Edge Foundation Blog

A special thanks to Edge Foundation Executive Director, Robert Tudisco for inspiring this article.  Robert was an adult when he received his ADHD diagnosis.  Since that time he tackled his ADHD head-on and shared what has worked for him.  Robert is a frequent contributor to Attention Magazine and ADDitude Magazine.  The material for this article was taken from one he wrote for adults in the workplace.

Introspection is the key

Medication and coping strategies do not cure ADHD, but they can go a long way toward managing its symptoms.  There are a ton of strategies out there you can try, the key to making any of them effective is to look deep inside yourself and honestly appraise your strengths and weaknesses.  Take the example of your where you study.  How you set up your study environment can make a big difference in either contributing to your ADHD challenges, or playing to your strengths.  Don’t be afraid to experiment.  Understanding why a system didn’t work for you can provide you with valuable information about designing a system that will.

Identify your distractions

Start by figuring out what distracts you and work to eliminate those distractions.  Are you prone to audible distractions, visible distractions, or both?  Are you distractible some times more than others?  For instance, sometimes silence can help focus.  And other times silence can intensify the distracting noise in your head.  Try experimenting with white noise or music to keep the part of your brain busy that wants to wander.  Understanding what distracts you can be very empowering because you gain an element of control over things that have previously made you feel helpless.

Curb internet distraction

While the internet can be a very useful tool for research and in some cases productivity, it can also be black hole for wasted time.  EVERYONE is distracted by the internet.  It’s too easy to click on a link that appears to go to a related topic until you are so far afield from where you need to be you’ve forgotten what you are supposed to be working on.  Plus, the stimulation of the click, refresh and status update check can get your mind running like a hamster on a wheel.  When you find yourself distracted by the internet, turn it off.  For example, if you are working on a paper that you know you will have a hard time sticking to – take control and turn the internet off!

Identify a productive place

Designing a safe and productive place does not always mean a place within your own home or office.  Learn to experiment in different settings to see whether or not they are helpful to your productivity.  For instance, no matter how much you minimize distractions in your home or office, there may always be subtle reminders of other projects that you have to do.  Some people clean their house when they should be studying.  If you are one of those people, heading to the library may be the ticket to focusing.

Pick your prime time

Are you more productive in the morning?  Are you less productive in the afternoon?  Do you get more done in the study hall before everyone gets there and starts whispering or at the end of the day when things quiet down?  The answers to these questions can be invaluable in making the most of that prime time.  Figure out when you are most productive, and then spend that time on the things you find hardest to focus on.

Get support

Regardless of how hard we try to work around our problems, we may often find that the biggest obstacle we face is ourselves.  When that is the case, don’t be afraid to think WAY outside the box and even outside of yourself.  Don’t be afraid to seek the help of a coach who can work with you to develop a system of structure and accountability that can work for you and get you to where you need to be.

When you start thinking about productivity as a state of mind instead of a destination, you being the important step of taking control of yourself.  Empower yourself to success.  And remember, you are not alone.

If you are attending college, you probably don’t realize that just a few short years ago gambling was not part of everyday American life.  Today gambling is as common as alcohol in college life.  There are gambling opportunities everywhere:   Vegas vacations targeting the spring break crowd, state-run lottery tickets at every corner store, Native-run casinos just up the road, slot games can be joined from every computer, and dorm room card games are a Friday night ritual.

Gambling isn’t that big a deal, right?

Wrong!  Most people don’t think of gambling as being that much of a problem, so it gets little attention.  But did you know that nearly 10% of college students qualify as problem gamblers?  That’s a higher number than for adults!

Think you don’t know anyone with a gambling problem, think again.  Statistics show that at least 1 person sitting around the 10 person table at your seminar has a gambling problem or 30 people in that lecture hall are spending too much money on gaming.

ADHD and Gambling:  a bad combination

Students with ADHD are especially at risk for developing a gambling addiction. In fact ADHD students have an even higher rate of problem gambling than other college students – as many as 19% (nearly 1 in 5) college students with ADHD have a problem with gambling.

Researchers are still teasing out why this is the case.  But if you have lived with ADHD it’s pretty easy to make the connection between problem gambling and ADHD.  Impulse control is a hallmark of ADHD, and impulse control is a hallmark of addiction.  Gambling is also exciting and can feed the ADHD brain’s craving for stimulus and excitement.

Researchers have found that there are strong associations between ADHD and addictive behavior, including substance abuse, alcoholism, and nicotine dependence.

Do you have a gambling problem?

The National Council on Problem Gambling offers this checklist:

10  Questions About Gambling Behavior

1. You have often gambled longer than you had planned.
2. You have often gambled until your last dollar was gone.
3. Thoughts of gambling have caused you to lose sleep.
4. You have used your income or savings to gamble while letting bills go unpaid.
5. You have made repeated, unsuccessful attempts to stop gambling.
6. You have broken the law or considered breaking the law to finance your gambling.
7. You have borrowed money to finance your gambling.
8. You have felt depressed or suicidal because of your gambling losses.
9. You have been remorseful after gambling.
10. You have gambled to get money to meet your financial obligations.

If you or someone you know answers “Yes” to any of these questions, consider seeking assistance from a professional regarding this gambling behavior by calling the National Problem Gambling HelpLine Network (800.522.4700) toll free and confidential throughout the U.S.

Facts sited in this post are primarily drawn from these two excellent research reports on ADHD and college gambling:

http://www.camh.net/egambling/issue2/clinic/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2775442/

Last August, Edge interviewed Dr. Patricia Quinn regarding her work with girls and ADHD.  Dr. Quinn, an Edge Foundation board member, has published four books about the special ADHD challenges that women and girls face that are different men and boys.  Some of those challenges include:

• Under diagnosis due to symptoms that don’t echo the male standard for ADHD
• Hyperactivity presenting as talkativeness and emotional behavior instead of the classic “propelled by a motor.”
• Greater disorganization, depression and anxiety than boys.

This fall Dr. Quinn will publish a new book, 100 Questions and Answers about ADHD in Women and Girls.  We thought this would be a good time to ask her a few questions of our own.

Edge: Is there anything about the challenges ADHD girls and women face that has emerged for you since our last interview?

Dr. Quinn: I think we have seen more in the way of confirming the development of eating disorders in girls with ADHD.

Edge: What, if anything, is unique about diagnosing ADHD girls with eating disorders than is different from other girls?

Dr. Quinn: Well first, the symptom of impulsivity seems to be a significant factor in the development of eating disorders in girls with ADHD. Poor self-esteem may also play a role, but one does not see the impaired body image seen in girls with eating disorders in general.  Girls with ADHD may binge and develop bulimia, but not because of a desire for thinness, but rather because of mindless or impulsive eating. Women with ADHD often report that they eat to feel better or for stimulation.

Edge: What should parents do when they suspect their daughter with ADHD has an eating disorder?

Dr. Quinn: Parents of these girls should pursue a complete assessment with an eating disorder specialist trained to realize that ADHD may be part of the picture. Girls will need to be treated for their ADHD symptoms (inattention and impulsivity) in order to be able to follow a program to address their disordered eating. Stimulants not only treat the symptoms of ADHD, but, according to some experts, may actually decrease the urge to binge.

Edge: Is there anything else you want people to know about girls and ADHD?

Dr. Quinn: Girls tend to suffer silently for many years, and as a result develop poor self-esteem early on. In addition, many develop anxiety because of their untreated ADHD symptoms. Their symptoms seem to sneak up and ambush them and they worry that this will happen again. So, they get anxious or develop compensatory strategies. They may worry and begin checking to see if they have a test they have forgotten about, or a book they forgot to bring home from school.

They can even develop obsessive compulsive personality disorders where they try to control one aspect of their life to the exclusion of others.  I have seen girls with ADHD become perfectionists to compensate for their symptoms. They spend a great amount of time and energy trying to compensate until it all gets too much for them and they get depressed or just give up.  It is, therefore, important to treat ADHD in girls even if they seem to be doing well academically and holding it all together because they may be doing so at a great cost.

I also want to send the overall message that the disorder does not remit but continues to cause significant problems and functional impairments particularly in girls with the inattentive type ADD.

Edge: What would you say, then to parents who are hoping their daughter will just “outgrow it?”

Dr. Quinn: ADHD is a chronic, life-long disorder. Symptoms may be less impairing as we learn to live with them and develop strategies and a life style to better cope. However, girls who demonstrate the most success are those that have adopted a multi-pronged approach to treating the disorder including, medication, therapy and appropriate treatment goals early on. ADHD coaching, like the Edge Foundation offers, can be an important component in learning compensatory strategies and behaviors.  Girls who as adolescents continue to have significant functional impairments are those who are usually not taking medication even though they have briefly made use of other services in and outside of school. These, however, may not be enough.

Edge: What are some of the most common questions you are asked about women and girls who have ADHD?

DR. Quinn: I am constantly asked why girls and women aren’t diagnosed as early as boys. I think this is because girls are not identified by teachers or others. Often teachers are comparing girls’ behaviors to those of boys rather than the performance of other girls. Mothers may be more likely to compare their daughter’s behavior to that of other girls thus may be more reliable at referring their daughters for an evaluation.  Girls are less disruptive and don’t call attention to themselves, so they don’t get referred. In addition girls and women work hard to compensate for their symptoms and to not let others know the problems that they are having.

Edge: Do women’s hormones have any impact on how medication levels need to be prescribed over time? For instance, does going through puberty or menopause mean medication levels need to be adjusted during those periods?

Dr. Quinn: When hormone levels decrease in menopause many women report that their ADHD symptoms increase and that their medications don’t seem to be as effective as previously.  It is often necessary to increase the dose of medications at this time. In addition, I find that during puberty symptoms often worsen in girls with ADHD. A medication dose that worked previously may no longer be effective during this time.

Edge: You’ve been a long-standing champion for women and girls who have ADHD, do you see the rest of the medical profession catching up in awareness or is there still a lot of ground to cover until females with ADHD receive equal medical treatment?

Dr. Quinn: I think that overall the medical profession is doing a better job at recognizing and treating girls with ADHD.  The problem seems to be with educating teachers and school systems about the disorder in females.

Readers:  Do you have a question about ADHD in girls?  Let us know in the comments and we’ll do our best to get you an answer.

Dear Coach:

I know that my son would really benefit from a coach. (He certainly doesn’t want to hear me carping at him anymore!) Yet when I bring up the subject, he completely shuts down. How can I get him to agree to working with a coach?

Sincerely,  Denise W.

Dear Denise,

As you are well aware, parenting teens and young adults is a tough balancing act between providing support and letting your child succeed (or fail) on their own. We strongly encourage the student to be involved with all conversations with our coaches from the beginning. The more you, as parent, speak with the coach without the student involved, the less your child will want to talk to the coach. That’s why most coaches require that parents and their kids meet together with the coach during the first conference call so the student doesn’t feel railroaded into the idea of coaching.

It’s also helpful for the student (and you) to understand what an ADHD coach does. Often students think an ADHD coach is just one more person that will nag them about school, their room, etc. This is far from the case. A coach address whatever the student (not you) thinks is important. This could mean making friends or getting on a sports team are priorities for your son, where your priority is getting his grade up. In this example, we’d be working on helping him with his priorities: friends and sports. And, of course, as a student builds trust with his coach, other life issues – like grades – will inevitably come up and be addressed.

And, of course, everything that a coach talks about with your child will be confidential. It can be hard to let go as a parent, but it can really help your son relax about getting coaching to know that he sets the agenda and sessions are private.

Of course, there are always kids that just don’t want any help. In those situations you will need to determine what influence you have over your child’s behavior. Are they still living at home? Are you paying for their education? If you believe coaching is the best course of action for your child, you can set a clear expectation that he needs to participate. AND outline clear consequences if he doesn’t. Dr. Phil may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but his article on Parenting with Purpose may give you a good starting place for thinking about setting expectations for your child.

You can always set up a no-obligation introductory conversation between Edge and your son. Just fill out the contact form using the link below and we’ll get right back to you. Good luck!

Yes! Send me more information about working with an Edge ADHD coach!

Do you have a question for the Edge coach? Leave it in the comments or send it in an email to info@edgefoundation.org.

Memorial Day weekend has come and gone. That means summer is here, right? For most students, summer means a welcome change of routine. Summer vacation. Summer job. Summer fun! If you’ve been working hard on putting good habits in place to help you cope with your ADHD, don’t let summer fun push those good habits to the wayside.

Get organized. Use your summer down time to your advantage. Down time can be a great time to get organized. Get rid of the clutter in your life. Go through your desk, closet or dresser drawers and give away or toss those things you no longer need or use.

Stick to your sleep schedule. It’s easy to get swept away on long summer’s nights and go to bed later and later. But people with ADHD need to protect their sleep habits more than others. Feel free to move your bedtime a bit later if you can sleep in later as well. But pick a bedtime and stick to it. Your body will be better off and you’ll be less stressed because of it. Plus, it won’t be so hard to get BACK into a routine once school restarts in the fall.

Do you use a journal to learn about yourself and your ADHD? Many coaches have their students use journals to help them keep on top of their lives. If that works for you, don’t stop journaling in the summer. Keeping your writing muscle strong will mean that you don’t have to retrain yourself in this hard-earned self-discipline in the fall.

Exercise. Exercise. Exercise. When going away on vacation it can be hard to keep up your exercise routine. Be sure to pack your gear even if you think you won’t use it. Be open to trying new things. Perhaps you can start riding longer bike rides or swim down at the pond. Summer can be a good time to experiment with new ways to work out. But the key here is to do something!

Do you know other ways to not let your good habits slip away over the summer? Tell us in the comments.