On Missing ADHD Awareness Month
I recently listened on Audible to a book called The Brain: The Story of You by David Eagleman. It’s an astonishing book described in a synopsis as “…how your life shapes your brain, and how your brain shapes your life.” We all accept the fact we have an autonomic part of the nervous system that controls unconscious processes such as breathing, but we’re very wary of how much of our thinking itself is controlled by similar automatic processes, whether we are born with them, or they are learned behaviour.
CREDIT: Ursula McLaughlin
Self-awareness isn’t always easy
As October was ADHD awareness month, it was a good time to reflect on the fact that we are not always in control of what we do and that the brain is sometimes in charge. So you will perhaps forgive me for this article coming out after ADHD Awareness Month, as one of the defining features of ADHD is procrastination. However, as the issues don’t go away when the month ends, there is always time to catch up.
I’ve often felt that there is a higher average of people with ADHD in this town – I’ve certainly met lots of them. This wouldn’t be surprising as there’s a link between ADHD and creativity – though that’s not to say you have to have ADHD to be creative.
I recently met a woman who had felt undervalued until aged 40 when her symptoms were recognised, and she was diagnosed. She then went to university and carried on to be a microbiologist of some note, travelling to conferences around the world (creativity comes in many forms). Diagnosis can be life changing in a positive way, whatever many people say about labels. I’ve met several people in the town who have been diagnosed since I got to know them. Some have gone on to take medication – another area that is much misunderstood – and found it very beneficial.
A new culture
I’ve also recently met several younger people with ADHD, who seem to have very different perspectives. For them there seems to be more awareness of neurodiversity, leading to an environment that is much more accepting. One online article Why Are So Many Adults Being Diagnosed With ADHD? on Wondermind talks about videos with the hashtag #adultadhd having over 269 million combined views. The article points out that while information on social media brings challenges like misinformation and inaccurate self-diagnoses, “it’s also been a positive force when it comes to spreading awareness about adult ADHD.”
A young man I spoke to recently confirmed the more accepting attitude of the younger generation (See article Living with ADHD). But despite this, he lists many of the disadvantages to the condition, which are not always obvious. What many don’t realise is that ADHD can have devastating effects on people’s lives.
Risk-taking and distraction
I was told by a psychologist friend, soon after my own diagnosis about ten years ago, that there was a rough rule of thirds: a third of children with ADHD ‘rewire’ in adolescence, another third learn strategies to help them lead ‘normal lives,’ and the other third end up living chaotic and disorganised lives that often include addiction and violence as well as prison. That’s currently about half the adults with the condition.
People with ADHD also have a higher risk of dying early. Although I’ve managed to survive to a good age, I still take unnecessary risks – I just can’t stop myself – the most recent being when I took up regular sea swimming. My second outing was in rough seas early in the morning accompanied only by my wife. I found it easy to get into the water – fortunately for me my wife didn’t – but I found it incredibly difficult to get out. (I have since made sure I do ‘the right thing’, checking tides and waves and going with others.)
So, what is there to learn from ADHD Awareness month? My own view is that we all have to be responsible for our actions, but that an understanding of our strengths and weaknesses makes life a whole lot easier. Those not lucky enough to grow up in an environment that helps them develop that understanding need help before it’s too late.
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