Do you have experience with ADHD-1 (inattentive)?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP-- i may be an outlier here but I think it is worth recalling that many of these diagnoses are highly subjective. ADHD is diagnosed based on a cluster of behaviors; the signs and symptoms of what we call ADHD, "slow processing speed," anxiety, some mild LDs can all be pretty similar, and even for extremely experienced testers it is often a judgment call. The "correct" diagnosis is whichever one leads to interventions that are helpful. So I would not focus so much on labels: you may need a label to get an IEP or meds, but remember that there is more subjectivity than you might think in those labels.

Also remember: labels notwithstanding, something is only a problem if it's a problem. If you DD is happy and successful, who cares if a tester might label her as ADHD-inattentive? If she is unhappy about how long things take her, there may be many behavior interventions and meds that would help, but I'd be wary of pathologizing her behavior. Some people work faster than others: if it doesn't bother her, so what?

- Spouse of a shrink who does neuropsych testing for kids, and mother of one kid who was diagnosed with ADHD who is bright but struggles in school, and another kid who probably could be diagnosed with ADHD but who does fine and is happy....

I'm OP and I really appreciate your post. To be perfectly honest, right now, I'm probably not going to do anything (including taking her to a neuropshych). She is okay for now and is not too bothered by how long things take her (DH and I are the ones who are driven crazy by her behavior), but she is bothered that she doesn't have time for friends. None of this is a critical mass situation right now, but things seem to have gotten worse over the past year and I am worried that things may get much worse in HS next year. My biggest fear is letting the situation go too long and that if the situation does hit critical mass - having it be too late to get the IEP or whatever intervention we need to get accommodations that will help her work to her potential. I'd love for people to tell me to relax and just let it go.

I'm a PP with a 12-year old DD with ADHD.
Don't relax, don't wait. It will get worse if she doesn't at least intervention on learning more effective coping skills. I'm now accepting that I have to be so vigilant because you have to be prepared for that critical mass, and the next one, and the next one. Can't just put it on auto pilot like I can with my other kid. We specifically got her 504 in elementary school because we were told by a few different sources that it gets harder to get it in middle school. Our elementary school didn't support the testing (the county wasn't going to pay for the tests) but they were fully supportive after we got the diagnosis. I see bad stories in this forum regarding getting IEPs. Our experience was very pleasant and being able to go into middle school with he information that we had was very helpful.

Your daughter may appear "okay" but you won't know what it's doing to her self-esteem. You are only seeing what's on the surface. People with ADHD usually this eternally-running script of negativity. Your daughter is probably telling herself daily that "I am slow, therefore I am stupid, therefore, no one will want to be friends with me". You just don't know what distorted connections are being hard wired by her brain and as a parent, you'll need to be versed with how your child's thinks. There is a pattern.

I do agree with the PP that said these are subjective but you also have to take into consideration the other challenges that your daughter is having- like not being able to form friendships. Sure she doesn't have the time now but she isn't going to have more time later either. She's losing this time now in her social development.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here again. Thanks to the SN parents posting here - you guys are an amazingly supportive and kind subset here on DCUM

You are giving me a lot of good information. To the PP with the daughter with Aspergers, it sounds like your family and daughter have been through a lot. My heart goes out to you. In answer to your question, DD was actually early to potty train (with some setbacks, of course), and didn't have digestive issues/GERD.

Here are a few other things about DD:

She is small for her age - I took her to an endocryn. and they ran tests and determined she's just going to be on the small side and nothing is wrong with her - other than an iron deficiency.

I used to think she had SPD because she was super-sensitive to clothing/shoes, etc. and loud noises bothered her. She is also an excessive hugger - her K teacher actually told us the hugging was problematic. She's gotten much better with clothing/shoes, but she still hugs a ton

Not sure if this info adds anything or is just separate, unrelated stuff, but I thought I'd mention it in case anyone saw any connection.

Parents with kids with inattentive ADHD, what sort of life-skills/coping methods help keep your kids on task? Anyone have a website/book they highly recommend? I have found that lists help DD somewhat. And timers. But I haven't figured out the best way to implement them.

Thanks everyone!

I think you've gotten great advice so far. Just wanted to add that your description of your daughter sounds very much like me as a teenager. I was successful in school, but everything took forever. Like others have said, turns out that I have high IQ (over 150) plus ADD/inattentive. I was diagnosed with ADD as an adult. Overall, I don't think of the ADD diagnosis as a negative at all, really just helps identify strengths and weaknesses. I can see now that they are a combo - some of the things that make the executive functioning hard for me are what also gives me gifts in other areas. That being said, having the diagnosis also helps identify strategies for coping with mundane things (like getting out the door on time every day) that are really challenging with ADD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP-- i may be an outlier here but I think it is worth recalling that many of these diagnoses are highly subjective. ADHD is diagnosed based on a cluster of behaviors; the signs and symptoms of what we call ADHD, "slow processing speed," anxiety, some mild LDs can all be pretty similar, and even for extremely experienced testers it is often a judgment call. The "correct" diagnosis is whichever one leads to interventions that are helpful. So I would not focus so much on labels: you may need a label to get an IEP or meds, but remember that there is more subjectivity than you might think in those labels.

Also remember: labels notwithstanding, something is only a problem if it's a problem. If you DD is happy and successful, who cares if a tester might label her as ADHD-inattentive? If she is unhappy about how long things take her, there may be many behavior interventions and meds that would help, but I'd be wary of pathologizing her behavior. Some people work faster than others: if it doesn't bother her, so what?

- Spouse of a shrink who does neuropsych testing for kids, and mother of one kid who was diagnosed with ADHD who is bright but struggles in school, and another kid who probably could be diagnosed with ADHD but who does fine and is happy....

I'm OP and I really appreciate your post. To be perfectly honest, right now, I'm probably not going to do anything (including taking her to a neuropshych). She is okay for now and is not too bothered by how long things take her (DH and I are the ones who are driven crazy by her behavior), but she is bothered that she doesn't have time for friends. None of this is a critical mass situation right now, but things seem to have gotten worse over the past year and I am worried that things may get much worse in HS next year. My biggest fear is letting the situation go too long and that if the situation does hit critical mass - having it be too late to get the IEP or whatever intervention we need to get accommodations that will help her work to her potential. I'd love for people to tell me to relax and just let it go.

Listen to yourself. Your daughter is struggling with a major part of her life (having friends at a time when friends are so important). She's just hitting high school. You only have so many years left with her in your home, under your direct guidance. Get her evaluated. *Then* you can relax or not depending on the result.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

I'm in this club as well. Never officially diagnosed, but would be utterly unsurprised to learn I have adult ADD, almost sure of it. And basically can't work without some kind of mental distraction. Very occasionally I have a particularly thorny problem I'm working out where I will want quiet, but in general I require music / external stimuli to be able to focus. And I never have learned to pay attention in a lecture format. I am almost completely incapable of learning via that medium. Online video training drives me bonkers - I want to read it while listening to music. Trying to force myself to pay attention to a video training takes up so much brain power I still struggle to learn from it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP-- i may be an outlier here but I think it is worth recalling that many of these diagnoses are highly subjective. ADHD is diagnosed based on a cluster of behaviors; the signs and symptoms of what we call ADHD, "slow processing speed," anxiety, some mild LDs can all be pretty similar, and even for extremely experienced testers it is often a judgment call. The "correct" diagnosis is whichever one leads to interventions that are helpful. So I would not focus so much on labels: you may need a label to get an IEP or meds, but remember that there is more subjectivity than you might think in those labels.

Also remember: labels notwithstanding, something is only a problem if it's a problem. If you DD is happy and successful, who cares if a tester might label her as ADHD-inattentive? If she is unhappy about how long things take her, there may be many behavior interventions and meds that would help, but I'd be wary of pathologizing her behavior. Some people work faster than others: if it doesn't bother her, so what?

- Spouse of a shrink who does neuropsych testing for kids, and mother of one kid who was diagnosed with ADHD who is bright but struggles in school, and another kid who probably could be diagnosed with ADHD but who does fine and is happy....

I'm OP and I really appreciate your post. To be perfectly honest, right now, I'm probably not going to do anything (including taking her to a neuropshych). She is okay for now and is not too bothered by how long things take her (DH and I are the ones who are driven crazy by her behavior), but she is bothered that she doesn't have time for friends. None of this is a critical mass situation right now, but things seem to have gotten worse over the past year and I am worried that things may get much worse in HS next year. My biggest fear is letting the situation go too long and that if the situation does hit critical mass - having it be too late to get the IEP or whatever intervention we need to get accommodations that will help her work to her potential. I'd love for people to tell me to relax and just let it go.

It is going to get worse in high school next year and will affect her grades. High school grades are so ridiculously important that a poor transition in the freshman year can have lasting implications.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

I'm in this club as well. Never officially diagnosed, but would be utterly unsurprised to learn I have adult ADD, almost sure of it. And basically can't work without some kind of mental distraction. Very occasionally I have a particularly thorny problem I'm working out where I will want quiet, but in general I require music / external stimuli to be able to focus. And I never have learned to pay attention in a lecture format. I am almost completely incapable of learning via that medium. Online video training drives me bonkers - I want to read it while listening to music. Trying to force myself to pay attention to a video training takes up so much brain power I still struggle to learn from it.

So there are a bunch of us! This all makes me wonder -- why do anything about my possibly ADHD-inattentive first grader? She's happy and not disruptive. She's doing well in school (all P's, but I guess that's fine, and reading way ahead of grade level), but I do think she's inattentive. Like if I give her 3 instructions, unless it's something she's interested in, she'll drop one. The teacher says she seems somewhat inattentive, but not unusually so for her age. Anyway, it's kind of a gray area. But part of me feels that her father and I are ADD-inattentive and very bright, and maybe there's some tradeoff there? Like the hyperfocus that's part of the ADD-inattentive is helpful, and I don't want to take that from her. You know?
I know it's an easy call to treat ADD when it's making the kid's life hard or making it hard for them to do well in school. But if it isn't, then maybe there's a benefit to it as well...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

I'm in this club as well. Never officially diagnosed, but would be utterly unsurprised to learn I have adult ADD, almost sure of it. And basically can't work without some kind of mental distraction. Very occasionally I have a particularly thorny problem I'm working out where I will want quiet, but in general I require music / external stimuli to be able to focus. And I never have learned to pay attention in a lecture format. I am almost completely incapable of learning via that medium. Online video training drives me bonkers - I want to read it while listening to music. Trying to force myself to pay attention to a video training takes up so much brain power I still struggle to learn from it.

Add another diagnosed as an adult - Ivy undergrad, law school, blah, blah. I had to have music and/or tv on plus other coping skills like picking at my cuticles, scalp, doodling, etc. No matter what anyone says, the human brain is NOT designed to do 5 things at the same time and do them well. There are many many studies that say this. Being on medication gets rid of all these NEGATIVE coping mechanisms. It was a relief to be finally on Ritalin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

I'm in this club as well. Never officially diagnosed, but would be utterly unsurprised to learn I have adult ADD, almost sure of it. And basically can't work without some kind of mental distraction. Very occasionally I have a particularly thorny problem I'm working out where I will want quiet, but in general I require music / external stimuli to be able to focus. And I never have learned to pay attention in a lecture format. I am almost completely incapable of learning via that medium. Online video training drives me bonkers - I want to read it while listening to music. Trying to force myself to pay attention to a video training takes up so much brain power I still struggle to learn from it.

So there are a bunch of us! This all makes me wonder -- why do anything about my possibly ADHD-inattentive first grader? She's happy and not disruptive. She's doing well in school (all P's, but I guess that's fine, and reading way ahead of grade level), but I do think she's inattentive. Like if I give her 3 instructions, unless it's something she's interested in, she'll drop one. The teacher says she seems somewhat inattentive, but not unusually so for her age. Anyway, it's kind of a gray area. But part of me feels that her father and I are ADD-inattentive and very bright, and maybe there's some tradeoff there? Like the hyperfocus that's part of the ADD-inattentive is helpful, and I don't want to take that from her. You know?
I know it's an easy call to treat ADD when it's making the kid's life hard or making it hard for them to do well in school. But if it isn't, then maybe there's a benefit to it as well...

I have a similar situation with my DD. Except she would maybe only get one of the three instructions.

Do schools automatically screen?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

I'm in this club as well. Never officially diagnosed, but would be utterly unsurprised to learn I have adult ADD, almost sure of it. And basically can't work without some kind of mental distraction. Very occasionally I have a particularly thorny problem I'm working out where I will want quiet, but in general I require music / external stimuli to be able to focus. And I never have learned to pay attention in a lecture format. I am almost completely incapable of learning via that medium. Online video training drives me bonkers - I want to read it while listening to music. Trying to force myself to pay attention to a video training takes up so much brain power I still struggle to learn from it.

Add another diagnosed as an adult - Ivy undergrad, law school, blah, blah. I had to have music and/or tv on plus other coping skills like picking at my cuticles, scalp, doodling, etc. No matter what anyone says, the human brain is NOT designed to do 5 things at the same time and do them well. There are many many studies that say this. Being on medication gets rid of all these NEGATIVE coping mechanisms. It was a relief to be finally on Ritalin.

How has it changed you/your behavior?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

I'm in this club as well. Never officially diagnosed, but would be utterly unsurprised to learn I have adult ADD, almost sure of it. And basically can't work without some kind of mental distraction. Very occasionally I have a particularly thorny problem I'm working out where I will want quiet, but in general I require music / external stimuli to be able to focus. And I never have learned to pay attention in a lecture format. I am almost completely incapable of learning via that medium. Online video training drives me bonkers - I want to read it while listening to music. Trying to force myself to pay attention to a video training takes up so much brain power I still struggle to learn from it.

Add another diagnosed as an adult - Ivy undergrad, law school, blah, blah. I had to have music and/or tv on plus other coping skills like picking at my cuticles, scalp, doodling, etc. No matter what anyone says, the human brain is NOT designed to do 5 things at the same time and do them well. There are many many studies that say this. Being on medication gets rid of all these NEGATIVE coping mechanisms. It was a relief to be finally on Ritalin.

How has it changed you/your behavior?

I no longer pick at myself, doodle, listen to the tv, etc all at the same time that I have to do work. Honestly, I thought I had OCD. Ritalin got rid of all my OCD symptoms.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

I'm in this club as well. Never officially diagnosed, but would be utterly unsurprised to learn I have adult ADD, almost sure of it. And basically can't work without some kind of mental distraction. Very occasionally I have a particularly thorny problem I'm working out where I will want quiet, but in general I require music / external stimuli to be able to focus. And I never have learned to pay attention in a lecture format. I am almost completely incapable of learning via that medium. Online video training drives me bonkers - I want to read it while listening to music. Trying to force myself to pay attention to a video training takes up so much brain power I still struggle to learn from it.

Add another diagnosed as an adult - Ivy undergrad, law school, blah, blah. I had to have music and/or tv on plus other coping skills like picking at my cuticles, scalp, doodling, etc. No matter what anyone says, the human brain is NOT designed to do 5 things at the same time and do them well. There are many many studies that say this. Being on medication gets rid of all these NEGATIVE coping mechanisms. It was a relief to be finally on Ritalin.

I respect that. Did you start Ritalin during your college/law school? Or after?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

I'm in this club as well. Never officially diagnosed, but would be utterly unsurprised to learn I have adult ADD, almost sure of it. And basically can't work without some kind of mental distraction. Very occasionally I have a particularly thorny problem I'm working out where I will want quiet, but in general I require music / external stimuli to be able to focus. And I never have learned to pay attention in a lecture format. I am almost completely incapable of learning via that medium. Online video training drives me bonkers - I want to read it while listening to music. Trying to force myself to pay attention to a video training takes up so much brain power I still struggle to learn from it.

Add another diagnosed as an adult - Ivy undergrad, law school, blah, blah. I had to have music and/or tv on plus other coping skills like picking at my cuticles, scalp, doodling, etc. No matter what anyone says, the human brain is NOT designed to do 5 things at the same time and do them well. There are many many studies that say this. Being on medication gets rid of all these NEGATIVE coping mechanisms. It was a relief to be finally on Ritalin.

I respect that. Did you start Ritalin during your college/law school? Or after?

I started when I was 49 and retired. Wish I had it when I was much younger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very bright 16-year-old clearly has inattentive ADD, but she's untreated. She spends hours every night on HW (and in the shower!) but she and my DH (who takes meds for his ADD) and I have agreed to keep an eye on things but not seek treatment at this point. She is comfortable with her pace, though it means she gets less sleep than her peers. She can perform well on tests (hyperfocused) and benefits from her high IQ. It is a struggle, but as long as she continues to do well and feel capable, we're keeping an eye on her.

This was me as a teenager, back in the day before anyone knew what ADD was (at least outside of the big cities). I rocked standardized tests. What really helped me with homework was music or TV on. I know it runs counter to what everyone says about screen time, but unless there was something else going on, I would just blank out and end up staring at the stage or writing Tolkien fan fiction in my head or something and then realize it was 11 p.m. and my homework was not done. TV or music kept one track of my brain occupied so the other track could do homework. Music worked better for language arts type homework, while TV was better for math. (Of course, that was also in the days when TV was just whatever happened to be on, so half the time it wasn't like the shows were all that riveting. It might be harder now that you can actually pick something good to watch.) I don't think my parents even realized I did my homework in front of the guest room TV every night. To this day, I cannot drive without music on, as I get 100% distracted unless there is something to distract me 25%, if that makes sense. My other trick was taking copious notes, that I would then annotate during class discussion. It forced me to stay focused. (And everyone wanted to borrow them to study for tests!).

OMG, I know I'm bumping an old thread, but I was looking through stuff on ADD-inattentive and bright kids (because we may have one of those) and found this. THIS IS ME. Not literally, but PP, you just described me exactly. And I was on the very high end of the bell curve of academic success (Ivy, law school, blah blah blah). But I always had to have something on to -- just as you said -- keep one track of my mind entertained so it wouldn't interfere with the track of my mind that was supposed to be doing my schoolwork.
I wonder if there's a name for whatever that is? Is it ADD-inattentive? Or something else?
Anyway, I wish we knew each other. I don't know anyone else like that.

I'm a third (also high achieving). I just think I process things faster than others around me and need extra stimuli to fill the gaps.

It drives DH bonkers when I'm doing two things at once.

I'm in this club as well. Never officially diagnosed, but would be utterly unsurprised to learn I have adult ADD, almost sure of it. And basically can't work without some kind of mental distraction. Very occasionally I have a particularly thorny problem I'm working out where I will want quiet, but in general I require music / external stimuli to be able to focus. And I never have learned to pay attention in a lecture format. I am almost completely incapable of learning via that medium. Online video training drives me bonkers - I want to read it while listening to music. Trying to force myself to pay attention to a video training takes up so much brain power I still struggle to learn from it.

Add another diagnosed as an adult - Ivy undergrad, law school, blah, blah. I had to have music and/or tv on plus other coping skills like picking at my cuticles, scalp, doodling, etc. No matter what anyone says, the human brain is NOT designed to do 5 things at the same time and do them well. There are many many studies that say this. Being on medication gets rid of all these NEGATIVE coping mechanisms. It was a relief to be finally on Ritalin.

How has it changed you/your behavior?

I no longer pick at myself, doodle, listen to the tv, etc all at the same time that I have to do work. Honestly, I thought I had OCD. Ritalin got rid of all my OCD symptoms.

Are you more/less effective at work?