ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by continued inattention, impulsiveness, and hyperactivity. In layman’s terms, it’s a condition that prevents people from paying attention or sitting still, even if their lives depend on it.
For people with this condition, mundane tasks such as following routines and doing chores are difficult to accomplish. Not because of any physical challenges, but they can’t focus on a single task long enough to actually do it.
For reasons, we don’t understand, soon after you command yourself to pay attention, you forget that you commanded yourself to pay attention.
— Edward M. Hallowell, M.D (Delivered from Distraction)
ADHD presents itself from an early age. In some instances, it can be identified in toddlers. It’s one of the most common psychological disorders that are diagnosed in children, the symptoms become less serious as they grow older, but in some cases they can last into adulthood.
These are some of the main indicators that a child has ADHD.
Children are ordinarily not good at paying attention and are impulsive and can be expected to grow out of it, but in children with ADHD, they simply don’t just grow out of it. The symptoms become clearer as they grow and cause problems in school and in their social life.
A child with ADHD may:
- Have a difficult time completing their homework. It’s difficult for children with ADHD to stay focused. Paying attention to a single task for a long period is difficult. The mind can shift focus from one thing to another instantaneously.
- Fidget a lot and can’t sit still
- Make careless mistakes, they may get a lot of injuries
- Daydream a lot
- Have difficulty waiting in line and can’t wait their turn in conversations. They tend to blurt out responses.
- Talk a lot
- Sleeplessness
- Have a hard time making friends
- Be very disorganized
- Experience emotional outbursts. Children and adults with ADHD have trouble controlling their emotions. They may have outbursts of anger.
Most children exhibit these signs. If the symptoms persist in severity and as they grow older, the parent should seek help from a professional, preferably a child psychologist. Though it’s a common condition, more often than not it goes untreated as parents assume that the child will grow out of it or that their children simply aren’t smart. It may come off as immaturity compared to their peers.
When the symptoms persist into puberty, it may present itself in the following ways:
- Difficulty in keeping personal hygiene
- Inability to read social cues
- Difficulty making friends
- Time management issues
- Engaging in risky behaviours
Though it’s a common condition, more often than not it goes untreated as parents assume that the child will grow out of it or that their children simply aren’t smart.
Causes
Researchers haven’t been able to identify the root cause of the condition, but some contributing factors identified are as follows;
- Genetic defects
- Drug use, such as smoking and alcoholism during pregnancy
- Exposure to toxins during pregnancy
- Low birth weight
- Brain injuries.
ADHD is commonly associated with other conditions such as anxiety disorders, depression, rejection sensitivity disorder, conduct disorder, addiction to substances.
People with ADHD are also likely to engage themselves in risky behaviour and dangerous leisure activities such as risky sports and substance abuse because of the low levels of dopamine.
Dopamine is a reward hormone, and the ADHD brain’s dopamine receptors are usually not well-developed. To achieve the reward from the hormone takes more levels of dopamine than a normal brain requires. To stimulate the brain to produce more dopamine levels, people with ADHD engage themselves in risky activities.
ADHD in Adults
As many cases of ADHD go misdiagnosed and untreated, symptoms present themselves into adulthood. The effects of this are severe and can bring the life of an adult living with ADHD to a standstill. The adult can have problems in multiple areas of their lives for prolonged periods of time.
Some symptoms of ADHD in adults include:
- Inability to keep a job; Due to the difficulty in paying attention, adults with ADHD tend to miss deadlines for projects and tasks. Their work may contain a lot of spelling mistakes and tend to have more conflicts with their bosses over their conduct at work.
- History of academic and career underachievement
- Problems in relationships because of impulsiveness, inability to control emotions and forgetfulness
- Poor time and resource management; Because of impulsiveness, adults with ADHD tend to overspend buying things they don’t need. They are very likely to find themselves in cycles of debt.
- Depression and anxiety disorders; Due to the failed relationships and underachievement, adults with ADHD are more likely to go into depression and anxiety.
- People with ADHD hold themselves to really high standards and set goals that are difficult to achieve. When they fail to achieve the set goals, this leads to the thoughts of low self-worth and depression.
Most of the symptoms present in adolescents are also present in adults.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a single physical or genetic test that can be used to make an ADHD diagnosis.
Upside
Well, ADHD does come with an advantage, not many conditions come with advantages. People with ADHD have an immense ability to hyper focus for hours and on things that really draw their interests. Though short-lived, a lot of things can be done in this period. Any deadlines met are more often than not met during this period of hyper focus.
The ADHD brain can also be very creative, this however is often overshadowed by anxiety and adults and even children tend to have low self-worth. This is due to the many unintentional mistakes that they make.
Diagnosis
Unfortunately, there isn’t a single physical or genetic test that can be used to make an ADHD diagnosis. The diagnosis can be made by a qualified mental health practitioner. The practitioner gathers information about the child from multiple sources, including parents and teachers and the patient.
These sources include ADHD symptom checklists, standardized behaviour rating scales, a detailed history of past and current functioning, and information obtained from family members or significant others who know the person well.
Some practitioners will also conduct tests of cognitive ability and academic achievement in order to rule out a possible learning disability.
Diagnosis is made by a trained mental health practitioner
Treatment
A comprehensive diagnosis takes a long time as some symptoms are common to other conditions such as bipolar disorder and autism. Some symptoms may also not present themselves during visits to the practitioner, thus making a diagnosis becomes difficult.
There are various sites online that claim to provide tests for ADHD, these tests should not be taken as a professional diagnosis and treatment options should not be based on the said tests. An accurate diagnosis can only be made by a professional who has taken into account all factors.
ADHD isn’t curable, not yet at least, but it can be managed. There are various options that can be recommended by a specialist, including;
Medications. Stimulants help manage the inattention. Tasks can be achieved and deadlines can be met under the right medication. However, some of these medications are highly addictive, such as adderall. As people with ADHD tend to engage themselves in risky behaviour, they may end up becoming addicts to these stimulants.
ADHD isn’t a death sentence, nor does it require admission to an institution for the mentally ill.
Do not self prescribe!!!
Therapy. Several therapy options can help you or your child with ADHD. Talk to your doctor about whether one or more of these options would be a good choice for your child.
Social skills training. Some basic social skills have to be taught to children with ADHD with serious issues dealing with the environment. The child can also be engaged in behavioural therapy to help them learn how to manage the symptoms.
Conclusion
ADHD isn’t a death sentence, nor does it require admission to an institution for the mentally ill. People with ADHD can and have thrived in their careers and their relationships when they manage the condition. It takes a lot of determination and patience from their loved ones to have a fulfilling life.
If you resonate with any of the above symptoms, do not rush to make a self diagnosis, make sure you get a proper diagnosis and treatment from a qualified medical practitioner. Do not hesitate to reach out for help. Help is available!
