day dream about it (in the case of my oldest at least -- which I also used to do) -- I don't know it was really something -- and it took about an hour and a half to calm down some.

Another thing I guess is that my oldest is definatley hyper and if the youngest is ADD she is definately hyper too. I'm starting to wonder about her -- she's started having tantrums (more like a two year old than a four year old), can't get her to clean or pick up anything even while standing over her and threatening consequences and breaking task into small steps, and she can get so wound up that she's bouncing all over the place pretty wildly. I was kind of hoping she had escaped this -- she seems to have less attention problems and no obvious daydreaming than my oldest -- maybe this is just a stage or the result of living with a bunch of ADDer generated chaos.

Scattered

I havent noticed this with my little one either, but I have heard that some tv and video games do effect kids, it has something to do with being "light sensitive" or something. When she is on meds, she can sit and watch tv very quietly, when she is off meds she can still watch, but chatters to herself alot about what she's seeing, sometimes you'll hear her laughing hysterically at something but she doesnt seem to bounce off the walls. Maybe they should be tested for the "light sensitivity" thing, if that is what it is called. You hear all the time about kids who have had seizures from video games and tv, some kind of stimuli overload I assume. Not a doctor but thats what I've heard anyway.

I hadn't thought of that -- I'll run it by my psychologist and see what he thinks. Thanks for the suggestion. It might make sense because she seems to have some sensory integration issues -- I know that hasn't been proven yet. But McT felt there was something to it and treatment for it had helped him, so I'm willing to keep an open mind on the subject. I have found that lightly brushing her skin with a soft brush really calms her down and improves her mood dramatically for quite a long while afterward.

Scattered

Hi Scattered, this is interesting. My ADHD son doesn't get hyper with the TV or anything with a screen. In fact, he goes the opposite! He really has the ability, I have noticed since the age of 5 to hperfocus, which is calming. At 5 he would sit literally ALL the livlong day with his legos, and not eat or potty. He can be that way with a screen too. If he were a little older at the time perhaps I could blame TeleTubbies???

The thing with the seizures and the lights: My son was having absence seizures about a year and a half ago, and part of his testing to reveal what kind of seizures he was having inluded the flashing light idea. Flickering lights, or driving through a street where there are trees and sunlight filtering through can cause that type of seizure. Sorry, and the name of the type escapes me at the moment.