Eghosa has always been very restless, as a toddler, he climbed and ran about as if being driven by a motor and could barely sit still but we thought he'd outgrow it, thinking it was a bad case of terrible twos. However, that wasn't the case because as he grew, many things became more apparent, for example, he was usually so disorganized, his mother couldn't stop punishing him for how he always looked untidy and unkempt or, for misplacing his school bag or lunch box and always getting in trouble with his teacher for never paying attention in class, or for disturbing his other classmates during classwork.
His teachers described him as a very bright child with average grades but always insisted that, if he could try to pay more attention in class and stop being so hyperactive all the time, he'd be one of the best students.
To make matters worse, he was so forgetful, he forgot to do everything, his chores, his assignments- he could be gone for hours when sent on errands only to come back completely untidy after playing in the streets and forgetting what he was sent.
Eghosa is very creative, he's always thinking outside the box, he is a curious little boy with an artistic mind and beautiful talent in music. He enjoyed playing games, he loved football so much and he was pretty good at it, but when it came to tasks of mental nature that required paying attention and concentrating like getting his arithmetic sums done and doing his comprehension passages, he struggled and became frustrated. On most days, I couldn't get my son to get things done and out of my own uncontrollable anger and frustration I mete out a lot of physical punishment on him like numerous slaps and knocks.
Things got out of hand when his hyperactivity and impulsive nature, nearly cost him his life when we went to shop at the supermarket down the road from the house. While we waited patiently to cross, Eghosa was all of a sudden in the middle of the road, almost run over by a car. At that moment, we knew something had to be done.
Eventually, we were summoned by his school counselor after many complaints from his class teacher about his behavioural issues, who then referred us to a child mental Health expert.
My 9 year old son was later diagnosed with ADHD (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) and Medication and psychotherapy were recommended as treatment options.
She also said that, helping Eghosa create routines could help him concentrate and focus more. I'm seeing my son in a better light and I know he's going to be fine.