These may include hyperfocus, resilience, creativity, conversational skills, spontaneity, and abundant energy. Many people view these benefits as “superpowers” because those with ADHD can hone them to their advantage. People with ADHD have a unique perspective that others may find interesting and valuable.
Living with ADHD is about monitoring your symptoms and actively working toward finding what works best for you. With the right support and treatment, you can create a life that allows you to reach your greatest potential.
ADHD can be harmful to an individual's social relationships and work and school performance, but effective treatments are available to manage the symptoms of ADHD. Learn about the signs and symptoms of ADHD and when to discuss it with your health care provider.
The five gifts of ADHD include creativity, emotional sensitivity, exuberance, interpersonal empathy, and being nature-smart (The Gift of Adult ADD, 2008).
Good in crises.
A recent study also found that the ADHD brain tends to produce more Theta waves than average brains. Theta waves indicate a state of deep relaxation, and ADHD employees' over-abundance of theta waves can make them great in a crisis.
Executive functions have other roles which affect how someone thinks. In people with ADHD, these executive dysfunctions impact thinking in numerous ways. People with ADHD don't really think faster than people without it, but it can sometimes seem like they do.
Many ADHDers are high achievers. They get advanced degrees, build thriving careers, and launch successful businesses. However, they've likely worked twice as hard as their peers to achieve it due to their (often undiagnosed) ADHD.
ADHD can be an advantage, but only in small specific settings. In the general world it's a curse, but if you find that little spot in life where you just click with the place and the people and the work, it isn't quite a blessing, but it can be an advantage.
As a result, ADHD brains search for stimulation that can increase dopamine more quickly and intensely. Ultimately, the pursuit of pleasurable rewards may become a potent form of self-medication. In fact, dependent brains exhibit similar dysregulation of the dopamine reward system.
Sugar and other high carb foods boost dopamine levels in the brain, leading us to crave them more often when dopamine levels are low. Since children with ADHD have chronically low levels of dopamine, they are more likely than other children to crave and eat sugary or carbohydrate-heavy foods.
It may be associated with other disorders as well, including anxiety, depression, and autism spectrum disorder. If you struggle with ADHD, you may find that certain tasks are more difficult for you. However, through proper treatment and positive life changes, you can live a very happy life with this disorder.
Channing Tatum is one of the most widely recognized celebrities. He also happens to be an actor who has publicly shared his struggles with ADHD during his childhood and how his struggles at school affected him. In fact, he continues to work through related difficulties as an adult.
The mind of a person with ADHD is full of the minutiae of life (“Where are my keys?” “Where did I park the car?”), so there is little room left for new thoughts and memories. Something has to be discarded or forgotten to make room for new information. Often the information individuals with ADHD need is in their memory…
ADHD is not on the autism spectrum, but they have some of the same symptoms. And having one of these conditions increases the chances of having the other. Experts have changed the way they think about how autism and ADHD are related.
People with ADHD will have at least two or three of the following challenges: difficulty staying on task, paying attention, daydreaming or tuning out, organizational issues, and hyper-focus, which causes us to lose track of time. ADHD-ers are often highly sensitive and empathic.
Causes of ADHD
Recent studies link genetic factors with ADHD. In addition to genetics, scientists are studying other possible causes and risk factors including: Brain injury. Exposure to environmental risks (e.g., lead) during pregnancy or at a young age.
Though brain scans cannot yet reliably diagnose ADHD, some scientists are using them to identify environmental and prenatal factors that affect symptoms, and to better understand how stimulant medications trigger symptom control vs. side effects.
A: ADHD brains need more sleep, but find it doubly difficult to achieve restfulness. It is one of those ADHD double whammies: ADHD makes it harder to get enough sleep, and being sleep deprived makes it harder to manage your ADHD (or anything else).
Intense emotions and hyperfocus
Kids with ADHD often feel emotions more deeply than other kids do, and love is no exception. When teens with ADHD fall in love, the good — and bad — feelings that come with it can be even more intense and more disruptive. New relationships or crushes are exciting and (mostly) enjoyable.
While many experts agree that these children do exist, there is currently no formal criteria to identify giftedness in children who are ADHD or to identify ADHD in children who are gifted.
Parents with ADHD may have trouble managing their emotional reactions when their children misbehave. And it's sometimes harder for them to pay attention to their kids' positive behaviors, which should be acknowledged and praised. Treatment can help with these issues as well.
High IQ may “mask” the diagnosis of ADHD by compensating for deficits in executive functions in treatment-naïve adults with ADHD.
If you or your child has been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), it's important to seek treatment. If you think you or your child has ADHD but you haven't been diagnosed, ask a doctor for their opinion, in case treatment is needed. Untreated ADHD can cause problems throughout life.