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Essays on ADHD

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North to Alaska – ADHD Capital of the World?

February 25, 2012 in Essays on ADHD, The Basics | 10 comments

Sunny Aldrich at the Fur Rendezvous’ Running of the Reindeer:” “it’s kind of like the Running of the Bulls… except with a lot more carrots.”

This guest post from Sunny Aldrich comes to you thanks to a random exchange on Facebook. It went like this:

Gina: Here in San Francisco, we are looking forward to hosting this year’s CHADD conference! I hope out-of-towners can add a few days to their stay for enjoying the area.

Sunny: I can’t wait! Anywhere warm sounds good right now. :-) It was -4 in Wasilla, AK today.

Gina: You’re in Wasilla?? You’ll be a big celebrity in SF!

Sunny: No doubt! Alaskans are more like visitors from another planet. The rest of our countrymen are used to foreigners. But not the kind who hunt moose, ski in bikinis, bicycle in -40 weather and eat whale blubber or dried fish. Next year’s conference should be here. I’m convinced this is the ADHD capitol of the world.

Gina: I just read Levi Johnston’s book (Deer in the Headlights), and I’m convinced of that, too! :-)

Sunny: Well it makes perfect sense! ADD’ers are “mavericks” who seek adventure, want to take the road less traveled, like to try new and different things and want to march to their own drum. Adrenaline junkies? Alaska’s the place. Extreme sports? Doesn’t get more extreme than here. Can’t sit at a desk and want an outside job? Alaska’s got those to spare. Just watch Deadliest Catch and Flying Wild Alaska and all those shows… And since it’s hereditary I think there’s a REASON Alaska has the highest paid teachers in the U.S.! They should get hazard pay, as far as I’m concerned. My son’s kindergarten teacher had six boys with ADHD in her mixed grade class (K-2nd) out of 21 kids. Including my kid I could pick out at least 3 others just in that grade level with moderate to severe ADHD. Mine was the only one medicated… poor lady!!

Gina: Sunny, would you write a piece about this for the ADHD Roller Coaster blog?

Sunny said yes, and here it is: Read the rest of this entry »

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Seeking Your Stories of Resilience

December 20, 2011 in Essays on ADHD, Questions about Adult ADHD | No comments

Reading last week’s first-person essay (“The Rugged Reality of ADD”, by Dylan) and the many comments reminds me to tell you about The Resilience Through the Lifespan Project, conducted by Mark Katz, Ph.D., whom I wrote about recently here. I hope that you will consider participating in this important endeavor. Here are the details.

In his book, On Playing a Poor Hand Well, San Diego psychologist and ADHD expert Mark Katz explored two questions:

1. Why is that so many people who were exposed to multiple risks and adversities in their childhood years never developed the problems some might have anticipated, and have gone on to lead meaningful and productive lives?

2. Why is it that so many people who succumbed to those same risks and adversities in their childhood years—struggling for years with different kinds of behavioral, learning and life adjustment problems—staged a complete turnabout years later, and today are also leading meaningful and productive lives?

In more recent years, Dr. Katz has spent much less time on the first question and much more time on the second. And in particular, the question, why is it that so many children who fail in school later go on to succeed in life?

Here’s where Dr. Katz needs your help. He wants to learn more about the turning point experiences, and second, third and fourth chance opportunities of people who struggled throughout their school lives, but who today feel their lives and meaningful and productive.

 If you feel this describes the course of your life, you can help by participating in the Resilience Through the Lifespan Project. To participate, simply open this MS-Word file containing the Resilience Project Survey, answer the questions as best you can, and then e-mail the document to Email Mark Katz . If you’d like to learn more about the project first, just send an e-mail or call him (619-276-6912).

 

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One Man’s “Rugged Reality of ADD”

December 1, 2011 in Denial about ADHD, Essays on ADHD, The Basics | 71 comments

A new friend has graciously agreed to share his Success Story story with ADHD Roller Coaster readers:

The Rugged Reality of ADD, by Dylan Rosen

Do not read this if you are looking for a “Happy ADD Story.” I do not have the gold medals of Michael Phelps or the arm of Terry Bradshaw. My life has been a struggle from the time I walked into first grade to my current age of 30. If you want something real and authentic to someone’s experience with ADD, however, I hope you will read on.

My silent struggle

When I was in elementary school, my ADD symptoms were as classic as the Rolling Stones were to Rock ‘n Roll. However, I did very well. Teachers always said I was bright.

I did well in middle school too, even making the president’s list one marking period.

As I moved from middle school to high school, a couple things changed. My grades went from A’s and B’s to C’s and D’s. My relationships changed too. I grew apart from old friends and was not able to make new ones. I viewed myself as a loner, a recluse. My confidence was slipping, and I had begun to experience the awful taste of depression.

The pressure from my school’s academic standards became unbearable. I did not do well under that pressure, coupled with the negativity I always received at home. My parents expected high academic performance from me. After bringing home a poor interim report one semester, I was threatened to be sent to technical school, which frightened me. Going to trade school, growing up where I lived, was a sign of absolute failure. Read the rest of this entry »

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ADHD and Sleep: Your Elusive Dream?

January 23, 2011 in ADHD and Health, ADHD medication, Essays on ADHD, Guest Essays, The Basics | 42 comments

When I asked Australian writer Matthew Bush to contribute a guest column on his experiences with sleep and ADHD (below), I expected a well-written and engaging piece. What I didn’t expect was a happy ending, too, and perhaps a blueprint to help others.

ADHD’s potential challenges to sleep include the behavioral (putting off sleep because anything is more interesting than lying in the dark waiting for nothing to happen) and the physiological (Restless Legs Syndrome, Sleep Apnea, dysregulated circadian rhythm, etc.). Here is a post from my other blog on ADHD and sleep. Look to the latest issue of CHADD’s Attention Magazine for my article on the topic, a prelude to a short upcoming book: The ADHD Roller Coaster Guide to Sleep. Now to Matt’s guest column!

Sleep, Finally.

By Matthew Bush

I was the 11 year old ninja master.

I had to be awake for school in six hours.

The creaking kitchen floorboards raised the hair on the back of my neck. The house was dark. I could hear snoring.Good. Dad was a heavy sleeper and that meant mum had her earplugs in. Still, there was risk.

The adrenaline pacified me. I inhaled slowly, my pulse pounded through the swell of blood in my ears. I opened the cabinet door slowly and clicked the torch on. I was on a mission.

If I was successful, I’d take my bounty back to my room and quietly self-medicate with caffeine and carbohydrates. Then I’d curl up on my beanbag and read.

My official bedtime was 8:30. I was allowed to read for half an hour, then my dad would tell me to go to sleep. I rarely did. Eventually, my lamp and torch batteries got confiscated. That just added another objective to my mission dossier. Read the rest of this entry »

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Sing It: “A.D.D. You Know What I Got!”

September 24, 2010 in Essays on ADHD, Just for Fun | 9 comments

Check out this totally catchy song and hilariously clever video from a hot new band whose frontman, Will Loomis, has ADHD.  I love this band! So well done! If you do, too, spread the word. You can hear samples from their latest CD and purchase it on Amazon here. (Below is the information on Will and the band from the press release.)

from the press release: The song is by Loomis & The Lust, a pop-rock quartet that MTV Iggy calls one of the “Top 25 Best New Bands in the World.” Their frontman, Will Loomis, has been struggling with ADD his whole life. They have just released a video for their single, “ADD.”

“ADD” is more than a catchy song. It is Will Loomis trying to communicate what it is like to cope with ADD on a daily basis, from being at school to going on a date. In the song’s video, the band has tried to visually capture what it feels like, at times, to have ADD. With a little light-heartedness thrown in, Loomis & The Lust are earnestly trying to give viewers a glimpse of what so many people struggle with every day.

Hailing from Santa Barbara, California, they are quickly making an impact with their bright, catchy brand of pop mixed with a little rock and roll raucousness. It is this blend that earned them an “Artist on the Verge” award at the New Music Seminar, and $25,000 from OurStage.com.

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SCT: A New Type of ADHD for Next DSM?

August 20, 2010 in ADHD Diagnosis Issues, Essays on ADHD, Guest Essays | 17 comments

Before my friend Jack was diagnosed with ADHD, he used to call himself “Sluggo the Wonder Boy.”  Highly educated, hard-working, and his heart set on big achievements, Jack still had problems around being, well, sluggish.

For example, when he sat in a chair, within five minutes he invariably slumped and slid  until his head was on the back of the chair and his legs were stretched out, eyes half-closed unless something thoroughly grabbed his attention. It was a miracle of physics that he didn’t slide right onto the floor. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think he was chronically sleep deprived, but he slept well and regularly.

Only after ADHD was diagnosed and he began taking stimulant medication did he start sitting in a more erect and alert manner.  Moreover, his pupils became fully visible. Finally, I could see that his eyes were a lovely shade of brown. Who knew?

Does Jack have a different type of ADHD?  A sluggish type? I can’t say. But I can offer you this guest column from Robert F. Eme, Ph.D., on the possibility of a new type of ADHD that focuses on something called Sluggish Cognitive Tempo. Read the rest of this entry »

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Jeff’s ADD Mind Keeps Expanding and Provoking

July 23, 2010 in Essays on ADHD, Finding Support, The Basics | No comments

Techno-wizard and ADHD Blog-Veteran Jeff at Jeff’s ADD Mind has really been pushing the media envelope lately — movies, magazines, and more — and has now re-designed the entire site with a slick new look and easy navigation system.  It’s jam-packed with fun, philosophy, and irony (the precursors of healthy neurotransmitters!).  Among my favorites:

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“Procrastinating” and “Getting Ready”: The Films

April 30, 2010 in Essays on ADHD, Just for Fun, View from the Roller Coaster | 6 comments

Isn’t it great when others express your own secret struggles? Especially when they do it in a clever, entertaining way?  Isn’t it liberating? Even amusing?

If you wrestle with procrastination and/or all the myriad issues involved in “getting ready,” you will no doubt enjoy these two short animations (below) by Levni Yilmaz.

Lev has also created a book of drawings on similar themes, Tales of Mere Existence, and the book comes with the DVD collection of his films — what  a a deal. Learn more about Lev and his work at his website.

Thanks to my friend Sara for bringing Lev’s work to my attention!


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Knowing the Facts Makes You “Gaslight-Proof”

April 23, 2010 in ADHD Hall of Shame, ADHD medication, Adult ADHD Myths, Denial about ADHD, Essays on ADHD | 11 comments

Who knew that wearing my new t-shirt to the farmer’s market would cause such a fuss?  Instead of my usual sharing of brief assessments about sugar-snap peas or shitake mushrooms with other shoppers, I was drawn into a “debate” about ADHD.

Sure, I’m accustomed to ranting ADHD-denyers on the rough-and-tumble Internet, but not while strolling amid the produce vendors on a sunny Saturday morning.  Still, it was good to know that my verbal “gaslight-proof” skills match my written ones.

First, what does “gaslight” mean?  It harkens to the 1944 film Gaslight, wherein Charles Boyer’s character cravenly manipulates Ingrid Bergman’s character  to believe that she is insane. In psychological terms, “gaslighters” say and do things to make their victims question their perceptions, their knowledge, and their beliefs – all in an attempt to fulfill the gaslighter’s egocentric needs (financial gain, need to control others or to force others to conform to the gaslighter’s beliefs and perceptions, etc.).

Second, this wasn’t just any t-shirt. It was a strikingly good-looking t-shirt created for a Stride for ADHD Pride.  My friend Natalie Knochenhauer, founder of the Philadelphia non-profit ADHD Aware, does all such things with style and substance. Read the rest of this entry »

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Making Progress, One Ex-Naysayer at a Time

November 1, 2009 in ADHD in the News, Denial about ADHD, Essays on ADHD, Guest Essays, The Basics | 1 comment

This week: A guest post from ADHD coach Cynthia Hammer, founder and former executive director of Seattle-based non-Cynthia Hammerprofit ADD Resources (click here to visit her blog, “Pinnacle Coaching”).

I’ve always enjoyed Cynthia’s personal essays (look for more to come), and we both appreciate the thoughtful perspectives of Judith Warner, who writes the “Domestic Disturbances” column for The New York Times.
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Do you ever get discouraged about all the bad and inaccurate press about ADHD? That it is a condition that doesn’t exist? That those of us who have ADHD are seeking the easy way out by taking medicine or that we parents give dangerous medicine to children for a made-up condition?

I just finished reading an article by Judith Warner, a columnist for The New York Times who planned to write a book on these kinds of topics, but she kept putting off writing the book—and she finally realized why. Read the rest of this entry »

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