Drugs like Adderall, Ritalin and Strattera can be very effective at treating ADHD, but we always want options.  Here is a list of some alternative ways to improve your ADHD that you may not have known about. I’ve tried almost all of them.

Brain Training Software

Lumosity.com is by far the cheapest and most robust. For $15/month, you can improve your attention by playing games on your computer or smart phone. Posit Science is a far more expensive software, but has a money-back guarantee and a  long history of research on its effectiveness.

Brain Training Audio

The Listening Program has been around for over a decade, and claims to improve the brain by only listening to specially-engineered music in headphones.

Neurofeedback

Neurofeedback uses funny-looking headsets that read your brainwaves while you watch movies. When you’re not focusing properly, the movies stop until you regain focus. This trains your brain to pay attention properly, and can have long-standing effects.

Meditation

I’ve written about my experience with Vipassana Meditation, which I believe to be particularly effective for ADHD people with impulse control issues. It’s by no means the only form of meditation that will work though.

Light Therapy

Light boxes have been used as an effective treatment for Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.) and depression, but there is also some evidence that it can be affective for people with ADHD as well. Given the fact that ADHD can co-occur with depression, light therapy can be doubly useful as a supplementary therapy.

Physical Stuff

I’ve had some indirect results from the Alexander Technique, which I detail in another post. AT improves posture which reduces facial tension, which in turn removes some distractions.

Also, Learning Breakthrough uses balance training to improve attention deficits. Programs like Brain Highways seem to incorporate exercises of this nature as well, to treat ADHD, Autism, LD and more.

There’s a ton of stuff like this out there, more to come!

Related Posts