The Forums › Forums › Ask The Community › Just because I wasn't confused enough… ADD or Gifted? › Re: Just because I wasn't confused enough… ADD or Gifted?
That web site has an interesting take on things but I think it is really saying something that we all know: other things can look like ADHD so the assessment needs to be carefully done. Good advice I think.
I think though, that treating something like ADHD has a lot to do with helping someone reach his or her potential and a lot of that has to do with navigating society. As Larynxa has pointed out, IQ and EQ both matter. While I would never suggest transforming a square peg into a round one (probably impossible anyway) shaving down the corners a bit can make life a lot better.
I really was a square peg from the beginning. Born in 1953, I was identified as gifted in Grade 3. I did Grades 3&4 in one year and then spent Grades 5-8 in an advancement class. I was a poor student then and in high school. I was an outsider who was bullied and beaten up a lot. I later went on to get a PhD but never found work that required it. I recently found my old report cards and other correspondence and it was thought by the school that my hyperactivity, inattention and other classic ADHD symptoms would disappear were I to be challenged. That never happened.
Life for me has been a trail of drifting, unemployment, emotional incompetence, sadness and potential unfulfilled. I was referred to as lazy in my report cards and I’m sure that some of my friends, knowing some of my potential, think so too. Hell, I thought so too for a long time because so many things were left uncompleted or even unstarted. I’ve long thought that others negotiated life a lot more easily than I do. It’s as if they were walking on a level sidewalk while I always seemed to be walking uphill in mud up to my ankles. I never knew why.
I should add that it hasn’t all been bad. I have some great friends who accept my quirks. If I need to, I can learn something quickly and I can do many things very well. In spite of it all, I’m sure some of you would happily trade your problems for mine.
It was on the evening of September 18 last year (John Diefenbaker’s birthday — oh yeah, mine too) that I switched on the TV after too many beers at the pub and saw my life being described in amazing detail by Rick and Patrick. The next time I saw my GP I started the assessment process and it seems now that I’m a rather classic case of adult ADHD. Thanks guys for a great birthday present!!!
So, my point, finally, is that if your child is having difficulties that look like ADHD, something needs to be done. I present a précis of my life as an example of untreated ADHD. There may be some point in our evolutionary history at which what we now call ADHD was an advantage, given how common it is, but in the context of our society, it is not. If a medication makes life easier then I really think that it should be considered. If educational enrichment helps that’s great. The good thing is that it can all be reassessed at any time.
Mmarcel, I wish all the best for you and your son. Good luck in your quest.
REPORT ABUSE