Struggles Of Adults With ADD/ADHD

[MatthewGoodman]

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) are things that people often associate with children, however many adults who were diagnosed with it as a child never fully grow out of it. Here are some of the things adults with ADD/ADHD struggle with.

1) Lack Of Focus

We have a very hard time getting focused and staying focused on a certain task. Sometimes we find ourselves checking the refrigerator for anything new more often then we find ourselves doing any work. The most frustrating part is that sometimes we WANT to get work done, but we can't stay focused long enough to get that work done.

2) Hyperfocus

In contrast to the previous point, once we do finally get focused, we can sometimes enter what many call "Hyperfocus" or a very intense state of focus. We will become oblivious to our surroundings and blot out distractions. While this may sound like a good thing, it isn't. It allows us to easily lose track of time and ignore those around us, leading to some misunderstandings.

3) Medications

This one can be broken down into a few categories:

a) Expenses

Medication for ADD/ADHD is expensive. For generic brands they are $100 and brand names are $300. On top of that, sometimes your doctor may even prescribe different brand name prescriptions (for the different dosages amounts) racking up the cost.

b) Side Effects

Methylphenidate HCL, the drug (for lack of a better term) used to treat ADD/ADHD has several side effects including nervousness, trouble sleeping, loss of appetite, weight loss, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, or headache with the last four (possibly five) being ones you should see your doctor about. The loss of appetite is the hardest one to deal with. I often finding myself skipping lunch or turning down certain events because I simply can't eat, even if I wanted to.

c) Not On Your Meds

Say, you have an important event you need to attend to. Maybe a family gathering that you simply can't turn down. Maybe you just don't want to deal with the side effects. Or maybe you simply just forgot to take your medication. Good luck trying to get anything done. Many people would simply say "why not just take it now?" Methylphenidate HCL is a controlled release drug, it takes time to kick in. It doesn't work instantly, so if you don't take your medications, your day is shot.

4) Careless Mistakes

One big thing that also comes along with ADD/ADHD are careless mistakes. While everyone does make careless mistakes from time to time, people with ADD/ADHD tend to make them more often. Sometimes things just slip past the radar, even when proofreading. I sometimes find myself proofreading things seven or eight times to make sure I got everything correct (no spelling mistakes, no punctuation errors, proper sentence structure, proper paragraph structure, etc.) and I still miss stuff that can lead to some pretty embarrassing situations or worse.

These are several things that I and many others struggle with when dealing with ADD/ADHD as an adult. This Take was done pre request of a user by the name of HotDogg. I hope that I have covered most, if not everything. If anyone reading this has or knows someone with ADD/ADHD and would like to share something that I missed please do share. And as always, thanks for reading.

[Logorithim]

I appreciate this MyTake because it explains to those who don't have ADD/ADHD what it's like for those who do. For those of us who don't have it, we won't fully understand this unless we either know someone who does or explicitly learn about it.

[RedRobin]

Very true, I have ADHD and I can relate

[Dominace100]

This is spot on as I too have ADHD. I really hope more people see the MyTake.

[HotDogg]

Great information, well done!