What the heck is ADHD anyway? (Part 2)

OK, so we just talked about how ADHD is medical condition that affects “how you think”.  ADHD means that you think differently, that you have a harder time focusing on just one thing at a time.  Does that mean you can’t do well in school, at work, or in life?  Heck No!

 

But one thing is for sure- you must understand your ADHD, or you will not be able to manage it.  

 

Attention. Deficit. Hyperactivity. Disorder. 

 

Many people are confused by the difference between “ADD” and “ADHD.” They think “ADD” means “I’m not hyper,” and that “ADHD” means “I am hyper.” Actually there is no official “ADD” diagnosis. It’s all called “ADHD.”

 

The “A” is for Attention, which means the ability to focus, and the “D” is for Deficit, which means “less”  or a smaller amount.  So Attention Deficit means “less focused” than other people who do not have ADHD.     

 

The “H” is for Hyperactivity, which means having lots of energy, which in some cases may be disruptive, such as when everyone else is quietly studying and you are tap tap tapping on your desk.  So the Hyperactive means you have more energy than other people. 

 

The “D” means Disorder.  Hey, disorder does not mean broken, in medicine, disorder means “works differently”.  

 

So, having ADHD means you think differently, its harder to focus and sometimes you have so much energy it can be disruptive.  However, we ADDYTeens are all unique.  There are really three types of ADHD, take a look:

 

• Calm but inattentive people are called “ADHD—predominantly inattentive,”
• Physically hyperactive people are called “ADHD—predominantly hyperactive,”
• Those – like me! – who have features of both groups are called “ADHD—combined.”