Autism and other Learning Disabilities

I know this is a blog about ADHD, but I saw this video by What You Ought To Know, and I was really impressed with it. ADHD is typically accompanied by learning disabilities, and I have a brother with Down Syndrome, so this is a very sensitive topic for me. I was very pleased to have found a video that emphasizes that people with Learning Disabilities (LD) are not dumb. My little brother is only three and already knows the entire alphabet. Retarded? I think not!

Similarly, people with ADHD are not lazy, stupid, or crazy (I borrowed that from an actual book:  You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid or Crazy?! by Kate Kelly). Instead, as Jed pointed out in the video, people with ADHD have their brains mapped differently from everybody else. It's not as drastically obvious as it is with people with Autism, so it frequently seems like the person with ADHD just isn't trying hard enough, isn't interested, or isn't all that smart. But I can assure you, that isn't the case. Take me, for instance. Last time I checked, my IQ was somewhere around 120 (I'm not sure how accurate that was, since it was using free online IQ tests). But, despite this, I still struggle to keep up in school. Why? It's not because I don't get the material. In fact, I usually get the material faster than my classmates. The problem is that I have trouble paying attention, and I frequently forget about assignments that are due. My ADHD also makes it difficult for me to fall asleep, and, once I am asleep, I have difficulty waking up. This interferes with my schooling as well, especially when I have a 7:45 a.m. class.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that the next time you meet someone with an LD, please refrain from using labels such as retarded, dumb, stupid, lazy, etc. Nine times out of ten you don't know the person well enough to give them such a label. Remember:  "I am 100% original. No label needed."

ADHD Study Helps

I apologize for slacking off on my blogging these past few months. When you're a full-time student taking seventeen credits of upper-level classes, with ADHD on top of that...you get the picture. I've also been struggling to get my ADHD and my sleeping schedule under control, and my classes suffered because I was in the middle of switching medications. I'm finally getting things stabilized, and now I'm back!

Conventional study habits and ADHD do not mix. I'm sure many of you have struggled with this. Sitting for long periods of time staring at a textbook, listening to a boring hour-long lecture...not very ADHD friendly. Now that I've almost finished my Bachelor's degree, I'm finally figuring out tricks to help me focus in class and at home.

In class, I've learned that I have to take notes--not for future study, but to keep me focused on what is being said. I've found that in especially boring lectures it helps if I doodle or fiddle with something, especially if there is nothing worth taking notes on. I've also found it easier to listen if I'm not actually looking at the teacher. It's strange, but true:  when I'm looking at the teacher, I start to focus on their movements and forget to pay attention to their words. Another thing I've discovered is that I have the easiest time paying attention when the teacher uses a lot of visual aids and is very interactive.

At home I learned that I focus better if I have my headphones in with music running in the background. It can't be new music; when it's music I've listened to ten million times I can tune it out so that it becomes white noise. New music, especially new music with lyrics, doesn't work because I end up paying attention to the lyrics. I also do better if I study for twenty minutes and play for twenty minutes, and repeat that. I focus a lot better this way because I have something to look forward to, and it gives me some variety so that I don't zone out while I'm studying.

I've heard that color-coding things is really helpful for people with ADHD, like having a color-coded calendar or schedule. I haven't taken the time to do that, but I'm sure it would work really well. I've found that using colored highlighters when I'm marking up a textbook makes it a lot easier for me than just using a pencil.

Now I have to add a little disclaimer here. These are the things that I have found that help me. Just like no two people have the exact same ADHD, no two people have the exact same strategy to help them. You might find that none of my study helps work for you. To help with that, my next post will consist of recommended study helps given by ADHD experts.

Good luck in your studies!

EDIT: I just realized that I never fulfilled my promise for my next post. I'll write it eventually... If I ever get to it. (>>)

ADHD Health Check

So as I was doing research for the last post, I stumbled upon this Health Check assessment for people with ADHD on WebMD.com, a site designed to provide information about different medical issues and such. I tried it, and I think it's worth taking a look at. It gives you a detailed analysis on your knowledge of ADHD and your overall well-being.

Dealing with Stress

Stress. Everybody gets it, right? So what's the big deal? Besides the health implications stress has on most people, stress can have a detrimental impact on people who are already dealing with ADHD. "Stress exerts a strong negative influence on the functioning of adults with [ADHD]. Times of high stress, including periods of increased demands, fatigue, illness, conflict, or frustration, tend to be periods in which the symptoms of [ADHD] worsen. During periods of stress, the [ADHD] adult is likely to be less organized, more absentminded, less efficient, and more prone to error and temper outbursts. In times of low stress, the functioning of [ADHD] adults tends to improve. A good place to begin reducing the stress in your life is with a 'stress assessment.'" (Adventures in Fast Forward:  Life, Love, and Work for the ADD Adult by Kathleen G. Nadeau, page 63).

"Your focus needs more focus."

I can't focus on anything today. I've found myself spacing out in the middle of a conversation, even though normally I'd be really interested in the topic. I can hardly concentrate on this post. My focus needs more focus, to quote Mr. Han from The Karate Kid remake. I suppose that's what I get for letting my medicine run out.

What Time Is It???

The other day I was talking to a fellow ADHDer, and we noticed that we have something in common:  neither of us have a good grasp of time (time? what's that?). We found that we both can never judge how much time it takes us to get ready for something, and so we are frequently late because we don't know when we should start getting ready.

I got thinking about this, and started wondering about it. Are people with ADHD always late because they're always procrastinating? Or is the root of the problem simply that they can't tell time? I dug up my copy of Adventures in Fast Forward:  Life, Love, and Work for the ADD Adult by Kathleen G. Nadeau and found the section on time management. This is what I found under "chronic lateness":

I'm not random...

So I saw this photo on firstcovers.com, and thought this was a perfect description for all of us ADHDers. We aren't random, we just think too fast for the normal brain!!

Lines and Circles

I'm starting to think that people with ADHD think in circles. Seriously. I know it sounds weird, but hear me out. I've noticed that when my ADHD is acting up, I have a hard time doing the things I set out to do. For example, I get on the computer with the intention of checking my email and then doing my homework, and then maybe some writing after that. So I get on to check my email. The first email is an advertisement from the bookstore. I see some books on it that I'm interested in, so I get on the internet to check out the bookstore's website. While I'm looking to see what these books are about and how much they cost, I realize that I haven't updated my goodreads yet (yes, I'm that much of a bookworm). So I get onto goodreads.com to do just that. But halfway through I realize that I haven't rated and shelved some of the books I've already added. So I start doing that. Then I see a book on there that I realized I haven't read the sequel to yet, and really want to. So I log on to the library's website to put it on hold. Only when I get there, I realize that I have a hold at the library that I haven't picked up yet. As well as a few others I've forgotten to put on hold. As I go to do that, I wonder why the library hadn't notified me of my hold yet, so I go to check my email to see if they had emailed me. And I realize that I haven't finished checking my email yet, so I go to the next email....

Excuse My Dust

Just so you know, I'm kind of playing around with site design. I really want to make this site my own, so I'm working on making it look beautimous (and yes, I spelled that wrong on purpose). So don't mind me. Besides, I have ADHD. I like variety. So don't be surprised if I've changed things around a month from now. Or if the background changes every six weeks or so. Because that's the way I am (my desktop wallpaper changes irregularly). If you don't like it, deal with it. Not that you could really do anything about it...

Anyways, sorry about the mess!

Disabled? Me?

I was thinking about the name of ADHD. It stands for "Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder," right? So, what I want to know is, is a disorder a disability? When I was first diagnosed, a few years ago, I met with the Disability Services at my school, and they were able to get me a note to get accommodations. Not that I really need accommodations; I just need people who understand what's going on and can give me a little wiggle room when meds and stuff get in the way. So, apparently, by law or something, ADHD is considered is disability. So...yay? Ugh? How am I supposed to feel about this?

The Medication Problem

How do you know what is the best medication for you? From my experience, it's trial and error. And let me tell you, when it comes to medication, trial and error is not fun. It's been a few weeks since my doc took me off of Strattera (R) (which was working pretty well, now that I think of it) and put me on a stimulant. And, well, the stimulant helps, but not enough.

So what I want to know is, how do you know how much is enough? How do you determine how much you should depend on medication, and how much you should take into your own hands? I've noticed that ever since I switched to the stimulant, it hasn't done much for my sleeping schedule problems. And on top of my body wanting to sleep from 3 in the morning to 11 in the morning, when I do try to go to sleep, even if I'm dead tired, I still have trouble falling asleep. What's with that?

Oh, yeah, and I've noticed I've been clenching my teeth a lot ever since I started this particular stimulant. Is that bad? I don't know. I've been chewing a lot of gum lately to try and stop it, though. Sigh. I guess time will tell whether this is the right med for me or not. Or it won't. Hopefully not the latter.

You don't fully appreciate something until you've lost it

I never realized how much I depend on my medication until my doctor took me off of it. I had noticed that my medication was losing its effectiveness, so my doctor decided to gradually take me off it before we tried a new one. The result? The past three weeks have been a Mess. With a capital M. Who knew that I would turn nocturnal, take three hours to get a simple task done, sprout wings and grow fangs (okay, so not the last two)?

But seriously. I was a mess. And the frustrating thing about it was that the harder I tried to control things, the faster they spun out of control. I recall one night when I was trying to get myself ready for bed. I kept getting so distracted, it took me THREE HOURS. Not kidding. The ironic thing about it is the thing that distracted me was my reference book on ADHD (It's called Understanding Women with ADHD, edited by Kathleen Nadeau. Great book. You should check it out). What's with that? My ADHD distracts me from the task at hand because I'm trying to understand my ADHD. Ah, the ironies of life.

Introduction

Even though I haven't always known it, ADHD has played a very large part of my life. I've had to deal with the effects of it for as long as I remember. However, because I have ADHD, inattentive type, I spent my entire childhood undiagnosed. I was a rather brilliant child, however, so school was not a problem for me. Instead, I spent my life being thought of as a lazy bookworm who couldn't pass a book without picking it up.

It wasn't until high school that I was diagnosed with a "chemical imbalance." I was given medication for it, but I started having problems with the medication in college. It was there that I was finally diagnosed with ADHD, inattentive type.

Ever since then, I have struggled to divide my ADHD aspects from who I really am. I am still learning to deal with the frustrations of not being able to focus, to sleep, to get things done. I am a writer, and I've decided to use this blog to document my frustrations, my struggles, and my triumphs. I hope that this blog can be a help to anyone else who might be having similar struggles, and that it can help anyone who doesn't deal with this understand what people with ADHD go through. My experiences are not the experiences of every person with ADHD, however. Please keep in mind that people with ADHD are just as individual and unique as everybody else. Most of all, though, I hope that by writing my experiences, I can come to know myself just a little bit better.