ADHD vs ADD
What is the difference?
More than a decade ago, when I started teaching kids with learning differences, I was told that there was a distinction between ADHD and ADD, and that both were medical diagnoses. The latter has not been one since 1994.
ADD is now a colloquial term, or an outdated medical term.1 In 1980, the term ADD first appeared in the DSM. It came with 2 distinctions: with or without hyperactivity.2 That changed in 1994 because professionals were seeking to emphasize the “hyperactivity” element of ADHD; the need many ADHDers have for movement, exercise, and
