Dr. Shank’s This and ThatAttention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD, ADHD, AD/HD)Return to: Text and Image Home | Text Home| About Dr. Shank | Feedback| Text and Image ADD | Text ADD | Text UDL | Text LD| Academic and Social Resources | Text Pet Therapy | Text PBS| Text Single Parent of Child with Disability | Text WV | Text Writing
We’re OkayOne of my college students with ADD made a comment that I thought was profoundly succinct and wise: “People are quick to notice what you do wrong but forget to notice what you do right.” He captured an important truth about life with ADD in those words. How do I know? I have the inattentive type myself. I must admit, I hesitated to admit that on this website, wondering if doing so might cost me opportunities. However, I believe the stigma must end. The real opportunities lost would be to those who miss out on the many gifts people with AD/HD have to offer. If I say there is no shame to disability, then I must live my life that way. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the types, I’ll give you a quick breakdown. Before I do, let me emphasize those gifts I mentioned—creativity, intuition, insight, honesty, compassion, tenaciousness, etc., etc., etc.—that result from the same brain glitches (excuse the technical term) that cause challenges. Unfortunately, the condition has to seriously mess up daily functioning to receive a disability label, so here are some typical challenges faced by kids and adults who have the various types. Inattentive type (usually referred to as ADD)• daydreams; • is forgetful and disorganized; • has difficulty starting projects and/or following through with projects to completion; • finds that starting a project or focusing becomes even more challenging as they try to force themselves or feel pressure from others (yes, really—it’s a brain-glitch thing); • enjoys multitasking, even if none of them are completed; • exhibits hypOactivity (Teacher, grab this kid and carry her out the door if there’s a fire; otherwise, she might not make it!); • is socially withdrawn, especially in large, noisy crowds (may have one or two close friends and feel no need for more); • struggles with depression; • is often viewed as indifferent, absentminded (spacey), or lazy but capable by others; • is less likely to be diagnosed than other types because of lack of acting out behaviors that drive parents, teachers, and spouses into a frenzied search for answers; • lack of diagnosis and treatment may contribute to more severe problems with academic or occupational underachievement and self-esteem than other types. Hyperactive-impulsive type (sometimes referred to as ADHD) • bounces off the walls; • blurts out whatever thought happens to pop into the brain, without regard for social acceptability; • feels restless and agitated; • desires high level of stimulation; • acts out whatever thought pops into the brain, without regard for rules and safety concerns; • has difficulty controlling emotions; • may be viewed by others as weird, rebellious, or annoying. Most researchers report that few people past the age of 6 or 7 have this type. I suspect some highly successful adults fall into this category. Because they can focus and organize, they accomplish at high levels. Why should they get diagnosed? They don’t think they have a problem. Of course, the people who work and live with them might feel differently! Keep in mind that I’m basing this solely on ADD intuition—and that some of these folks drink gallons of coffee each day or in other ways seem to self-medicate. Combined type (may also be referred to as ADHD, which is confusing, I know) • exhibits features of both the other types; • may not have as much difficulty starting a task as the inattentive type, but tends to be easily distracted from completion; • is the most commonly diagnosed. Do you remember the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes? Calvin is the epitome of the combined type. In one strip he daydreams about being Spaceman Spiff during math class. In another, he yells to his teacher, “This is a big fat waste of my time!” Check him out! You are in for a treat if you are too young to remember this delightful little boy and his stuffed tiger. Inattentive and Combined types (may be referred to as ADD, ADHD, or AD/HD when lumped together—don’t blame me; I’m just the messenger!) Those of us who have either of these types tend to share characteristics that perplex people without ADD. • Hyperfocus is both a blessing and a curse. When something catches our interest, we can get locked into it and not find our way out, even forgetting to eat and sleep. (That’s what’s happened to me as I’ve worked on this website. Yawn!) It’s a blessing because we can accomplish some amazing projects. It’s a curse because of what it can do to our health, social life, and other commitments. • Time is our enemy, circling us from fore and aft, sabotaging our best intentions. It’s an enemy we don’t understand, no matter how hard we try. What’s worse, the rest of the world seems to embrace TIME. We usually think of TIME in three ways: now, not now, or maybe later (Hallowell & Ratey). One of the links to the left will take you to an article on TIME and ADD. • Consequences do not compute. The problem is not that we don’t care. The reason the mistake is repeated is the same brain glitch that caused us to make the mistake in the first place. For example, a person with ADD has her water cut off more than once for nonpayment. The results are extremely embarrassing, annoying, and inconvenient, as well as expensive. You would think she’d learn, right? When it occurs the second time, she thinks, “Didn’t I just pay that a couple of weeks ago?” Then she finds out it was more than a couple of months ago. See what I mean? • Self-loathing can haunt us because we want to fit into society’s demands. We know we have gifts and want to share them with the world. We don’t enjoy being out of sync. We know that the ADD-less among us wonder why we find difficult what comes easily to them. We also realize that our ADD-related challenges inconvenience and frustrate the ADD-less, and we regret the imposition, sometimes beating ourselves up because of it. Our mistakes are not willful, which brings me back to my student’s comment:
“People are quick to notice what you do wrong but forget to notice what you do right.” The world needs what we have to offer. Some of the most gifted individuals throughout history and living today benefited society by strengths that resulted from ADD. I ask two things. Those of you who are teachers, spouses, parents, friends, or colleagues of kids or adults with ADD, thank them today for the gifts their ADD has brought into your life. For those of us who have ADD, let’s link cyber-hands and remind ourselves, “We’re okay.”
~ Marilyn For more information, read the article ADHD: Diagnosis Dilemma by William Lawson on PsychologyToday.com .
The music clip, which is used with permission, is from “Fish Are Orderly” written by Tom Paxton and performed by Fran Friedman. Click here for lyrics. Learning the BasicsNed Hallowell and John Ratey, psychiatrists who have ADD themselves, have written a book that provides an overview of ADD in a reader-friendly format. If you only read one book about ADD, I highly recommend Delivered from Distraction. Read success stories in Positively ADD (Catherine Corman and Ned Hallowell). Kids and Kids at Heart: Check This Out!
Dav Pilkey, says that he had AD/HD as a kid—with an extra helping of H! His second-grade teacher ripped up the comic books he created as fast as he could make them and told him he couldn’t spend the rest of his life making silly little books. “Fortunately, I wasn’t a good listener,” Dav says. Click here to see what Dav’s doing with his life today. Click here for an interview for kids. Click here for an audio interview for everyone. Click here to hear Dav’s speech about his favorite teacher. Receipt Woes
I don’t know about you, but I always feel as though I’m drowning in paper. The piles multiply like alien creatures every time I turn my back. Receipts are a particular problem—losing them, neglecting to enter them in a spreadsheet, having them fade as though they were written with invisible ink, etc. You probably know the drill. Recently, I purchased a NeatReceipts Scanalizer™, a portable scanner that enters the info automatically during scanning. Then you can throw the little buggers away! Yippee! ADDitude MagazineI always look forward to reading ADDitude Magazine. I think you will, too. You can subscribe from the ADDitude website, which also includes a plethora of resources on AD/HD. Be sure to check out the podcasts by AD/HD experts. File SolutionsDon’t pile! File and smile. Products from File Solutions can make your life easier.Organizational ToolsThese companies provide products to help you get organized: Organize.comOrganizetips.comLinksThe Attention MovieWatch this powerful five-minute presentation produced by Thrive with ADD.Dr. Ned Hallowell and Melissa Orlov have created a blog and reader forum to “help adults thrive in relationships impacted by ADHD.” If you are single and have AD/HD, you will also find resources to enrich your life. Click here for Dr. Hallowell’s general blog. Create a free account and join in the discussions. Do you think you might have ADD? The Amen Clinics, which specialize in brain research through brain imagining, provide a free ADD test. You can also take a test to help you learn about your brain systems. You will find helpful articles, webcasts, and current events related to ADHD on this website. In addition, for a yearly fee, you can receive newsletters and check out videos, books, and other materials in their lending library. Are there people in your life who doubt that ADD exists? Hand them a copy of this info sheet from The Attention Center. They may want to hang on to their misconceptions, but at least you will have tried to educate them. Search for research articles and other information in this comprehensive library. This article from ADHD Library.org discusses research on the differences in the ability to sense spans of time by children with and without ADHD. Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder (CHADD) is the largest organization in the field. Parents, professionals, and adults with ADD benefit from their support and resources, which include Attention! Magazine and conferences for members. Return to: Text and Image Home | About Dr. Shank | Text and Image ADD| Feedback | Text UDL | Text LD |