It's ADHD Awareness Month
October is ADHD Awareness Month, which means the past few weeks have been flooded with information. Let’s debunk 5 common myths of ADHD.
Myth: ADHD affects only children
FACT: Anyone can have ADHD! Adult women very often go undiagnosed, as do adult men. Every year we learn more about the human brain and about ADHD. The general public does not yet realize that this condition affects all ages and sexes. Unfortunately, this includes many physicians and therapists as well.
Myth: ADHD is caused by bad parenting
FACT: While bad parenting, too much electronics, pollution or environmental stress can make life in general much worse, they do not directly cause ADHD. In most cases, one inherits a genetic predisposition to ADHD which a negative environment can draw out. As the growing field of epigenetics is proving, there is a life-determining interaction between a person’s genetic endowment and the environment in which he or she lives.
Myth: If you have ADHD, you can’t focus.
FACT: People with ADHD have the ability to hyperfocus! This is why I prefer the term “Turbo Thinker” since there really is no deficit of focus skills at all. When what they are doing interests them they may even lose track of time or their biological needs. It is when the brain is bored that it begins to wander in all sorts of directions and speeds. Hyperfocus is only one of many superpowers that Turbo thinkers may have at their disposal. View our Why We Love Turbo Thinkers download.
Myth: Medication can fix ADHD
FACT: First of all, there is nothing to “fix.” While medication can often be useful in dealing with ADHD, it is neither always necessary nor always effective. The starting point in managing ADHD is education and professional support. This is a story of pills and skills. While you may or may not take pills, you will always need skills. For example, you may need glasses to read. But you still need someone to teach you how to read. Ideally you have someone who can help you discover how you best read and retain information in an enjoyable way. This is how an ADHD coach can understand, encourage and support you.
Myth: People with ADHD are losers.
FACT: While people with ADHD may struggle in school or flounder as adults, they can also excel. With the right help, they can rise to the very top of whatever field they enter.
There are Nobel Prize winners who have ADHD, as well as Pulitzer Prize winners, Academy Award winners, self-made millionaires and billionaires and CEO’s. Nothing has to stop you if you have ADHD.