What is ADHD- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder? It is a condition where a person has differences in brain development and brain activity that affect attention, the ability to sit sill, and self-control. ADHD can affect a child (or adult) at school, at home, business and in friendships.
Often females go undiagnosed, and many people are not identified until they reach adulthood. Common presentations are forgetfulness, hyperactivity, excessive talking, poor management of time, poor working memory, regulation difficulties, impulsive, may zone out in conversations, easily distracted, disorganization, absent-mindedness, extreme fatigue. There is also a connection with common symptoms to another condition which is Autism. Many people think that there is a defined line between the two conditions but, these presentations are “spectrums” where you can have a severe deficit in one area and not in others. Often people don’t realize that you can have both ADHD and Autism. There is no one size fits all diagnoses.
Inattentive type ADHD presents, lack of focus, disorganization, trouble following directions, forgetfulness. Whereas Hyperactivity-impulsive type ADHD presents as impatience, interrupts others, always on the go, excessive activity, difficulty paying attention, fidgets, with the understanding that a person can have both types combined together.
What if someone is “neurodivergent”? We can agree that no two brains are alike. Being neurodivergent means having a brain that works differently from the average or “neurotypical” person. Neurodiversity can include Autism, ADHD, ADD, Dyslexia (learning disorder), Dyscalculia (Learning disorder in math) and Dyspraxia (coordination disorder).
This may mean there are differences in social preferences, ways of learning, ways of communicating and/or ways of perceiving the environment. This is the key to understand if you are diagnosed or are a parent of a child diagnosed.
Treatment plans need to include proper nutrition, with suggestions to keep things organic and avoid chemical processing. Other treatments are Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) to assist with regulation. Becoming aware of internal feelings assists with response. There are supplements available that can support a reduction in symptoms, helping information
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