What if the symptoms of ADHD, ODD, and other childhood diseases were caused by overloading our children’s systems with toxic chemicals found in their environments? What if after exposing them to some of the 80,000 chemicals on the market today and weakening their immune systems, we exposed their little bodies to foods with more toxic pesticides and genetic modifications? What if the foods we feed our children have fewer vitamins and minerals than ever before, so their bodies are ill equipped to remove the overload of toxins they are exposed to each day? What if various combinations of all these things started to manifest as ADHD symptoms?
Linda Artis answers these questions and more in her book Healing Our ADHD Children: An 8-Week Program for Moms by a Mom. We asked Linda to answer a few questions about the book and her journey as an author.
What do people really need to know about this book?
When I found out each of my children had ADHD, I didn’t know where to turn or what to do. I called my pediatrician, and he suggested I medicate my ten and seven year olds. I couldn’t think of anything worse than throwing drugs down the throats of kids that young, masking symptoms of a disease I knew absolutely nothing about. As I have spent the last ten years researching and trying various interventions, I decided what I had learned could help others. My goal is to educate parents on the different options available to heal children with ADHD and other childhood diagnoses.
This book is the first place to start when an ADHD diagnosis is received from a pediatrician. If we don’t get our kids’ diet and nutrition right, remove toxins, and learn how to discipline our kids – as the basic building blocks – other interventions are very likely to fail. Many times, the two eight-week programs in my book will eliminate enough symptoms that additional interventions are unnecessary.
Do you have any advice for other authorpreneurs?
Don’t wait until you know the ending before writing the book. I waited to see if I would have a happy ending, thinking that I couldn’t write a book unless both my children turned out perfect! Also don’t wait until you think you have all the information you need. A book morphs and grows over time and can take on a life of its own. Unless you start writing, you aren’t allowing that to happen.
What’s next?
I want to reach and educate as many parents as possible. There are better ways to remove ADHD symptoms than just masking them with medications. An online eight-week program may be my next venture. I retired from a “real job” a few years ago and feel sharing this message is now my mission from God. I get to listen and follow whatever path I am led to follow, helping parents reclaim the love, peace, and joy that should be part of every family.