I'm not a doctor, nurse or anyone in the medical field. But I've found that exercise has helped me tremendously. Vigorous exercise, like swimming and running. It helps with anxiety, sleep issues, that irritating pent up energy, and mood issues.

I am not an expert. Rather someone who has started following this field as we were launching a health and fitness company, which later spawned a youth outreach on much of the same.

This topic came up so frequently (and continues to) that we decided to incorporate a set of non-pharmaceutical programs to help both kids and adults with ADD/ADHD. Which quickly led to include lesser degrees of inattention.

We've since been inspired to launch a kids outreach organization which approaches needs like this from more of a 360 degree view including a range of things from music to neuroscience. We also use much of this work for those desiring higher levels of function for daily lives or professionally.

It's been an exciting and rewarding learning experience, and I will share what we've discovered so far may anyone reading find helpful. Although for certain there are experts in MedPedia who can assist on a much deeper level.

Our work has led us to a few main areas so far, but it's still expanding.

1. Brain Mapping (qEEG) & Neurofeedback, has been such an impressive approach for ADD/ADHD. It is a non-invasive, non-pharmaceutical protocol with over a decade of incredible results. The results clinicians have seen are often in the double digits across the board (memory, attention span, comprehension, verbal & visual cognition, impulsivity, and more).

2. Integrative Nutrition, especially Whole Food Nutrition programs which are tailored for each individual. Again the results here have far exceeded our expectations, which were a little high going in. It only makes sense that if most of the neurological diseases are directly tied to lack of specific nutrients our brains need - increasing intake of those nutrients should help. However the results were greater than we even anticipated.

3. Performance Fitness, specifically programs which help activate certain processes both neurologically and physically. This is another area which has exceeded our hopes especially in its affects on endocrine function, which ultimately helps emotional intelligence and hormone balance. This is not just a random way to work off energy or anxiety. It's a little more specially purposed than that. It's more about regulating your mind and body overall.

The next area we are researching is tied to the affects of music on neurological health. There are many studies and examples of where this has benefited a very wide range of mental health conditions and neurological function. I'm not yet prepared to share what we've been studying but can in a later post.

Again, I am not an expert and also newer to MedPedia, and hope this is helpful.

Thanks for reading - George

Hi Lisa,

I noticed your answer up above as well. Like it.

We're all still learning more, but here are some of the things we have found success with so far.

First we do things that help your body find its rhythm, versus doing stuff that runs you into the ground. For example with swimming or running we would dial it back just to that point where it feels like you can step it up a notch. We warm up well, and that means the heart too not just from a movement perspective. It feels a little more like an awesome body chemical balance than exertion. Most often we have to dial people way back from the super intense workouts we were often taught growing up. It's about rhythm and balance. Not over-exertion.

A second general characteristic of this type of training we consider "activating". We try to engage our body as a system versus the isolation that we were most often taught. Some examples are getting away from the machines and benches, and instead using balls and straps. Have you tried suspension training? That is a great example of ways to activate your body from head to toe. With this as well, it's about engaging your entire neuromuscular system, versus doing as many repetitions you can before collapsing to the floor.

There is another aspect as well, which is for some people a little challenging. We suggest doing this type of functional training earlier in the day to help activate your body/mind. This tends to make a positive difference physically, neurologically and biologically (endocrine). This is a little more variable so you have to see what works best for you. A tip we've found is to try a schedule for 3 to 5 days to see how it affects your performance during the day and sleep cycles too.

There are some types of activities that are great for both activation and rhythm. Some types of martial arts training for example uses your entire body, requires lots of cognitive function and definitely requires aerobic capacity. I think swimming is another great example.

Summing up it's more about balance and activation. The activation component we've seen be most beneficial early in the day, and the rhythm component we've seen help at all times of day.

Does this help much? Not sure if I explained this well ...

- George.

Thanks for your explanation. I've never tried suspension training, but have wanted to. I saw someone at the gym doing it and it looked very intriguing. I already do body-weight exercises, in the way of Ashtanga yoga, as well as some exercises I've learned on coreperformance.com. Suspension training would be a natural extension of what I already do. I've looked into buying a package, and after reading what you wrote, I think it would be worth the money.

I've heard of Dr. John Ratey. Based on my experience with exercise, I'm not surprised by his results. I grew up playing sports and I continued to exercise through college and afterwards. I've been running regularly for nearly 20 years. I had to take a break for about one-and-a-half years due to uncontrolled asthma after I moved down south. Boy, could I tell a difference! I was so glad when I was able to run and swim again.

Many people underestimate the value of regular exercise. I'm glad you're spreading the word.

Lisa