Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
I specialize in the diagnosis of ADHD in adults and children. I also treat adults with ADHD, helping them to better manage their lives and relationships.
Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder is a neurological disorder that a person is born with and in roughly 2 of out 3 cases will demonstrate symptoms well into adulthood. While attention deficits and hyperactivity are symptoms of ADHD, the disorder is best understood as a dysfunction of the Executive Functioning system in the brain. Examples of executive functioning include planning, organization, time management, emotional regulation, initiation and cessation of tasks, and the ability to use short term memory to mentally manipulate information and create novel or advantages solutions and adaptations to life’s challenges (otherwise known as using ones imagination). ADHD affects approximately 4-7% of American children (similar rates are found in other industrial nations worldwide) and nearly 5% of the adult U.S. population. While some children seem to “out grow” their symptoms as they age, the majority of children continue to have deficits in functioning well into adulthood. While all people are occasionally spacey or forgetful, the ADHD person experiences significant impairment in two or more settings, particularly at school, home or work. Indeed significant impairment in these settings is what differentiates normal executive functioning hiccups with a true case of ADHD. |
Signs and Symptoms of ADHD in Adults
There are three different types of ADHD, including:
Symptoms of ADHD There are three different categories of ADHD symptoms: inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity. Inattention may not become apparent until a child enters the challenging environment of school. In adults, symptoms of inattention may manifest in work or in social situations. A person with ADHD may have some or all of the following symptoms:
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ADHD? ADD? What's the difference?
There actually is a significant difference between ADHD and ADD. Whereas ADHD is more about inhibition and emotional control problems, restlessness, excess energy and a racing mind, ADD is different. ADD is best understood as difficulty with sustained attention, spaciness, head in a fog, daydreaming and a sometimes slow cognitive tempo. In fact leading ADHD expert Russell Barkley suggests that one day ADD and ADHD will be seen as two very different disorders. It is important to get an accurate diagnosis as they are very different disorders.
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