Getting a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) for yourself or your child can be jarring. But while certain characteristics of ADHD, such as struggling to sit still, difficulty focusing, and impulsive behavior, can cause people to have trouble reaching their full potential in school or at work, there are also benefits of ADHD.…

Fidget toys are a popular way to help people push back feelings of anxiety, and improve their focus in the classroom or at work. They’re often used by people who have anxiety or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but anyone can enjoy the benefits that fidget toys provide…Multiple studies have been conducted to address the…

KEY POINTS: Those with ADHD often aim for too much change, set unrealistic expectations about performance, and struggle with following through on goals. The best strategy for achieving one’s goals, especially with ADHD, is to understand the key difference between stress and burnout. Because certain executive functioning skills are typically weaker for people with ADHD,…

Tracking the stress experienced by a pregnant mother, via a wearable device or regular checkups, could prevent developmental delays in the resulting child, according to research recently published in the journal Scientific Reports. The study involved artificial intelligence and electrocardiograms (EKG) and was conducted by scientists from Germany, Argentina, Canada and UW Medicine in Seattle.

The severity of symptoms in individuals with COVID-19 infection varies widely, with up to 40% of patients globally1 remaining asymptomatic while others develop severe and sometimes fatal complications.2 This heterogeneity in illness presentation, along with the overwhelming demands on health care resources in treating patients with COVID-19, highlights the need for strategies to predict which…

Supported by the national research center Synapsy, neuroscientists from University of Geneva (UNIGE), the Centre for Biomedical Imaging (CIBM) and the University Hospital of Geneva (HUG) focused their attention on a new electroencephalographic approach called microstates to identify ADHD’s neurological signatures. The microstates technique is used to look at the combined spatial and temporal aspects…

Suicide researchers in Canada aimed to identify whether people diagnosed with attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at increased risk of attempting suicide. They analyzed data from more than 20,000 respondents from Canada’s National Community Health Survey. Result? 14% of adults with ADHD attempted suicide, while 2.7% of adults without ADHD attempted suicide.

KEY POINTS: Growing up in our society, we learn various social norms across different contexts. ADHD can make it challenging to properly learn those cues. Not understanding or adhering to social norms due to neurodivergency can create negative social outcomes, including at work. In the workplace, ADHD people can struggle to navigate social norms, which…

Regardless, it’s time that ADHD be recognized for what it is: a neurodevelopmental disorder, not a myth, nor a result of poor parenting. Below I will outline structures of the brain that are different in volume and shape and how those differences are thought to be linked to behaviors associated with ADHD. The ADHD brain…

KEY POINTS: There is emerging research on the ADHD-fatigue connection. Simply dealing with ADHD-related problems every day is tiring. There are ways to manage adult ADHD that are less taxing for the brain and can free up mental energy.

KEY POINTS: Sensory processing issues are common in neurodevelopmental disorders such as ADHD and autism. The overstimulation of one or all five senses can trigger sensory overload. Learning what triggers sensory overload and making accommodations using sensory-friendly items can help alleviate a meltdown.

A team, led by Courtney L. Gallen, PhD, Department of Neurology, University of California, assessed a group of children with ADHD on neural, behavioral, and clinical metrics of attention before and after a 4 week at-home intervention on an iPad targeting a critical neural marker for attention.