The more I learn about ADHD, the more I make the connection between it and dopamine. Dopamine is one of the brain chemicals that makes you feel good. For neurotypical people, they get dopamine for everyday tasks from brushing their teeth to cleaning a room to completing something at work. For people with ADHD, that pathway is broken. They do not get dopamine from everyday tasks, they need to take joy from something to get this hit of dopamine.
Get Your Dopamine!
Do you take joy in brushing your teeth? Most of us don’t, it is just a thing we do because we realize our teeth need to be clean. Because lots of daily tasks are boring and not really a joy to do, folks with ADHD have a deficit of it. They have to work harder to get the same feel-good chemicals neurotypical people take for granted.
This lack of dopamine can lead to depression, anxiety, difficulty completing tasks, and a lot of struggle. So, how do we put more dopamine into the day of a person with ADHD? I’m going to start with daily tasks and then will get to how to make your homeschool days better.
Starting Each Day Off Right
Let’s start with breakfast. A healthy breakfast is the right way to start the day, right? If you have ADHD, breakfast needs to be easy and tasty (as my kid says). If it is hard to get breakfast, an ADHD brain will just decide it isn’t worth eating. Really. You would think the desire to eat for dopamine would lead to a lot of overeating, but that is rarely the case. Most people I know with ADHD are thin, especially kids. This is because they are just as likely to forget to eat or decide the dopamine is too hard to get, and not eat. In extreme cases, this leads to ARFID.
So, for most of those with ADHD, breakfast needs to be easy and yummy. This means cereal, frozen waffles, or someone else cooking for them is typically necessary. Cereal and waffles are easy and the range of flavors helps find one that you can eat day after day. Interestingly, after they find something that works for them, they may be willing to eat it day after day for months. This also eliminates the stress of making a choice before they are awake for the day. Someone else cooking can also eliminate this issue, provided their brain feels the food creates enough dopamine. Eating food you do not like, can be nearly impossible for those with ADHD, as their brain feels food without dopamine isn’t worth eating, so it won’t do it.
Eating Right
You may now be wondering if those with ADHD are going to only want to eat junk food, and they can be strongly drawn to sweets and snacks. However, healthy foods they enjoy can also provide dopamine. Parts of my brain light up with happiness over a steak and baked potato or pot roast and mashed potatoes. It is a matter of eating foods you enjoy. For myself, I may need to load up some dopamine during my day to have the energy to cook those foods. I’m certainly not making them before coffee!
Daily Tasks
Other daily tasks can be made more fun with character toothbrushes, fun-flavored toothpaste, or cute washcloths. Getting dressed in clothes you like, or at least some fun socks, can help provide a little dopamine. Uniforms can be hard for those with ADHD because they don’t provide any dopamine. Adding those fun socks or cute hair bows can help. Looking to add a bit of joy to everyday tasks can help your child have more dopamine to work with before school begins.
Education
Now, as a dopamine seeker, your child can go down long winding paths of learning about things that interest them. Having an interest in a subject means that learning about it provides dopamine. However, if there is no interest, there is no dopamine. And every person is different in what they enjoy. Some kids love doing math problems and get that hit of dopamine from each correct answer. Other kids just feel each problem is a chore, and they feel drained from the same work. For this reason, homeschooling a child with ADHD can be extra challenging!
If you can, choose programs your child likes for their school work. They may not be able to articulate why they like one book over another, but it may be because it is sneaking a bit more dopamine into their day. Colored pictures, funny comics in the corners, or some easy review problems can help some kids get that bit more dopamine that makes a lesson easier.
Creating Lessons That Work
Personally, when I write lessons, I add fun and silly activities. We add physical games and art projects because those are more likely to create dopamine. We look at beautiful pictures or watch fun videos because those are more likely to boost dopamine. That doesn’t mean they don’t have value on their own, but for an ADHD kid, they are essential parts of keeping their brains engaged.
Acting Out
When an ADHD child isn’t getting enough dopamine, their brain will want to create what they need. For some kids, this means daydreaming, for others it means joking, playing pranks, and what my elementary school teachers called “goofing off.”
If you find your child is doing these things at home, this means your lessons are not providing enough dopamine. You need to make some changes. You have to find ways for your child to have the dopamine they need. This could mean shorter lessons with breaks in between for fun games. It could mean changing how you teach. It could also mean you bring out some silly fun during lesson times. Can you have a puppet teach math? Can you put a star sticker on your child for every right answer? Yes, I said on the child, not a chart. Charts don’t give nearly the same hit of dopamine as having your mom cover your actual shirt in stars as you go. **
Make it Fun!
With one of my kids, we played Bop-It between lessons to bring up his mood and increase dopamine. With another kid, we doodled pictures or made art during read-aloud time. Lots of praise can also increase dopamine. Their ADHD brain might not be proud of itself for the work, but praise from a parent can produce that dopamine the task alone did not.
This need for dopamine can be why your child seems addicted to video games or TV or wants to read for hours. They are seeking dopamine and getting it from those things. Video games can provide a ton of dopamine in several ways. They provide not only bright colors and interesting sights but also a sense of accomplishment and instant rewards. If you choose to take these away as a consequence of bad behavior, you need to know that you are not just taking away a thing, but a source of dopamine. This explains why your child may seem to “overreact” to losing them.
Parenting for Dopamine
When parenting your ADHD child, consider how they are going to get enough dopamine for the day, and what your role is in that situation. I used to say that my kids never got bored, they got into trouble. They did things like painting the walls with Cool-Whip while I was in the shower. I can understand better now why they did that. It created a lot of dopamine for them. At the time, I just saw the mess. However, to satisfy their needs for mess and chaos, I let them make a mud puddle in the yard to play in one day. On other days we finger-painted or played drums together. Help your kids find ways to create dopamine and you will all be happier for it!
**Warning, if you do go with the stickers on the clothes, be sure to pull them off at the end of the day. If you wash them on the clothes it can be a real mess…. oops.
About the Author
Laura Sowdon, OTR/L is an occupational therapist, writer, speaker, educator, and creator of the Five Senses Literature Lessons homeschool curriculum. She has worked as an occupational therapist with children in public and private schools, as well as private practice. Laura has taught and managed homeschool co-ops as well as homeschooling her own three children. Laura is dedicated to the idea of educating children at a pace that aligns with brain and physical development milestones and respects neurodiversity in all its forms.
