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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]This describes my ds...but how do you indicate or define "late bloomer" on an application? The fact is that a very large % of boys have ADHD with undeveloped prefrontal cortex. Add to that the slower development of boys as a rule, and you have a gender with a large disadvantage. I'm not saying ADHD doesn't affect girls, but it's much more prevalent in boys. Along with ADHD typically comes the co-morbidities of anxiety or depression. During the isolation of online school, anxiety in my DS skyrocketed into a serious disorder (although thanks to more lenient grading, this wasn't an issue for his GPA). Despite these silent disabilities  he has managed to do quite well with GPA and got high SATs without prepping, although not well enough for some school's GPA standards. You just don't know what kids go through, but I'd venture to say he's not alone. Call it "late blooming" or whatever you want. The data for ADHD kids is that at least 30% flunk out of their first semester (per his therapist--who almost flunked out of undergrad but went on to get a PhD). Also the abnormal pressure on kids these days (especially in this area) only worsens the anxiety. The good news is that with time (and hopefully some therapy) these kids eventually mature and can go on to some great things. Their brains and emotional state might not yet be ready for the highest degree of rigor, unaided by a hovering parent or tutor (although my ds hasn't had any tutoring or parental involvement with school). This is what I've learned...and it gives me some comfort.[/quote]

It’s just more often diagnosed in boys. Girls suffer just as much but we don’t exhibit the hyperactivity as often so they are untreated longer and diagnosed later.  Treated people do not flunk out at higher rates. [/quote]

I stand corrected--girls are definitely under diagnosed and certainly suffer as much. My son has been "treated" with med since 7 but treatment isn't always as easy as it sounds. A pill to help him focus also exacerbates his anxiety. Also the pill only lasts so long during the day. Anxiety is a far tougher issue to resolve., and anxiety and ADHD feed on one another. I'm just trying to say it's not as easy as it sounds. I shouldn't have made the gender distinction. Boys brains develop more slowly than girls, but ADHD brains develop more slowly still. [/quote]

Well, it's more varied than that.  Boys brains on average develop slightly more slowly but develop quite fast at and after puberty.  Also, little evidence for meaningful gender differences in executive functioning: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6235899/#:~:text=Our%20overall%20conclusion%20is%20that,function%20are%20not%20overwhelming%20(Fig.

This is not about ADHD, just gender differences overall. [/quote]

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