It’s often believed that the overactive mind that prevents an adult or child with ADHD from falling asleep is a symptom of that illness. My experience is that the overactive mind is a symptom of an imbalanced autonomic nervous system (ANS) that in fact contributes to the formation of ADHD.
From this perspective, restoring normal sleep by balancing the ANS becomes a priority in treating ADHD.
Chronically disturbed sleep reflects patterns of chronic stress and altered hormone levels, such as cortisol, Dhea, and melatonin. These disturbances can easily impair brain function and lead to both cognitive and behavioral symptoms.
The good news here is that our brain and hormone balance can be reprogrammed so that our health is influenced in a positive direction.
I use two approaches to achieve that reprogramming.
The first is acupuncture.
In the office I’ll use either needles or micro-current. In the case of children it’s usually a battery operated micro-current device and I painlessly treat points on the ear. The ear points serve as an interface with the vagus nerve … that calms and balances the system via the ANS.
Acupuncture is then complemented with Self-Regulation practices that primarily involve teaching the patient a new way of using their conscious attention. These practices allow us to activate the pre-frontal cortex of the brain and ultimately inhibit the stress response to improve brain and glandular function.
Activation of the pre-frontal cortex is the most documented mechanism for the success of self-regulation practices. When active the pre-frontal area allows us to release old undesirable or unproductive neurological patterns and to replace them with more effective ones.
For both adults and children I prescribe certain practices to be used at home between visits to enhance the effectiveness of therapy.
To sum up, our systems have the potential to be very resilient, resourceful, and self-healing. The key is in removing the blocks to that healing potential.
Steven Templin, D.O.M., Dipl. Ac. specializes in Acupuncture and Self-Regulation Trainng. He offers a comprehensive mind-body program for addressing the underlying inflammation, toxicities, and stress-induced causes of most pain and illness.
He places special emphasis on resolving the stress response and repairing adrenal gland and digestive system function to address the root causes of many common and often difficult to treat illnesses.
He translates emerging research in the fields of Epigenetics, Energy Psychology, and Functional Nutrition into effective practices that you can perform at home.
You can work with Dr. Templin online, or in his Lakeland, Florida office at the Natural Medicine Center. You can visit his website at www.stevetemplin.com and contact him via email at drtemplin@gmail.com.
You can schedule an office visit with Dr. Templin by calling 863-838-2779.
Steve is a retired Doctor of Oriental Medicine, Acupuncture Physician, and HeartMath Trauma-Sensitive Certified Practitioner with over 35 years of clinical experience in Energy Medicine, Energy Psychology, and Biofeedback. 