Mother, Warrior....Indian Chief

My name is Brandi Valentine and I am the mother of two ADHD children. One girl, a freshman in high school and one boy, starting 6th grade.

I came to the internet 4 years ago, furious with a school district for mistreating my son and ignoring his right to a free and appropriate education. At the time, I was a roller coaster of emotions, angry, frustrated, depressed and ridden with guilt, but I was determined to make sure that what happened to my son, wouldn't happen to anyone else's child if I could help it.

Throughout this site, I am going to share with you my experiences and what I've learned along the way. I'm going to share informative articles written by professionals in the field of ADHD; but most of all, I want to let every mother know, that they are not alone and that there is hope. Things do get better, our children can and do succeed, and life does get easier.

I believe that we are the best source of information available. We live and experience ADHD and the challenges it creates for our children, ourselves, and our families everyday. By networking, the support and information we share will enable us to make the best decisions we can for our children.

I believe a lot can be learned from online networking. Online networking and support can be very beneficial. No longer are you tied down to support and help every Thursday from 7 to 9. Online support is available 24 hours a day and the best news is you don't have to go any further than your computer to find it. This is very convenient for those that work late hours, or live in small communities where there is no support or support is a two hour drive a way, and if you have small children and hiring a babysitter so that you can attend meetings is out of the question then online support is perfect! Jump online when the kids go to bed!

Some great places for online support are:

• Joining the Chat and Forums available here at HealthyPlace.com
• ADDed Attractions a FREE monthly newsletter with informative articles on medication, coaching, alternatives special education and more. Click here to subscribe to ADHDNews ADDed Attractions
• Parenting: Subscribe to ADDtalk, an email support group. Help and support is as close as your email program :) Here we discuss parenting issues such as behavior, medication and IEP's. click here to subscribe to ADDTalk
• ADD Alternative Treatment: For the discussion of alternative treatments with others who wish to do the same. There is no advertising of products on this list so you can feel free to share your experiences with alternatives and learn from the experiences of others without being solicited. You can subscribe at Click here to subscribe to ADHD alternatives
• ADDults: ADDadults is for adult issues. Relationships, work related issues, medications, sexual issues etc. While we realize that many ADDadults have children, we ask that the parenting issues be addressed to ADDtalk. You can subscribe to ADDadults at www.onelist.com/subscribe/addadults
• ADDictions: One of the many things that ADDadults feel that is an issue directly related to the ADHD is addictions. Whether it be food, sex, substance abuse or spending addictions, ADDicts is a list for addults only. The list has no archives and the member list is confidential. To joine ADDicts go to www.onelist.com/subscribe/addicts

Feel Free to contact me anytime. You can reach me through email at brandivalentine@healthyplace.com or through ICQ at #601283

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