Living with ADHDThis section is a place to share stories about Living with ADHD. Below are entries of those who have already shared their stories. We hope that you find their experiences helpful to your own situation. You may also Help others by sharing your story. To quickly access health information from your website's browser, download ADD inattentive I am fourteen years old, and was diagnosed with inattentive ADD within the past year. Usually ADD is accompanied by learning disabilities; this was not the case for me. I had an I.Q. of 134 at age 14. Several things contributed to the delayed diagnosis of ADD for me, including the fact that I am a girl. ADD is harder to diagnose in girls, because they have a much smaller chance of having the more noticeable ADD with hyperactivity (ADHD). It is more common for girls than it is for boys to try to compensate for their ADD by trying very hard to cover it up, compensate for their lack of attention. Going back to the I.Q., ADD is much much harder to diagnose when there is no learning disability present. So, I had ADD inattentive, and compensated for my lack of attention with my intelligence. I was very disorganized, and a scatterbrain, if you will. I consistently lost homework. I was forgetful of what people told me. Most people thought that I was just a disorganized, “spacey” kid. Parents with children with ADD (Or middle school/high school students with ADD) It is VERY important to identify the symptoms of ADD as early as you can. This is very crucial, because even someone with ADD who has a very high I.Q will get behind in schoolwork if their ADD is not diagnosed, and handing in homework is a problem. This is even more diffcult when the student with ADD encounters a rigid, callous teacher like I did. Unfortunately, some teachers are just not “ADD friendly.” These teachers can leave a very horrible impact on students. *Note to parents who have kids with ADD/HD - Please be EXTREMELY cautious when discussing ADD/HD with your child. Some kids feel embarrassed, and some don’t like having a label or a mental problem tacked on them. If they are embarrassed, don’t tell them they don’t have to be embarrassed. 90% of teens already KNOW THAT, and they just want you to shut up. It’s a very touchy subject for teens, parents. Please trust me, as I am a teen who experienced the emotional anguish of overbearing parents. If a doctor diagnoses your son/daughter with ADD/HD, it would be wise to investigate if they may have other mental/emotional problems, which is common when ADD/HD exists. I also have ADD with co-existing Social Anxiety/Phobia, and moderately severe depression I give you my prayers and best luck in managing your (or your child’s) ADD/HD!
June 2007
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- Kaylee, age 14
