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Adult and Child ADHD Awareness Week

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This week has been designated as a week to raise awareness and change perceptions of adult and child Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).  And this year there will be a focus on the reasons why early diagnosis is so important.

Because proper diagnosis is so important, I'm starting this post
with information about the common symptoms of ADHD, and I've ended it
with informative links.

There are three types of ADHD and here are some of the common symptoms...

AD/HD - Primarily Inattentive Type:

• Fails to give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes.

• Has difficulty sustaining attention.

• Does not appear to listen.

• Struggles to follow through on instructions.

• Has difficulty with organization.

• Avoids or dislikes tasks requiring sustained mental effort.

• Is easily distracted.

• Is forgetful in daily activities.

AD/HD - Primarily Hyperactive/Impulsive Type:

• Fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in chair.

• Has difficulty remaining seated.

• Runs around or climbs excessively.

• Has difficulty engaging in activities quietly.

• Acts as if driven by a motor.

• Talks excessively.

• Blurts out answers before questions have been completed.

• Has difficulty waiting or taking turns.

• Interrupts or intrudes upon others.

AD/HD - Combined Type:

• Meets both inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive criteria.

And this is not just a childhood disorder, adults can have it as well.  Do you have Adult ADD or ADHD? You can take this test from Psych Central to find out.

Use this questionnaire to help determine if you need to
see a mental health professional for diagnosis and treatment of ADD or
ADHD in an adult. We also have a 6-question, short ADD quiz.

Here is some of what other women are blogging about ADHD and ADHD Awareness Week.

From Angels Mind - Today Is The First Official ADHD Awareness Day...

If you have friends or family dealing with and living
with ADHDers, then today may be a good day to let them know you love
them, that you know an ADHDer is a special needs child, that even if
you don’t know what they’re going through exactly- you do NOT judge
them for the way they handle their ADHDer, and that if they need a
coupla hours off you’d be prepared to help out somehow… if you could
see your way clear to taking care of their ADHDer for a while!

A Mom's View of ADHD - A dose of determination...

Determination is one of the great gifts of ADHD. Luke is
a very determined little boy. He observes what others are doing and is
confident he will do the same. He insists that he do the same. He
doesn't yet consciously know of his differences, his limitations. I am
glad about that.

Many times that determination backfires on him though (see yesterday's post). But it also means he never gives up.

Inspired by his determination and his bright smile this Monday
morning, I too will never give up. I will fight for him and what he
needs to bring sameness into his life. I am a mom on a mission. My
mission will be successful. I will not loose sight of that.

From Raise Healthy Eaters - Can Diet Prevent ADHD in Children?

One in ten children lives with ADHD. Children diagnosed
with the condition are more likely to experience depression, bipolar
disorder and anxiety. No one knows exactly what causes this leading
disorder but experts believe that it has both genetic and environmental
influences.

Two recent research reviews examined whether or not diet can help
treat ADHD. While both reviews cite compelling research, each
acknowledges that more studies are needed to draw conclusions. As I
read both of these papers, one word kept popping up in my mind:
prevention.

From Gina Pera - ADHD Roller Coaster...

Here’s a sampling of the breaking headlines, followed by the press release from the researcher.

CHADD - Children and Adults With Attention Deficit Disorder

CHADD is the nation’s leading organization serving
children and adults with AD/HD. Under the guidance of the world’s
leading AD/HD experts, CHADD is working every day to improve the lives
of families like yours through information and support. CHADD is also
at the forefront in providing healthcare professionals with the most
current and authoritative scientific findings about AD/HD. But first
and foremost, CHADD is your connection to people who care and are there
to help you.

More women blogging about ADHD...

PT Law Mom - Is ADHD a Gift?

Parent Talk Today - Kids' Sleep and ADHD?   What's the connection?

Peggy Rowland at Blisstree - ADHD Awareness Week

My ADD/ADHD - Time Management Tools

Tara McGillicuddy - My ADD/ADHD Blog

ADHD - Living

Informative Links:

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sherlin14 5 pts

I am a 29yo male who was diagnosed with ADHD in 1984. I was a part of several trials in the 90s, when I lived in Europe, for various medications for ADHD and over the years I learned coping mechanisms for all but the toughest symptoms I display.

I recently started medication (Vyvanse) as I feel I can no longer cope with the symptoms and am currently struggling as I feel my GP has no clue about ADHD and no clue on how to help me medicate or cope.

I live an hour North of Tulsa in Osage County and would love to find someone local (Greater Tulsa - Bartlesville - Ponca City) who can help me find a way to cope with life with Adult ADHD. I am lucky I stumbled across this blog and saw you to be local!
Thanks
Adhd in Adults

ninocka 5 pts

For the ADHD Awareness week it's good to focus on abilities that inattentive and hyperactive people have. There's a great song celebrating that things which came out recently. Everone should check it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIn9yOZQNok

faithsbluecrystals 5 pts

Thank you for this post. Its a very helpful reminder.

Catherine Morgan 5 pts

Thanks Norma.  Thank you for sharing your story and all of this important information about ADHD.

Contributing Editor Catherine Morgan

at Catherine-Morgan.com ( http://catherine-morgan.com/ ) and Women4Hope ( http://women4hope.wordpress.com/ )

Norma156 5 pts

Wonderful post, Catherine. Our oldest son has severe ADHD, so if you don't mind, I'd like to add a couple of points that buttress your information.

It's not just fidgeting...it's fidgeting without a purpose or apparent goal.

Apparently, ADHD started to be recognized after the Great Influenza. For decades, it was called "minimal brain damage." It was only in the sixties that the medical community began to recognize it for what it is...an umbrella term encompassing a host of neurological disorders.

When our son was diagnosed at age five, the team at Texas Medical Center told us a couple of things I'll never forget. The first was that we could choose to ignore it. It's an "invisible" condition. The child isn't in a wheel chair, for example. But, if we did, they cautioned, we should remember the one-third-one-third-one-third rule. That is, a third of ADHD kids will out grow it, a third will learn to manage it, and a third will go to jail. That's because poor impulse control is a major symtom of the condition. A contributory factor is that many, if not most, ADHD children have severe social problems. So, if for example, someone suggests "Oh, let's steal a car," an ADHD child might go along with it because he or she wants to be liked.

The road for parents of ADHD children is terribly hard. It's not just medicine...it's social therapy, teaching your child the social skills that are intuitive for most children. It's special schools or classrooms. Many ADHD children have learning disorders. It's also monitoring your child carefully so that emotional disorders are promptly identified and treated. (These children know something is "wrong" with them.) Parent should join support groups and never, ever take the child to a therapist or doctor who isn't expert in the condition. Support groups can provide those recommendations.

It's also, hopefully, having a loving extended family, a grandmother, for example, and aunts and uncles, who firmly love the child and communicate it constantly and unwaveringly.

Again, thank you for such a beautifully researched piece and for drawing attention to the condition.