<p>Middle DS did that test above they are talking about along with other things. He was diagnosed with ADHD. We tried him on 1 drug on the lowest dose and it has worked wonders. It does not make him into a zombie. All it does is allows him to pay attention in class. If you have not been tested get tested. Also you can try this hand test… if you fail you might have ADHD.</p>
<p>FlyMe, you just stole my post. Although I have no personal experience, I just met a man and his 2 young daughters, and one of the daughters was on a gluten free diet. He told me that before going gluten free she had been “bouncing off the walls” displaying all kinds of ADD-type behaviors, and the diet made a huge difference.</p>
<p>There is so much “gluten-free” food around now it seems like it would be a relatively easy adjustment to make for a while to remove gluten from the diet.</p>
<p>I also do not think that the OP has ADD – THIS is NOT ADD, but boredom.
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<p>It’s hard for most normal people to truly focus on things they have no interest in. People with ADHD sometimes can also hyperfocus on some activities (like computer games) – but would probably find their minds wandering very quickly with long lectures or textbooks.</p>
<p>OP sounds high-energy and overwhelmed, and also clearly has difficulty with organizational skills. But I think that most people would have difficulty keeping up with the schedule she describes.</p>
<p>I think if I were OP’s mom, I’d recommend yoga. Not because yoga could possibly cure ADHD, but because I am thinking that the OP needs to relax and take time out from her busy day, and yoga is one way I know to do that. I think for some people, the idea of sitting still and not doing anything just doesn’t feel right … so yoga or meditation or something similar gives the person something to “do” and at the same time helps to quiet the mind.</p>
<p>This is the OP’s phrase that concerns me: “My mind runs at a million miles per hour, and I have tons of ideas, but not ability to act on them.” That could be nothing, or it could be serious. If it’s mania, the last thing you would want to take are ADHD meds (by the way, “ADHD” is still the correct term, even without hyperactivity - “ADD” is used only by laymen). My middle son has ADHD AND bipolar disorder. His doctor has been frustrated, because S can’t take ADHD meds, since they’re stimulants and could kick S into a manic phase. The doctor says that currently, the ADHD is a bigger problem for S than the bipolar disorder.</p>
<p>Bottom line: You should be evaluated by a professional. If s/he doesn’t find anything, than you can try other suggestions. But it’s playing with fire not to know what’s going on.</p>
<p>We put our kids on a gluten free diet for months, it didn’t work for their ADD. Then had them tested for evidence of a gluten allergy, none were found and we ditched the diet. Tried amino acids, yoga, pilates, and the list goes on. Finally after 3 separate pediatric developmental testings, we wanted a second and third opinion, ADD was finally diagnosed. 3 or 4 different ADD medications later, we finally have a very productive child.</p>
<p>I am very relieved by the postings on this thread because I was very concerned that misconceptions would run rampant based on the OP’s post. Many of you get it. I am sure many of you have been through some of the most frustrating periods of your parenting while your kids floundered before diagnosis and treatment. The same goes with the kids who have struggled with their ADD/ADHD. I am very concerned for the well-being of the OP because the history he/she presented doesn’t make sense. The reality is that they would be a very high functional ADD patient if I believed the whole story. 17 years old with 66 college credits, 4.0 GPA, 31 ACT, racing thoughts and ADD doesn’t make any sense.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the suggestions.
To make things a little clearer, I was diagnosed with ADD, but they didnt think it was severe enough to warrant medication. I took the test some of you mentioned, the one where you sit in front of a computer screen and they test your reaction time. I was able to do better than I normally would have because it was new, interesting, and I was able to hyperfocus (a quality of ADD). I also naturally have very sharp reflexes and reaction time, and thanks to years of art and classical piano, exceptional hand/eye coordination. If it had been a different type of test, I probably would have done much worse. I took several other tests and filled out a questionnaire (on which I wasnt entirely truthful to say the least) and thats how they got my diagnosis. I plan on going back and retaking sometime this month. Im sure that I have ADD because I read books on the subject such as Driven to Distraction and the symptoms, lifestyles, and way of thinking that they described fit me like a glove.<br>
I think part of the reason I can function a lot better than some with ADD is due to my strict Asian mother. My mom never took excuses, so I came up with many solutions to my problems to compensate. What remains after a lot of applied willpower is a lot more manageable, but still a struggle to live with. Just one example from just yesterday was when my mom asked me to go do my laundry, the third reminder in two days. The laundry room was 20 feet from where we were standing. I started towards the laundry room with every intention of doing it, but while I was walking towards it, my brain (which is constantly processing ideas, to-dos, random things, etc) suddenly thought about some art project I was working on, and I immediately, completely, forgot about laundry and went to work on the painting before my mom, now exasperated, called and reminded me of the wet laundry still sitting in the washer machine. This happens every day for nearly everything that Im not interested or passionate about. Or in Calculus class (which I hate) at a local community college, the lecture is only an hour long. I always come to class determined to focus, and always end up thinking instead about some dumb random thing like frogs, or an idea for an ice cream shop, or the person who left the gum on the back of the chair in front of me. I also took Chemistry I&II and Math. I find chemistry and math pretty uninteresting. Math I hate with a bitter passion. I had to get tutors for both areas of study every time because I could just not make myself self study for those subjects. On tests, I often got As, but when I did make mistakes, it was almost always just really careless errors (another symptom of ADD). These are just a few of many, many more examples I could give. Every symptom of ADD, I have, and it affects many areas of my life.</p>
<p>Regarding several questions about my schooling situation; I basically take college classes instead of highschool classes because highschool just seem like a watered down version of college. I felt like I was wasting my time. I have 66 credits so far through CLEP tests, Community College classes, and a local university with a dual enrollment program. I take 12-18 credits per semester. I’m homeschooled, which made this possible. Speaking of which, homeschooling was always painful for me because of the immense self-studying required. I managed to get all A’s because I was an effective crammer. My mom always thought I was a terrible student until I took college classes where they have a schedule/syllabus laid out, and it was much easier for me to organize my study time. Normally I have so much running through my head that I don’t know where to begin. I can’t prioritize, everything seems urgent to me, oftentimes I end up getting so overwhelmed with everything I “have” to do, I end up doing nothing productive at all. I just sit and draw, or play the piano, at total loss of what to do. I definitely have ADD, but I’m pretty sure I have other problems such as executive functioning. </p>
<p>About the medication, I do know many who were helped greatly by it; some at the expense of their creativity or spontaneity, some who remained creative while being greatly helped by the medication. I also know many who became complete zombies. They act like their half asleep all the time. A few seem ■■■■■■■■ now that they are on the medication. I know a lot has to do with finding the proper dose of medication. I know a lot of the problems that occur with medication is a result of incorrect dosage. I know it would probably help me a lot, but I’m just not comfortable with the medication, yet, and would like to avoid it if at all possible. I think I’ll definitely try a change in diet. I do eat a lot of sugar and carbs, so I’ll look into it more and probably reduce or completely eliminate those while increasing my protein and fat intake. I also do need to exercise more, that would probably help. I’m starting with a personal trainer this year for 6 months (not overweight, just for toning and my tennis game) and so that should help with making sure I exercise regularly. The diet he requires his clients to use is also high in proteins and good fats, low in sugar and carbs. I’m also going to try and eliminate as many GMO foods as possible. I ate a 100% organic for a few months and noticed a significant difference in my ability concentrate and focus. I stopped because of the expense (my parents thought I should pay for my own groceries if I wanted to go organic) but it might be worth going back to eating that way, it can’t cost more than medication would.</p>
<p>Eemahavul: I did say just tested, I meant diagnosed, sorry for the inconsistency. Also apologize for posting twice, for whatever reason, the first thread wasn’t showing up on my list of threads on my cc account, I thought for some reason it hadn’t posted. </p>
<p>And yes, I am probably overscheduled, but I don’t see that part changing anytime soon. I want to go to either med or vet school, and I feel like what I’m doing is necessary to becoming a competitive applicant. I have a love/hate relationship with the stress it brings. On one hand, I always feel like I’m one step away from falling off the cliff, on the other hand, I go stir crazy and even depressed when I don’t constantly have something I have to do. Vacations are pure torture for me, I now bring schoolwork and anything else I can work on to keep myself busy at the beach or wherever we may go. I should try yoga, just right now, I don’t even have time for my poor friends so it might have to wait until I can find an opening for it.</p>
<p>memphismnb, you might want to try some mindful meditation. When my mind is racing and I can’t figure out where to start, even 5-10 minutes of silence, listening to my breathing (when anything invades my mind, I just gently push it away and concentrate on my breathing again) can be a huge help. It doesn’t have to involve spirituality, buddhism, etc.–it doesn’t for me. I set the alarm on my cell phone for 10 or 15 minutes. 15 for when I am feeling especially stressed out and I know it will take me a while to push away all those thoughts.</p>
<p>When the alarm goes off, I often make a list of what I have to do. I keep a little notebook in my pocketbook for that. I am not a good enough cell-phone-typist to keep it there but that would work too.</p>
<p>One more thing. I don’t think I’m doing a whole lot more than any other high-level student. I personally know a few highschool students who do just as much or even more than me. Just look at the ECs that cc students post. I have my studies, I have my research, am a serious classical pianist, an artist, train and show dogs professionally at the national level, volunteer (stress relief), and play some tennis, am a purple belt in Taekwondo, distance runner, and run several small businesses. As a homeschooler, I don’t have the usual varsity sports or club presidencies, but I think it’s no more than many of the CC students or high achieving students out there. I just think it takes me way longer to do something than a person with no ADD. I worked extremely hard to get my grades and my ACT 31, it took everything. I try really hard, but it takes me forever to get through tests or reading materials because I’m constantly having to reign my focus back in or reread areas I just glazed over. Essays with word limits are painful because I have this whole big jumbled mess of ideas that I want to write down, and I can’t prioritize what is important, and what is not. I’m a good writer when I can focus, but several times I have gotten comments from professors stating that my essay lacked focus, or that it when everywhere and nowhere at once. It pretty much describes my brain’s state I think.</p>
<p>oldmom4896: Thanks, I might try some meditation. I always stopped before because I could never concentrate and it was painful to sit down and do nothing, but I guess it just takes practice like anything else. I recently read “College with Confidence” (for ADD teens) and they were really recommending meditation as well.</p>
<p>Sorry, I wasn’t very clear. I did get diagnosed, not tested. I took several tests as well as the computer test where you stare at the screen and they test your reaction time. I think I was able to do well on the latter because of my exceptional hand/eye coordination from a lifetime of classical piano and art. Also, I can hyperfocus when something interests me, and this, being new, interested me. The psychiatrist said I did have ADD, but that it wasn’t severe enough to warrant medication. I am going to go back for a second diagnosis to get more accurate results.</p>
<p>ClassicRockerDad: Thank you! I’ll look into a Naturopathy Doctor, never heard of that. </p>
<p>And yes, I’ll be changing my diet to more protein and good fats, less sugars and carbs. </p>
<p>Regarding meditation, I’ll give it another chance. I tried a few times once, but could not stop thinking about random dumb things and to-do lists. It was painful to just sit there and do nothing. I guess it takes practice though, like anything else.</p>
<p>My DD has ADD and is nowhere near as driven as the OP - I almost want to say bipolar as well but I’m not a doctor - the ‘racing thoughts, i.e. I can’t shut my brain off, mind runs at a million miles per hour’ are a clue though that it is something depression related and not ADHD. She takes meds but has side effects (tics and sleep issues, is really quiet around her friends). So she will take meds from say Monday through Thursday, skip Friday so she can socialize a bit. School is still a struggle at about a 2.8 gpa and all because she hates taking the meds.</p>
<p>Cmgrayson, I completely agree with your post and urge the OP to be assessed by a psychiatrist. I can’t imagine any of my kids accomplishing what the OP has without medication. They would fail miserably though with the appropriate medications would excel. But if they told me they had racing thoughts, they would go straight to a psychiatrist to rule out BPAD. Bipolar patients can be very successful; I know of several surgeons who are bipolar.</p>
<p>Please followup with a psychiatrist and get a second opinion.</p>
<p>My sons’ psychiatrist told me that I wouldn’t believe how many of his profession in Maine are bipolar! I refrained from asking the obvious question…</p>