Causes and treatment of cognitive difficulties

Perceptual difficulties are psychological problems that affect many children and adolescents, as they affect the ability to clarify and interpret different sensory stimuli, and may cause indiscrimination and a feeling of confusion. However, do you know what causes these difficulties and how they can be treated? In this article, we will share some important information and advice on treating perceptual difficulties .

Definition of cognitive difficulties

The definition of cognitive difficulties is the inability to analyze and interpret information correctly. It is a disorder in mental abilities that affects the ability to pay attention, focus , receive information from the outside, and interpret it correctly.

There are many types of cognitive difficulties, which can be visual, auditory, motor, etc., and they vary in degree, type, and causes of cognitive difficulties.

Dealing with these difficulties through cognitive behavioral therapy, psychotherapy, drug therapy, and School.com courses that provide appropriate educational treatments for children and adolescents who face cognitive difficulties .

Causes of cognitive difficulties

Cognitive difficulties can affect people's lives in a significant way, as they may face difficulty in communicating with others, learning, and performing their daily tasks correctly. The most important causes are:

• Genetic factors

Genetic factors are important factors that affect the causes of cognitive difficulties, as genes play a major role in whether a child suffers from learning disorders .

When there is a dysfunction in the central nervous system, this leads to difficulties in attention, memory and perception, and these things negatively affect the child’s ability to learn skills related to academic subjects.

It is important to note that genetic factors such as kidney disease that affect children's physical and mental growth and development can increase the likelihood of them experiencing learning difficulties.

To avoid this problem, parents and doctors should conduct a genetic medical examination of the child for any genes associated with the mentioned diseases, and then develop an appropriate treatment plan for them.

• Environmental factors

Environmental factors are among the factors that contribute to the causes of learning difficulties, which include several aspects. Lack of educational experiences and poor nutrition may reduce children’s ability to pay attention, focus, and learn.

Poor medical conditions or poor health care can also affect cognitive and learning difficulties , and studies suggest that strengthening the educational environment surrounding children can help improve their cognitive abilities.

Therefore, attention must be paid to the various environmental aspects, and appropriate conditions must be provided for learning and developing children's cognitive abilities. For example, interactive activities can be carried out at school or at home, healthy and balanced food can be provided, physical and motor activity can be encouraged, and children can be given the opportunity to explore and experiment in a safe and supportive environment.

• Educational factors

Educational factors are very important factors in the causes of cognitive difficulties , because they affect the quality of education and the way the subject matter is presented.

Modern educational technologies can help alleviate cognitive difficulties, such as interactive educational games that stimulate memory, attention and concentration in students. These technologies can also help enhance logical thinking and develop fine motor skills in children.

In addition, the classroom environment and the way the teacher interacts with students can greatly affect their ability to perceive and learn.

Therefore, teachers must learn how to interact with students in a way that encourages them to think and learn and develops their skills, whether in basic subjects or even in analysis and inference.

It is very important for children to receive support and encouragement from family, teachers and friends in order to overcome the difficulties they face and improve their academic performance.

• Psychological factors

Psychological factors are among the factors that influence the cognitive difficulties that people experience.

Excessive stress, psychological pressure, anxiety, depression, social isolation, and other factors can negatively affect cognition and lead to problems with thinking, concentration, and memory.

People should be careful to avoid these factors or deal with them in a proper way to avoid their negative impact on cognition.

The most important ways that can be used to deal with these psychological factors are relaxation, exercise, proper nutrition, and social communication with others.

You can also seek advice from psychiatrists and specialists in this field to obtain appropriate psychological treatment and help overcome these psychological factors.

Methods of diagnosing cognitive difficulties

Early diagnosis of cognitive difficulties and searching for their various causes is very important, as it includes:

• Complete a comprehensive health report for your student to ensure he or she does not have a cognitive disability.
• Conduct comprehensive educational assessments to identify students' weaknesses and deficiencies.
• Create a report to determine if a student needs medical or educational treatment.
• Administering standardized reference tests to determine student achievement levels and thus measure student academic performance.
• Examine students' performance compared to that of peers of the same age and grade.
• Measure student performance on a daily basis by monitoring students and recording their progress in specific skills.
• Create a comprehensive report on the student's previous experiences, especially whether those experiences were appropriate for the student's age.

• Case Study: A specialist gathers the information needed to provide a comprehensive view of the student's medical condition through a comprehensive series of questions about various aspects of the student's health and physical, motor, mental and social development.
• Test batteries: A set of complementary or interchangeable tests that aim to measure a single or multidimensional characteristic, trait, or variable, such that the weighted or total score or pattern of scores is taken as the basis for measurement, diagnosis, and evaluation. However, the disadvantages of this tool are that its use is expensive, and its predictive value is low.
• Individual tests: These are multiple types and are divided into four categories: language tests, cognitive-motor tests , aptitude tests, and intelligence tests. Individual tests are divided into two types:

Survey tests: measure students' knowledge of reading and writing, identify weaknesses and deficiencies, and basic arithmetic operations and skills .

Standardized tests: This type of test aims to identify the student’s mental and social abilities. Examples of this type include the Wechsler Intelligence Test and the Stanford Mental Abilities Test.

Treatments for cognitive difficulties

Treatments to address the causes of cognitive difficulties become essential to improve the quality of life of people suffering from these difficulties, help them get out of isolation and frustration, and positively impact their self-reliance.

This is achieved by:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy is a more flexible approach to psychotherapy that focuses on changing behavioral and thinking patterns that lead to psychological and cognitive difficulties.

Cognitive behavioral therapy involves talking to the patient and guiding them to learn more helpful ways of thinking and interacting.

This type of therapy helps identify faulty thinking mechanisms and replace them with correct and effective ones.

CBT provides patients with the opportunity to learn from past experiences and train them to interact better with their environment.

This therapy is widely used for a variety of psychological and cognitive difficulties and can help improve individuals' quality of life.

School.com's cognitive therapy courses provide an opportunity for those who wish to learn more about how to apply the cognitive interaction therapy approach to treating various psychological difficulties.

• Psychotherapy

For psychological cognitive difficulties, psychotherapy is an effective and efficient treatment option, as it uses various techniques to help the patient overcome these difficulties.

In cases of cognitive difficulties resulting from anxiety and depression, psychotherapy can help in learning relaxation and meditation skills, changing negative behaviors, and enhancing self-confidence.

In cases of cognitive difficulties resulting from psychological disorders, such as hyperactivity and attention, techniques such as magnetic stimulation, group therapy, and behavioral childhood psychology can be used.

Moreover, psychological support can be provided to families affected by cognitive difficulties to improve their quality of life and cope with these difficulties, as psychotherapy is a safe and effective option to help individuals overcome cognitive difficulties and improve their quality of life.

• Drug therapy

Medication is a common treatment for cognitive difficulties, especially when it comes to regulating attention and reducing hyperactivity.

Stimulant medications are used for children with learning disabilities to improve symptoms associated with the problem.

While children with more complex mental and behavioral disorders are treated with a combination of antipsychotic medications.

Medication helps children with learning disabilities focus their attention, control hyperactivity and impulsivity to some extent, increase their chances of completing tasks in a shorter time, allow them to produce well-written work, and reduce off-task behavior.

It is worth noting that some studies indicate the effect of ready-made foods and chemical additives found in many foods and drinks on hyperactivity, so you should avoid eating these foods and maintain a healthy diet.

School.com Courses for Treating Perceptual Difficulties

There are many treatment methods available to address cognitive difficulties that affect the ability of school-age students to receive and understand information correctly.

Among these means are School Courses.com, which is an electronic educational platform specialized in providing the necessary training courses to teach children and teachers how to diagnose and treat various cognitive difficulties.

It offers many training courses that include educational strategies, how to deal with children with cognitive difficulties, psychological and behavioral therapy, and analysis of children's educational performance.

In addition, the site offers huge discounts of up to 60% on all courses, and allows for distance learning via the Internet, making it an ideal choice for many individuals and schools.

At the end of this article, we have explained the causes of difficulty in perception in children, the most important factors that affect difficulty in perception, and methods of early detection to determine whether the child suffers from difficulty in perception or not, the most important methods of treating difficulty in perception in children, and the most important means used to make the period of treatment shorter. The role of the Madrasa.com platform appears as an educational platform that provides unique courses to treat difficulty in perception in children, as well as providing many suggestions and articles on how to detect such a syndrome early.