When one child out of several in a family has been diagnosed with ADHD, it’s not uncommon for the parents to suspect that birth order had something to do with it.

To some parents, it may seem that every child they’ve ever known who had an ADHD diagnosis had the same place in the birth order of their siblings.

This could be the oldest, the youngest or the middle.

Or, it could be the middle of the same gender, or the youngest or oldest of the same gender.

Usually, though, it’s the oldest, middle or youngest overall. Each of these three positions of birth orders have stigmas.

• The oldest is stereotyped as being bossy.
• The middle child is stereotyped as being jealous.
• The youngest is stereotyped as being whiny and spoiled.

Ask yourself WHY birth order would have an influence on the development of ADHD symptoms.

Connection Between Birth Order and ADHD

“There is no research to show that ADHD is connected with birth order,” says Dr. Robert Myers, creator of the Total Focus program at Legacy Publishing.

Dr. Myers is a clinical psychologist with 30+ years of experience working with children, adolescents, families and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Dr. Myers adds, “It has been found to be more common in twins, which is one indication that at least in some cases there is a genetic basis for ADHD.”

The more children in a family, the less significant birth order is.

For example, if the youngest is always spoiled, what about the youngest of 12 kids, especially if the next youngest is only a year older?

What if the next youngest after that is a year older than the second youngest?

And what if the fourth one up is seven years older than the third youngest?

This can be a setup for ALL THREE of the youngest being spoiled by a slew of much older siblings!

Birth order is not related to ADHD.

Dr. Myers has 30+ years’ experience working with children, adolescents and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with ADHD. Total Focus is a comprehensive program to improve attention, concentration and self-control in children.

Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.  

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Top image: ©Lorra Garrick

A psychologist who specializes in ADHD talks about fidgeting.

Many people who’ve been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) would like to know if fidgeting is a behavior that comes with this collection of symptoms, and in addition to that, they’d like to know if it’s normal.

Sometimes they think it’s not normal at all.

For this article I spoke with Dr. Robert Myers, creator of the Total Focus program at Legacy Publishing.

Dr. Myers is a clinical psychologist with 30+ years of experience working with children, adolescents, families and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Dr. Myers explains, “Fidgeting is basically activity to work off excess energy.  People who are nervous often fidget when they are worried about something.

“Fidgeting is a symptom often found in kids and adults with ADHD, and then it is a symptom of hyperactivity. 

“If it’s not interfering with a person’s ability to do whatever they are doing and it’s not annoying to others, who cares.”

When I was 13, my biology teacher, a nun at the Catholic high school I attended, pointed out that I kept fidgeting in my seat (leg movement).

I told her that it burns more calories. My belief that it burned more calories was one reason I made a point to fidget, though it was also a subconscious habit.

She thought I was nuts and promptly discredited my theory that fidgeting burns more calories.

MANY YEARS later … research was conducted on this very idea, and showed that, indeed, fidgeting contributes to enough extra calories burned to make a difference to someone wanting to be five or even 10 pounds lighter. 

And to think that when I was just 13, I was already figuring this out. Maybe I had ADHD, maybe I didn’t.

But realize this: Studies support fidgeting as a means of burning more calories, and those who fidget tend to be leaner.

It’s not natural for the human body to be dead still for long periods in a chair.

THAT’s when you should worry — when you sit for prolonged periods with little movement.

In fact, the more immobile a person is while seated, the higher the risk of developing a dangerous deep vein thrombosis.

ADHD is no reason to try to sit dead still, especially if the chair is not comfortable.

Having ADHD never means you should attempt to behave like a statue.

If you do a lot of sitting, make a point of fidgeting your legs, even if you have ADHD, because this will lower the risk of developing a blood clot (risk of blood clot goes up with inactivity).

This is why it’s strongly advised that when sitting in an airplane, you regularly move your legs about to prevent a deep vein thrombosis.

As I type this article, my left leg is going. The human body was not meant to sustain long periods of immobility.

Update

In March 2022 I was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

My “fidgeting” is the result of my autism. I did not meet the criteria for ADHD.

Nevertheless, my stimming (repetitive movements) makes my body burn more calories than if I didn’t engage in so much stimming throughout the day. It really adds up!

Dr. Myers has 30+ years’ experience working with children, adolescents and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with ADHD. Total Focus is a comprehensive program to improve attention, concentration and self-control in children.

Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.  

A psychologist who specializes in ADHD comments on leg shaking.

“Leg shaking, like fidgeting, is often associated with anxiety or hyperactivity related to ADHD,” says Dr. Robert Myers, creator of the Total Focus program at Legacy Publishing.

Dr. Myers is a clinical psychologist with 30+ years of experience working with children, adolescents, families and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

“Usually the person is not aware they are doing it.  It is a habit that can occur whether the person is relaxed or stressed out.

“If it is bothering others, you could try to point it out so they can stop and perhaps become more aware of it and work on gaining control. 

“Sounds easy, but for some it’s not as easy as you might think.”

Does ADHD Directly Cause One or Both Legs to Shake?

“ADHD” is a reference to a composite of symptoms including hyperactivity and difficulty maintaining focus on a task.

Other features include struggling to get tasks completed, disorganization, often losing items, difficulty waiting one’s turn, interrupting conversations, trouble with planning, poor time management and difficulty sitting still.

But despite the part of difficulty sitting still, ADHD does not directly cause anything to happen to a leg.

However, as Dr. Myers had pointed out, the symptoms that are associated with this commonly-diagnosed condition can cause shaking of the legs. This includes impatience with waiting for one’s turn.

Now, if a child or adult is in the habit of bouncing a leg up and down on the ball of the foot while seated, or rapidly moving the foot side to side while the leg is outstretched while seated or lying, or in some other way allows the leg to voluntarily quiver – this does not suggest that the individual might have ADHD.

It often just amounts to a nervous or comforting habit that makes time seem to pass more quickly depending on the circumstance, such as waiting for one’s dental appointment.

I see leg shaking all the time at the gym while people are resting in between sets of upper body exercises.

In fact, I’ve seen it while a person is using their phone in between sets.

It’s not accurate to deduce that all of these people have ADHD.

Leg Shaking and Autism

Leg shaking, which of course can come in various forms, can be the result of autism.

This doesn’t always mean nervousness or anxiety.

I myself have a clinical diagnosis of ASD (and autism only; no ADHD), and I’ve been bouncing a leg since childhood.

It’s a habit. It usually occurs subconsciously regardless of my state of mind.

It could be a quick bounce or a slow bounce. It could be up and down (“knee bouncing”) or sideways (thigh swaying).

It just doesn’t feel natural to sit still.

These movements, particularly when referring to autism, are known as “stimming” (self-stimulatory or self-regulating behavior).

It’s also important not to equate voluntary leg shaking with the involuntary quivering or trembling that may occur from a bout of intense exercise.

For example, intense use of a leg press machine can result in quivering legs.

Dr. Myers has 30+ years’ experience working with children, adolescents and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with ADHD. Total Focus is a comprehensive program to improve attention, concentration and self-control in children.

Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.  

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Top image: Shutterstock/GBALLGIGGSPHOTO

Here is what a psychologist says about the connection between walking on one’s toes and ADHD.

Where did the idea ever originate that walking on one’s toes is a symptom or indicative of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder?

If a child (or adult) has difficulty locking their attention span on something, why would this cause them to walk around on their toes?

As silly as this question is, it’s one that a lot of people would like to know the answer to.

The Connection Between Toe Walking and ADHD

“Toe walking is not linked to ADHD,” says Dr. Robert Myers, creator of the Total Focus program at Legacy Publishing.

Dr. Myers is a clinical psychologist with 30+ years of experience working with children, adolescents, families and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

He explains, “Toe walking can be a sign of a number of neurodevelopmental disorders and needs to be evaluated by a specialist.

“Some children with autism may have this symptom — as well as possible symptoms similar to children diagnosed with ADHD. 

“My guess is that this is the cause for the confusion about this symptom.”

The idea that walking on one’s toes might be linked to ADHD is not widely supported by established research.

But yes, it has come up in clinical and layperson discussions, likely due to overlapping behaviors with autism or misunderstandings of motor patterns.

Toe-walking kids may also have been initially diagnosed with ADHD — only to be re-diagnosed later with autism spectrum without the ADHD.

This phenomenon could also explain the misunderstanding that ADHD causes habitual toe-walking.

Though an ADHD child may, indeed, at some point walk on their toes due to fleeting excitement or just for the heck of it, this motor pattern is not a universally acknowledge trait of ADHD.

Walking on one’s toes, even in adulthood, can also be due to a sensory processing disorder.

It’s also not uncommon for autistic adults to walk on their toes for sensory input or because they don’t like the feel of their heels making contact with a surface.

As children, adults with ASD would have very likely walked on their toes as well.

Do Typical Kids Walk on Their Toes?

Yes, all the time. You’ve seen it plenty: typical children walking around on their toes. There’s a novelty about it.

In fact, this helps strengthen the ankles. An adult may include a little toe walking during an exercise session for this very reason.

Of course, there is a time and place for everything.

If your child walks on their toes during inappropriate times, then this should be corrected (don’t scold or insult; just merely point out not to do it).

True signs of ADHD include what these letters stand for: a deficit in the ability to maintain one’s attention — what would be considered a normal degree of attention span for a child’s particular age — paired with hyperactivity and lack of impulse control that’s out of proportion for the event at hand.

Dr. Myers has 30+ years’ experience working with children, adolescents and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with ADHD. Total Focus is a comprehensive program to improve attention, concentration and self-control in children.

Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.  

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Top image: ©Lorra Garrick

An expert on ADHD answers the question: Can attention deficit hyperactivity disorder cause bad sense of direction?

A bad sense of direction can be evident in children when they ride their bikes or navigate the interior of their new school.

For older kids it can manifest itself inside a large retail store or unfamiliar neighborhood.

For adults with a bad sense of direction, they will be aware of this when driving in a new town, or hiking or running on unfamiliar trails.

Not everyone with a “bad sense of direction” has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

But the fair question remains: Can ADHD actually cause a poor sense of direction?

“Poor sense of direction such as confusing left and right sometimes goes along with dyslexia,” begins Dr. Robert Myers, creator of the Total Focus program at Legacy Publishing. Dr. Myers is a clinical psychologist with 30+ years of experience working with children, adolescents, families and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

“Some people with dyslexia may also have ADHD,” continues Dr. Myers.

This explains why some people wonder if attention deficit hyperactivity disorder actually causes a person to have a bad sense of direction.

But look at it in reverse: Imagine having a bad sense of direction. See if you can then imagine this having anything to do with ADHD.

The neurodevelopmental disorder known as ADHD can cause numerous issues.

These include frequently misplacing items, challenges with working memory, difficulty maintaining attention, becoming easily distracted, impulsiveness, excessive talking, poor time management, taking unnecessary risks, problems being organized and struggling to complete tasks.

Like Dr. Myers says, a person can have both situations — ADHD plus a poor sense of direction — but that doesn’t mean that the conditions are causally linked.

In fact, there has been no research showing any causal relationship between ADHD and getting lost easily.

Though some adults have a lousy sense of direction, keep in mind that by nature, very young children aren’t the best at navigating through unfamiliar surroundings such as a big house that they’ve never been inside of.

You should not assume that you, or your child, might have ADHD simply because the child’s or your sense of direction seems crummy.

Dr. Myers has 30+ years’ experience working with children, adolescents and parents, specializing in children and adolescents with ADHD. Total Focus is a comprehensive program to improve attention, concentration and self-control in children.

Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.  

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­Top image: ©Lorra Garrick