Asperger's, Autism, ASD

Part of the challenge for students with ADHD is managing the steps and focus needed in doing homework and long-term projects. For some students on the Autism Spectrum (and with an ADHD diagnosis as well), a strategy of decreasing stimulus as well as using managed stimulus can help with concentration and perseverance. For many students, environmental noises and sounds distract from the task at hand, thereby lowering a student's ability to initiate and complete school tasks (reading, assignments, essays, etc.). Brown Noise is a tool that might help some students with ASD and ADHD focus on school work as well as relax. It's worth checking out and seeing if you or your child might benefit from it. As always, pay attention to the volume recommended (not too loud!) as well as other recommendations. 1.Interesting comparisons of different noises in this article as well as discussion on benefits. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2022/11/14/brown-noise-adhd-focus/ 2. Discussion on brown noise from ADD website. https://www.additudemag.com/brown-noise-adhd-tiktok-trend-improve-focus/

A down-to-earth, approachable resource for mental health: the National Alliance on Mental Illness. This organization has information from disorders and diagnosis to treatment and strategies to create habits when managing mental illnesses. Their child, teen, and adult links for those with mental illness as well as caregivers gives a wealth of information from doctors and researchers to blog posts on those in the mental health recovery journey. We particularly liked the sections under "The Latest" where it shows Blogs, Personal Stories, News, From the CEO, and Videos. Check them out at: https://www.nami.org/home

Disclaimer: For any website, we recommend parents check it out first before recommending it to their teen. That said, we recommend www.scarleteen.com as a resource for parents who feel their teen can navigate the myriad topics related to sex, dating, STDs, gender-reaffirming surgery, queer sex-ed, and politics related to these topics. Whew, quite a few things to choose from...just wait! What got our attention with this website was its non-judgmental perspective as well as frank, down-to-earth approach to potentially awkward topics that teens are discussing in their friend circles...even though we as parents and caregivers might not be within earshot to know...yep, the modern teenager! We particularly like the What We're Crushing On section that shares a variety of topics. https://www.scarleteen.com/