How do you know if you have ADD?

happymomof1
Tue, 21 Apr 2009 07:30:48 +0000

You have a legal right to request a formal evaluation by the school psychologist. Talk to your counselor about your struggles, and ask for a meeting with the resources team. Students who are very smart often are identified very late because they manage to compensate for their learning differences for many years. I have friends who were diagnosed very late with dyslexia (halfway through a Ph.D. program) and ADD (halfway through college). In both cases, identifying their learning differences made huge improvements in their lives.

Not everyone who has ADD is a good candidate for medication. Each person reacts differently to the available treatments. Don’t be afraid to seek evaluation because you don’t want to take meds. A good counselor/therapist can help you learn organizational and time-management skills that may be as effective, or possibly even more effective for you than medication.

Wishing you all the best.