Have an ADD client? Here’s a tool that may help.
In this ADHD/ADD game, the adult and child together picture the next day and how they will feel in certain situations—happy and excited or angry or fearful and anxious—and how other people might feel. The child is the talker, and you are the Socratic teacher raising the issue. If the child needs help, use a little vignette from your own childhood: “I remember when I was a child, I used to get angry when . . . “The most important goal of this game is to help the child become a poet of his feelings with animation and body language and tone, as well as in words. We want to help the child with ADD/ADHD recognize the feelings at a preverbal level, which will help him avoid putting negative feelings into action. “Thinking About Tomorrow” helps the child anticipate feelings and think of ways to deal with a particular situation other than acting out. This is especially difficult for children with attentional difficulties and self-regulation.
If you need continuing education credits for your social work, psychology, MFT, or counseling license renewal go to ADD CEU continuing education courses
Greenspan M.D., Stanley I., Greenspan, Jacob. Overcoming ADHD. Merloyd Lawrence Book by Da Capo Press. 2009. p.76