Are Fidget Spinners Good For Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Generally for the people who are suffering from anxiety, fidget spinners may give a soothing experience to them or a person who is suffering from autism who experiences a nervous reaction.
For the people who are suffering from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder the tedious acts of spinning the toys may help these people with ADHD from feeling like they want to jump out of their chairs.
Why Do We Fidget
In general, we know that fidgeting can be related to . Therapists call the rapid, restless movements that people with anxiety sometimes have “psychomotor agitation.” It’s a fancy way of saying that a person has a lot of energy, and it’s coming out physically through fidgeting or another movement, says Katie Lear, LCMHC, RPT, RDT, counselor, play therapist and drama therapist at Creative Tween Counseling in Davidson, North Carolina.
People with ADHD fidget not just due to energy, but as a way to focus. Although a fidgeting person may appear distracted, the opposite is usually true, she says. Though it may never have been explained this way, fidgeting is a coping skill that helps with concentration. The fidget must be mindlessan activity you don’t think aboutto be effective. Listening to classical music while studying for example. If the fidget is distracting , it won’t improve focus.
In a small study of sixth-graders in a rural Georgia Language Arts class, kids used stress balls during lessons and independent work. Distractions decreased during the lectures and self-work when students used the balls. Kinesthetic learners enjoyed increased attention spans and all students showed improvements in attitude, writing abilities, peer interactions, and achievements while manipulating stress balls.
I believe that fidgeting can be very helpful for concentration and self-soothing, provided that it’s being done in a way that doesn’t interfere with activities, says Lear.
How To Choose Fidgets For Adhd: The Buying Guide
How do you choose the fidgets for adhd? You must consider many things, such as the brand name, price, and product quality. In addition, you should also consider whether it is suitable for your needs or not.
So how do you choose the right fidgets for adhd? Here are some tips that you can use to help you find a good product:
What you Should Keep in Mind When Buying fidgets for adhd
When shopping for a fidgets for adhd, there are several things to consider. You need to think about the quality of the product, the price, and even how much it will benefit your life. However, you also need to keep these factors in mind:
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Toys For Adhd And Autism
by David Anderson, PhD is Senior Director at the Child Mind Institute
fidget toys have become more and more popular WPS teachers and leaders are frequently asked whether these fidget spinners are an Autism and ADHD treatment. At WPS teachers are dedicated to helping students who struggle with self-regulation acquire the strategies they as an individual need to succeed independently, as opposed to offering a universal treatment such as a fidget toy. WPS teaches students to recognize when their effort and goal direction is moving away from the task at hand, and how to implement strategies redirect their efforts. The successful acquisition of these strategies help students self-regulate their actions, decisions and creations even in the face of challenge. Our colleague Dr. David Anderson at the Child Mind Institute recently published a video discussing just this. Below please find the transcript from that video.
David Anderson, PhD is Senior Director at the Child Mind Institute
The Dangers Of Fidget Spinners
Among 10 of the most harmful toys the fidget spinner has also been listed by the World Against Toys Causing Harm NGO.
This NGO is striving to create cognizance about the threatening products made for the children.
In the recent past, the fidget spinner has also been found to be listed as one of the 10 worst toys in 2017 byWorld Against Toys Causing Harm NGO.
World Against Toys Causing Harm has also warned the caretakers to be cautious while purchasing the fidget spinner autism due to the potential health risks.
They have warned in the context of different events that came to light all over the world on the risk and threats to wellbeing and safety linked with the using fidget spinner.
These risks comprise of clogging, fire dangers and damage.
In the United States, a 10-year-old was described to closelyplug to demise and needed an operation when one of the metallic brushings got in her gullet when she put it in her mouth to clean.
In another incident while the fidget spinner autism was being charged it burst into flames.
Additionally, the fidget spinners with a lower standard are also accessible in the markets which are more susceptible to get broke which can cause a physical injury to arise.
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Germicidal And Antimicrobial Applications
The properties of brass have been observed for centuries, particularly in marine environments where it prevents . Depending upon the type and concentration of and the medium they are in, brass kills these within a few minutes to hours of contact.
A large number of independent studies confirm this antimicrobial effect, even against antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as MRSA and VRSA. The mechanisms of antimicrobial action by copper and its alloys, including brass, are a subject of intense and ongoing investigation.
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Fidget Spinners And Normalizing Stimming
How Spinners Can Help But Also Hinder Neurodiversity
Im sure that by now, most people have seen these spinners. Theyre everywhere and everybody seems to have at least one. I really dont want to get into an argument here, but many people seem to be all on one side or the other. I think the spinners could be a good thing, but we need to watch what is going on with spinners and be aware of who has them and what they think about them.
Honestly, Im really glad they are getting normalized, because then its easier to get fidgets when you need them without having to go through all these hoops and self-doubt. We have to, however, make sure it isnt overdone. Ive seen it compared to silly bands and tamagotchis and other fad toys that were super popular then got abandoned. Some of them have gotten banned from places because of kids being jealous of other peoples stuff and because of them being a distraction. Inevitably fad toys fall out of a popularity as well and when they arent cool anymore people will once again be made fun of for having and using them.
These Fad Toys Are Even More Likely To Get Banned.
Already, a few weeks into their popularity, spinners are being banned in schools. Banning fidget toys because they are distracting is devastating for undiagnosed neurodivergent kids. While you Might be able to add fidget toys to an accommodations letter, that requires a lot of work and a diagnosis.
Further Reading:
Fidget Spinners Autism For Peace
Catherine Hettinger an American researcher has claimed that fidget spinner autism was invented for a way to promote peace.
On her visit to Israel, Catherine was shocked to see that stones were being thrown at police.
She then made a decision to come up with a toy that will work as a distractor and will provide them a comforting experience to discharge their heaped up energies.
In 1997, she was given permission to manufacture the fidget spinner but later on she gave up on the contract because she was unable to afford the money to pay for getting her contract renewed in 2005.
After this happened, many of the other firms began to produce their own fidget spinners and towards the start of 2017 it grabbed the attention of everyone and became a worldwide sensation for everyone including kids and adults as well.
Most of the companies did not follow the idea of Catherine because they relied on different mechanisms.
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Which Fidget Spinner Bearing Should I Choose
There are pros and cons for each of the three types of fidget spinners. Keep in mind that if you are short on cash and you dont care about a long spin time.
An all-metal fidget spinner that you can strip the oil away on will be your best bet.
If you dont care how much you spend on it, a full ceramic fidget spinner will give you immediately long spins.
Otherwise, if you are in the middle, a hybrid just needs a little de-lubrication. And breaking in to get a long spinning time.
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Can Fidget Spinners Help You Focus
Theyve been called the must-have office toy by Forbes.
Some teachers and parents love them others loathe them.
Fidget spinners are toy-like devices that sit on a ball bearing and spin easily on your hand or a hard surface. By keeping your hands busy, they are supposed to ease stress, manage fidgeting and help people with ADHD focus. Prices range from as little as a dollar to several hundred for the more elaborate designs.
Matthew Lorber, MD, a child psychiatrist at Lenox Hill Hospital, New York, says many parents of children with ADHD are asking his opinion about the popular toy and how it works. He shared the most common questions he hears with WebMD.
WebMD: How might fidget spinners help?
Lorber: If you are trying to focus on a task, but your hands are busy doing something else, it actually forces your brain to increase your efforts to focus on the task at hand. Thats how an ADHD mind works.
The prefrontal cortex is the office manager of the brain. That part of the brain in those with ADHD has become ineffective in organizing information, inefficient in focusing.
If they are playing with a fidget spinner, or tapping with a pen or a pencil, it automatically forces their brain to work harder. The brain has to put more effort into not being distracted.
People with ADHD who tend to be hyperactivenot all arewould have the most benefit from fidget spinners. They have excess energy to begin with. It gives them an outlet to get that fidgety-ness out of their body.
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Icipants Setting And Materials
Three second-grade students enrolled in an urban charter school in the midwestern United States participated in this study. All three students were instructed within the same general education classroom. Each student had a diagnosis from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition , of ADHD from an outside mental health provider. Allison was an 8-year-old Black female with a diagnosis of ADHDinattentive type. She was going through an initial special education evaluation due to ADHD and learning problems. Ben was a 7-year-old White male with a diagnosis of ADHDcombined type. Carl was an 8-year-old Black male with a diagnosis of ADHDcombined type. Both Ben and Carl had an individualized education plan under the category of other health impaired and received numerous accommodations and modifications during the school day. All three students qualified for free lunch due to their socioeconomic status.
Why Some Remain Skeptical
But not everyone is convinced about the benefits of the fidget spinner. Some experts, like Dr Mark Rapport, MD and Director of the Childrens Learning Clinic at the University of Central Floridas Department of Psychology, make the point that spinners are nothing more than a distraction. Rapport explained that since spinners are fascinating to look at, they would take a childs attention away from whatever theyre meant to be focusing on. This serves as a nothing more than a fun distraction, and means that a child cannot focus on the task at hand.
Those in favor of fidget spinners like to quote a 2015 study from the Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology which proved that gross motor activity helps children with ADHD perform better on working memory tasks. While this is an interesting study, its not relevant here. After all a child playing with a fidget spinner isnt performing any gross motor activity. Unlike playing with a fidget spinner, bouncing on a yoga ball, for example, is the kind of non-distracting activity which could be beneficial to a child with ADHD.
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Fidget Spinners For Peace
American Catherine Hettinger claims to have invented fidget spinners as a way to promote peace.
While on a visit to Israel, Hettinger saw young boys throwing stones at the police and she decided to design a toy that would distract the boys and would give a soothing sensation to release their piled up energy. She received the patent for fidget spinner in 1997 but she let the patent lapse in 2005 as she could not afford to pay for the patent renewal anymore . Following this, many manufacturing companies started making their own version of fidget spinners and, towards the end of 2016, fidget spinners became a global craze among children and adults alike. Most of them differ from Hettingers original invention because they rely on a different mechanism .
Purported Benefits Of Fidget Spinners
Many experts do subscribe to the idea that a fidget spinner can help kids with behavioral and learning differences. One doctor told CBS news that therapists have always used similar devices to help people remain focused, so the idea should not be considered radical or controversial: Such a spinner can help settle and focus a child who is very easily distracted. One psychiatrist also weighed in that spinners can help expend energy for kids hypersensitive to their environments, who might otherwise bite their nails or skin.
But according to one expert, fidget spinners do not actually help kids with ADHD or anxiety. At the very least, there is no evidence that the devices have any measurable benefit. A Duke University psychologist told NPR that his concern was that parents may follow a fad and buy the toy instead of using other well-known and effective techniques for managing the conditions of kids with learning differences.
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Everything You Need To Know About Fidget Toys For Adhd & Anxiety
originally written and published on Harkla.co
While Fidget Spinners are all the craze right now, many people dont realize that fidget toys are not just a passing fad! There is much more to this trend than fidget spinner challenges, games, and collections â people who rely on fidget tools to focus and regulate know this all to be true.
In a 2015 study published by the Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, hyperactive movements associated with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder were found to help people focus better. Another study published in the Journal of Child Neuropsychology, found that, since hyperactivity is a natural state for children with ADHD, preventing them from fidgeting actually became a distraction and children were better able to learn when allowed to fidget.
So before you remind your child for the tenth time to sit still at your next family meal, consider whether they are moving to support learning, interacting, and/or focusing. If that is the case, you may find this article on fidget toys to be a good way to shape your childs hyperactive behavior into something more appropriate.
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Fidget Toys And Adhd: Still Paying Attention
Has the fidget spinner fad finally passed? Its been more than a year and a half since the gizmos caught our collective attention. They seemed to be everywhere and in every little hand, and then poof! not a spinner to be seen.
Fidget spinners were intensely popular in ADHD circles, promising to help increase attention by giving the user an outlet for fidgeting. Adults took them into meetings and students had them in the classroom. Parents wanted their use included in academic plans and teachers worried about distraction during class.
Last summer, the spinners were all marked 75 percent off and the craze seemed over. But was there something to the idea that a fidget toy could help a personespecially one who struggles with ADHD symptomsmaintain attention and do better with his work?
The science of fidgeting
Several research studies have confirmed what many people have experienced through fidgeting: Their ability to pay attention, their memory recall, and their problem-solving improves. Another study concluded that the fidgety behavior displayed by children and adults with ADHD may be an effort to increase their attention and alertness. The amount of improvement varies by the person and the fidgeting activity can also become a distraction if its too intense.
Do fidget toys actually help?
Professionals who treat ADHD dont see the value in many gizmos marketed as fidget toys for this reason.
Fidgeting to focus: what does help
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