About Adult ADD/ADHD

I am starting with the positive.  I view having ADD as a good thing.  It helps me get my life in perspective.

A colleague of mine said that ADD people are more evolved:

 When an ADD person, in primeval times, went hunting for a deer, he would be distracted by the rabbit running by and shoot it.  

When the non ADD person went hunting for deer, he was so focused on deer that he missed the rabbit and came home with nothing. 

Who would survive, the guy with food or the guy who could focus?

Positive characteristics of adults with ADD / ADHD (from HelpGuide.org)
The symptoms of ADD / ADHD are not all negative. People with ADD / ADHD also have many positive traits that are directly tied to their active, impulsive minds:

Creativity – People with ADD excel at thinking outside of the box, brainstorming, and finding creative solutions to problems. Because of their flexible way of thinking about things, they tend to be more open-minded, independent, and ready to improvise.
Enthusiasm and spontaneity – People with ADD are free spirits with lively minds-qualities that makes for good company and engrossing conversation. Their enthusiasm and spontaneous approach to life can be infectious.
A quick mind – People with ADD have the ability to think on their feet, quickly absorb new information (as long as it’s interesting), and multitask with ease. Their rapid-fire minds thrive on stimulation. They adapt well to change and are great in a crisis.
High energy level – People with ADD have loads of energy. When their attention is captured by something that interests them, they can have virtually unlimited stamina and drive.

Hyperfocus: A Positive Symptom of ADD / ADHD
While adults with ADHD have great difficulty maintaining attention, those same individuals often are able to “hyperfocus” for long periods of time on tasks or projects that they find interesting. This is particularly true of interactive or hands-on activities. They may even be compulsive about it, spending hours immersed in the activity without a thought to anything or anyone else.

When they’re “in the zone,” people with ADD often lose all concept of time. Hours pass as if they are minutes. This single-minded ability to hyperfocus can lead to significant accomplishments, discoveries, and creative breakthroughs.


Signs and Symptoms of Adult ADD/ADHD

from HelpGuide.org
Activation     

Procrastination; difficulty getting started on projects
Excessive disorganization and messiness
Inability to prioritize tasks
Underestimating the time needed to finish a task

Focus 

Inability to screen out distractions 
“Zoning out” when others are talking
Randomly skipping from topic to topic in conversation
Reading words over and over in order to grasp the meaning

Effort

Difficulty sustaining effort over long periods of time
Starting multiple tasks, but never completing any of them
Missing deadlines
Trouble going to sleep at night and staying alert during the day.

Emotion 

Easily bored
Low tolerance for frustration and stress
Unstable, unpredictable moods
Quick temper
Constant worrying

Memory

Trouble remembering things, even for a short time
Doesn’t recall conversations, things others said
Forgetting appointments
Constantly losing or misplacing things

Action

Inability to delay gratification
Speaking without thinking
Acting impulsively (e.g. impulsive spending, sudden change of plans) without regard for consequences
Jumping to conclusions

Effects of Adult ADD/ADHD

Left untreated, ADD can wreak havoc in your life, disrupting everything from your career to your social life, love life, and financial stability.

Work

ADD / ADHD can be a big stumbling block on the road to career success. The symptoms of disorganization and inattention, in particular, pose problems in the workplace. If you have ADD / ADHD, you may:

  • be chronically late to work
  • miss or forget deadlines and meetings
  • have a hard time organizing projects and delegating work
  • have difficulty completing projects on time
  • spend hours at work, but get very little done
  • get distracted by trivial tasks, while neglecting the most important ones
  • have trouble paying attention in meetings or in conversations with your boss and colleagues.

Relationships
ADD / ADHD can put a strain on your relationships. The chaos that surrounds the disorder is particularly hard on romantic relationships. The spouse or partner without ADD may feel resentful if he or she is the one who has to take care of all the planning, organizing, cleaning, bill paying, and other household responsibilities. And you may resent your partner’s constant nagging to tidy up, get organized, and take care of business.

Friends and family members may also take it personally when you tune them out, forget conversations or commitments, speak a little too bluntly, or keep them waiting.

Finance
The ADD / ADHD symptoms of procrastination, disorganization, and impulsivity can interfere with good money management. If you have ADD / ADHD, you may find that you:

  • forget to pay bills
  • run up huge balances on your credit cards
  • cannot save money
  • are unable to follow through on long-term financial goals
  • shop impulsively
  • have difficulty keeping financial paperwork in order, and
    fail at budgeting and recordkeeping.

Eating behaviors
The impulsivity of ADD / ADHD can extend to eating, and many adults with the condition also suffer from overeating, obesity, or disordered eating. talks about the connection between ADHD (ADD) and disordered eating:
If you have ADD / ADHD, you may:

  • eat snacks throughout the day, rather than eating at planned meals
  • be unable to stick with a diet
  • have intense cravings for carbohydrates and caffeine (in coffee and chocolate)
  • eat a lot of fast food and “junk food” (cookies, chips, soda, fries, ice cream)
  • ignore hunger signs, waiting until you’re too hungry to plan a healthy meal and then eating whatever you can find.

The Connection between ADD and Disordered Eating
Healthy dietary regulation requires organization and planning-two areas of cognitive functioning that are typically difficult for those with ADD. Good eating habits also require self-awareness: awareness of when one is hungry, awareness of when one is full. Many individuals with ADD report that they skip meals because they were busy and distracted; these same individuals often report that later their hunger becomes so intense that they swing in the opposite direction, overeating well beyond the point of reasonable intake because they don’t know when to stop until they feel “stuffed.”

Source: Diet and Weight Management Strategies for Adults with ADD (ADHD)

One thought on “About Adult ADD/ADHD

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