ADHD or ODD?

On this episode, we will dive into a question that I hear from parents and teachers a lot: "Is the child just defiant, or is it their ADHD?" When a child refuses to follow directions, argues with teachers, and has emotional outbursts, the quick assumption is “They have Oppositional Defiant Disorder,” right? But what is the full story here? What if what looks like defiance is just the child feeling overwhelmed? What if the disrespect is just the child struggling with executive functioning, emotional regulation, and feeling invisible due to challenges that come with ADHD? We will try to unpack the difference between ODD and ADHD, explore why these diagnoses are often confused, and what strategies can be helpful to process more effectively. Instead of asking “What is wrong with this child?”, why can we think instead, “What is this child trying to tell us?” not just from what we see externally, but also from what we don’t see internally.