<p>OP, I’m really sorry about your DD’s situation. My DS was diagnosed with ADD in second grade and has struggled academically and with the medication ever since. He’ll be applying to colleges this summer and I’ts scary to think he’ll be in charge of his success or failure in a year and a half. He has a high IQ and no learning disabilities, just the Attention Deficit Disorder. </p>
<p>Now, I’m going to get flamed for saying this but so be it. ADD is an attention deficit disorder, not Alzheimer’s (which my father has). ADD makes it harder for people to focus on things for long periods of time, especially when the topic doesn’t interest them. It makes it difficult to study because the mind will drift and want to think of other things, and people who have ADD may not be as organized as those who don’t have ADD. However, those who have ADD are not incapable of forcing themselves to remember to take a pill, study, go to class, etc… </p>
<p>My DS would surf YouTube and Facebook for days if I let him. He can focus quite well on things that amuse him. But, he knows that if he does that then his school work will suffer and he won’t be going to college. At sixteen he can remember to grab his backpack every morning on the way out the door, he remembers his car keys and wallet, and, he remembers to take his medication. He might have a short attention span but he has a memory. He’s disorganized but he remembers the important things. </p>
<p>Please don’t allow your children to use ADD as a crutch every time they fail at something. Having a short attention span is not the same as having no memory. There are definite strategies that ADD kids and adults need to adapt to make up for their lack of organization and focus. The strategies work and make life much easier. </p>
<p>ADD stinks, it makes studying and work a little more challenging but it is not an excuse for failing a class or forgetting to take medication. If anything, I think that if parents coddle and make excuses for their ADD kids every time they don’t do well at something then the kids begin to believe that they can’t function like normal people because they have ADD (which is not true) and they stop trying as soon as things get tough. </p>
<p>I’m sorry for the OP’s DD and for all of you, who like me, live with the challenges of a kid who has ADD. However, if your kids are failing out of college, can’t remember to take a pill in the morning, and can’t pass a class even with tutoring then you must look at the possibility that there is something else going on besides ADD. Maybe the classes are too difficult for them, maybe they really don’t belong in their current major, maybe he/she is depressed, or, maybe they just need a break.</p>