The Gift of ADD

Over the past summer I was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). ADD is different from ADHD in that the hyperactivity component is absent. Also, ADD (primarily inattentive) mostly affects adults, whereas ADHD mostly affects children. Basically, for me, having ADD tells me why I lack the ability to focus on any one thing for a sustained amount of time.

 

Being made aware of this condition was like someone turned on a light switch for me. All of a sudden it made sense. Now I know why I get bored easily, I’m super-sensitive, and I lose everything, everyday. It also helps to explain why I cannot stand the thought of doing the same thing over and over again, day in and day out with no end in sight. The only thing that will push me to work for something really hard is if I’m doing exactly what I want to do….for ME.

 

ADD is a gift to me in my web content production venture, because my interests are varied. I know a little bit about a lot of things, so I have a constant stream of topics in which to write about. Also, another thing that affects people with ADD is the ability to “hyperfocus” on things that are of extreme interest. Sometimes this can be a bad thing because there is no natural stop mechanism, so a person can go overboard. This happened to me as I studied for my LSAT exams a couple of months ago. I was so hyperfocused until I would sit down with my LSAT books from 5 a.m one day until 3 a.m. the next day. On top of that, I would get angry with myself for physically not being able to study longer. It was like this for weeks, it was horrible! BUT, I now know how to control this aspect, so I will be able to utilize this “skill” when I need to write more.

I am extremely interested in Film and Television History, African American History, Personal Finance, Career Choices, Cooking, and Reading, so I will mainly concentrate on those areas. I think I’ll be able to find a lot of things to write about from all of those interests. 

   

**In actuality, Primarily Inattentive ADHD is the correct terminology for what ails me…I just prefer ADD, but it (ADD) has fallen out of modern medical use. For more information on Adult ADD, click here.