ADHD and My Drug Addiction: Down the Rabbit Hole and Back Into the Light
One September day when I was 29, I stopped as I often did at Mount Sinai hospital in New York City to hold my dying mother’s hand as she fought her final battle with ovarian cancer. And as I always did, I soon grew antsy and impatient, and said to her, “I’m sorry I can’t…
Read MoreFlipping the Script on ADHD: Find Your Strength in the Workplace and Dispel the Myths Along Your Path
If you have ADHD, you’ve probably been told to look for a job that will accommodate your ADHD weaknesses. Over and over, people tell you to become a firefighter, a hairdresser, or join the military. “You’ll do great because these jobs will let you move around a lot. You won’t have to sit still! They’re…
Read MoreWhy Can’t I Do This? How Emotional Intelligence and Self-Regulation Pay Off for Adults with ADHD
WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME you experienced a set of emotions so intense that they overtook your mind, resulting in a lack of normal functioning? Perhaps you blanked in a job interview, shut down during an exam, or spent days wiped out after the emotional explosion with your kids or your spouse. Perhaps it’s been…
Read MoreMy Child Survived an Overdose
A YEAR AGO, MY YOUNG ADULT DAUGHTER, after nine years of sobriety, overdosed on heroin in our home. Because she survived, we are more fortunate than many families. My purpose here isn’t to relive her overdose or frighten readers unnecessarily. If you know someone affected by the disease of addiction, my experience may give insight…
Read MoreBecoming Partners Again
The Problem: Unequal Status That No One Likes ONE OF THE MOST COMMON ISSUES THAT COUPLES FACE when struggling with how to respond to ADHD in their relationship is an increasingly unequal distribution of responsibility between the partners. This happens over time, as the partner who has ADHD inconsistency encourages the non-ADHD partner to pick…
Read MoreHow to Be Angry Better
MANY OF US, INCLUDING SOME PEOPLE WITH ADHD, have anger behavior problems. We know emotional dysregulation is a common reason for this. In their study on ADHD and emotional dysregulation, Philip Shaw and his colleagues define it as “an individual’s ability to modify an emotional state so as to promote adaptive, goal-oriented behaviors.” To modify…
Read MoreWhen ADHD and Substance Use Disorders Coexist
FOR PEOPLE WITH ADHD across the lifespan, the co-occurrence of other disorders is generally the rule rather than the exception. Experts estimate that at least 60-80 percent of children, adolescents, and adults with ADHD have at least one other condition. Conduct disorders, oppositional defiant disorder, learning disorders, and anxiety and mood disorders are the most…
Read MoreWhat’s Up with All This Anger?
Here’s how you can reduce your frustration, manage intense feelings, and live with more contentment. YOU KNOW THE MOMENT. The moment when something goes wrong or someone says a few words that set you off. A switch has flipped and suddenly there’s a bubbling volcano of angry, negative emotions inside of you waiting to erupt.…
Read MoreMindfulness, Meditation, and Yoga as Treatments for ADHD
THIS RESEARCH UPDATE focuses on a single overarching question: Are third-wave therapies (such as mindfulness, meditation, and yoga) effective in treating ADHD? The first paper integrates several studies in youth and the second paper focuses on a single randomized controlled trial in college students. Are mindfulness, meditation, and yoga effective treatments for ADHD in children?…
Read More19 Consejos para encontrar tratamiento para el ADHD a bajo costo
¡Ayuda! ¿Cómo puedo obtener una evaluación para el TDAH si mi seguro de salud no me proporciona una cobertura adecuada? Muchos doctores en mi área, no aceptan nuevos pacientes o no participan en mi plan de seguro de salud o quieren cobrar demasiado. No tengo mucho dinero para poder pagarlo yo mismo. ¿Cómo puedo…
Read MoreTraining in the Trades
Worried about the traditional college route? Learn about the positive realities of this option for students with ADHD. SAM COMES FROM A FAMILY of high achievers. Everyone in his family who is older than him has gone to college, and everyone who is younger is expected to go as soon as they graduate from…
Read More19 Tips for Finding Low-Cost ADHD Treatment
En español “Help! How can I get an ADHD assessment when my insurance doesn’t provide adequate coverage? Many doctors in my area don’t take new patients or don’t participate in my insurance plan or they charge way too much. I’m not rich enough to pay for it myself.” “How can I get my child evaluated…
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