Adhd and perseverative interests

[Zevsmom]

Hello,

I am wondering if any of you have an ADHD kid who has perseverative interests....a somewhat obsessive interest in a single topic. This is typical for kids with ASD and less typical with ADHD. Anyhoo, my 8 year old has a very, very difficult time making friends because he just wants to take about one particular thing (the interest changes every year or so) all the time and kids find it annoying or strange. Does anyone else deal with this and if so have you learned any strategies for helping learn social skills that enable them to talk about other things with kids? Thanks!

[Pennywink]

To some degree we see this in my 6 year old. It’s not really strong enough for an ASD diagnosis, but he has be fascinated by doors / locks / keys pretty much since he could stand on his own. He doesn’t really discuss them, but he literally cannot pass a new door without monkeying with it - opening, closing, checking out the handle, seeing how it locks, holding it open for everyone who comes through (or which they thank him for, which is understandable, but also rewards the behavior.)

Honestly - we haven’t found a great solution yet. Role-playing to leave a door alone, and discussing it in the car on the way to a location have been somewhat helpful. He is currently not taking medication for ADHD, but I suspect we are nearing that point, which will hopefully also help with the impulse control.

So, maybe discuss then practice / role-play conversational skills - maybe first with you, then other adults, and finally other kids. Having a sign and a little mantra he can remember to help remind him could also be useful.

[geemamom]

my grandson is 5 and i wouldnt say he has a single interest but he has several that are very very consistent, and he may or may not move on from them. For instance he is kind of obsessed with the Titanic, we are not even sure how he knows about the titanic. he will ocasionally veer off into intrest in other ships, for instance the queen mary, but he will still return to the titanic. the other day in school we were drawing pictures for vets day and sure enough he drew the titanic and the iceberg. he also has a tendency to repeat a story over and over again. at this point to my knowledge it hasnt affected him socially with other children. i do hope that through some home strategies and counseling you can help your child by supporting his interests and developing new friendships.

[Onthemove1971]

Zevsmom- Yes, many children do. We call it "Hyper focus", often this is why when we request him to do something he doesn't stop right away. Or they are thinking about that one think so they forget everything else. I would take that focus and try to spin it. Like my was focused on basketball for a while.so I had him read books about basketball, I drove him to play with other kids. I supported this, while not allowing him to go over board.

Hope this makes sense.

[Janice_H in reply to Onthemove1971]

My boy is obsessed with basketball. He is constantly playing basketball on his Play Station although he has 30 other games. When friends come to visit, all he wants to do is play basketball. He has several basketballs at home and is always asking to buy a new one. If we buy books or magazines, the topic is basketball. I am trying to get his mind off of this but he is so hyperfocused on this one thing.

[Hidden]

mine gets super focused on drawing. All the time. all day long. She's very creative so I encourage it. Sometimes though it's as if she has to draw, right now, every second and she can't stop. Still, I encourage it, ask her to draw different things, do research on things she might want to draw. Christmas is coming and guess what is on her list?

[hrussell]

I agree with onthemove1971. My daughter will hyperfocus on something for a few days to weeks depending on how excited about it she is. She mentions the topic over and over again to anyone who will listen. I do see other kids just ignore her after while if she can’t change the topic, but usually she’s able to change gears if someone is asking her a specific question. A behavior specialist who deals with ADHD patients should be able to help them with strategies to improve this. Good luck! You are not alone!

[Gardenguru7]

Our 5 year old son also has this perseverative interest issue (he has since about 2 yrs old). His quirky interests are vacuums and lighthouses. We recently took him for a neuropsychological eval where he was diagnosed with combined type of ADHD, and when we asked the neuropsychologist about these seemingly spectrum like behaviors, she said it was the executive functioning issues from his adhd. She said he has too strong of a desire for friendships (even though his impulsivity and aggression get in the way of his friendships, no matter how much he desires friendship), and said he doesn’t have the lack of eye contact and other true symptoms of ASD. My husband and I still feel as though he has high functioning ASD, but the neuropsychologist feels strongly that by addressing the executive functioning issues of the adhd, it will also address the perseverative interests. We don’t regulate his quirky interests— it’s the one thing he feels good about, enjoys learning about, and feels a sense of competency with/about. We just support them, nurture his passions, and keep trying to introduce him to new and different things. It does get exhausting, though. And I do worry about how it effects his conversations with friends. 😔

[erick1822]

Hi! I know this post is old but i completely understand what you’re saying! I’m in that same place right now, wondering about some ASD like behaviors. My son definitely goes through phases of obsessions that usually last 3-6 months. Sometimes a year. I too worry about people tiring of the same subject of conversation all the time (I know I get tired of it haha). Other things I have noticed are some funny ritualistic type quirks (several blankets needing to be in a specific order at night), and a lack of understanding/empathy. Sometimes it seems he can not get past the understanding of his own needs. Tonight he wanted a houseguest to sit on the floor because he wanted to lay down on the couch and take up multiple seats, and was rudely making this known in front of him. He can be very possessive/protective of things he values, and when something sets him off he has an extremely hard time getting off it. However I do see eye contact for the most part and he does value relationships a lot. So I’m not sure if thes behaviors are more related to ADHD . Did you ever find out any more information ?