I was 27, at home, couldn’t work, had a burn out, and my psychologist suggested to go to the ADHD clinic to take a test. Tadaaa. At age 27, the ADD centre gave me the ADD diagnosis.
Though I had some problems as a child, nobody ever thought off ADD. ADD in girls is highly underdiagnosed.
After this ADD diagnosis, I took some time reading about ADD.
‘DUH, that is soooo me’, I thought.
It explained my whole life. It made me cry. On the other hand, it made me laugh so hard. But mostly it made me cry, from both sadness and happiness.
One ‘little’ add diagnosis made me feel like ‘finally, someone understands me’.
All hyperactive kids have ADHD now, right?
ADHD has probably the highest ‘diagnose-rate’ at the moment, when you talk about ‘mental disabilities’. Some people argue that doctors are giving this diagnose too quickly. This might be true, but I think that statement is a little too black and white.
I read a lot about ADHD, and about the neurology of this ‘disorder’. I think the name Attention Deficit Disorder is wrong. It’s not a disorder, and it shouldn’t be treated as a disorder. It also shouldn’t be treated with medication, because there are other solutions. Solutions which treat the source instead of the symptoms.
I guess people with ADD/ADHD just have a different type of brain, and this brain doesn’t fit perfectly in our society.
But this is another story… Let’s stick to the subject: What does ADD feels like, for a child, without having the ADD diagnosis?
ADD is less obvious than ADHD
ADD, Attention Deficit Disorder (without hyperactivity) is not so obvious, because kids with ADD, mostly girls, are not hyperactive.
The symptoms are more subtle. Not for the kid, but for the outside world.
What’s an ‘ADD kid’ like?
Children with ADD aren’t especially hyperactive, as kids with ADHD are.
Kids with ADD are more dreamy, impulsive, unpredictable, chaotic.
Highly sensitive, often overwhelmed by their surroundings.