ADHD is a bad name
Tuesday's Dose
ADHDers do not have a “deficit” of attention
More aptly, ADHDers have trouble allocating their attention, particularly to things that are mundane and not challenging, such as reading emails, taking notes in math class, or watching a documentary on molasses.
Conversely, ADHDers run the risk of pouring too much attention into things that are novel, challenging and exciting. My ADHDer friend was once incapable of moving from the couch for twelve hours during a standoff being televised live on TV. I, a rather slow reader, read Cat’s Cradle all in one night.
What elicits an overpour—or underpour—of attention varies from person to person.
ADHDers are not all hyperactive
Some certainly are “driven as if by a motor” — twitching and fidgeting constantly, chewing gum, clicking pens, peeling labels, wrestling, dancing, humming, jumping, running and twitching, but not all.
Others experience a world where they cannot filter the extraneous stimuli from the essential. These individuals look as though they are channel surfing, tuning in to the pattern on your shirt, the scuff on the wall over there, the bird on that tree, and any other programming that catching their attention.
If I got to name it, I’d call it Attention Regulation Syndrome.
What do you think?