How do you deal at work? | ADHD Information

I have managed to get the opinion of me as  absent minded and eccentric at work rather than nuts LOL

Everyone knows  if I am  trying to solve a problem I am like a pitbull  and entirely focused

 

 

they also know I forget   where I put everything,  my boss  periodically cleans up my work area when it gets real bad  he knows I just cant do that task well. It's amazing he can organize it in 15 min I could spend an hr moving my piles around and have chaos still.  It's quid pro quid or whatever. Some things I am great at that he hates doing  stuff like  finding problem root causes i can get  obcessively focused on( only thing is i am often  too blunt  when asking the whys of a thing)They also all know  that if they loan me something they almost have to watch where I use it to get it back since I will put it down  wherever I am when done with it. I spend an enormous amount of time  looking for tools but...I am innovative enough in my programming that I  am still  highly efficent  overall

 

My Manager tells me he can tolerate me for one minute at a time..hyper, sarcastic, blurting, argumentative...just like him HAHAHAHAHAHA...but he admits it.

 

Honestly ,  ADHD  hasnt crippled me its more a source of constant frustration because it prevents  me from fullfilling  my potential I would bet  you are more effective on your job than you thing....unless it's real boring...IF I get a boring task at work I am pretty much useless and finish slowly if ever. It isnt the big things i cant do its the  support tasks that elude me. the stuff eveyone else does  with out really trying...well most do.

I wouldn't tell your boss. I found out for myself that I can manage my
ADD fine at work without telling anyone. No one needs to know. I had an
experience at an old job. I made the mistake of letting someone I worked
with know about my ADD. Well, they were o.k. with the news but other
people caught wind of it and those people were not o.k. with it. It was
very uncomfortable. I now realize it is no ones business at work. I have a
good support network at home.

no, ADHD is nothing to be ashamed of.  In fact, as I see it, the plusses probably outweigh the negatives in the long run.  So I do not tend to view ADD as a disability, at least not for myself, my brain simply works a bit differently from others.  I personally am socially inept, rarely finish things, disorganized, and generally "out to lunch" but I am also great at coming up with new ideas, creative, intellegent and able to "think out of the box".  If we were not all different, life would be boring. 

I know couple of people who are the opposite of me, they complete one task at a time, methodically and with great attention to detail and it is not possible to distract them.  Getting these people to understand the "big picture", or to stop what they are doing for a minute to go over something else is nearly impossible.  I find them terribly frustrating and they have certain limitiations, as do I, but they are not considered disabled or given any socially questionable labels. 

I dislike labels and the social connotations that go with them.  I am alot less disabled than Bubba down the street who "don't know how 'ta find the middle of dat dere piece o'wood".  Do you think Bubba would go around telling people he is disabled because he is "stupid"? No, although it is likely true.  He is a hard worker, a loving father, and honest citizen.  It is a very good thing to understand your own limitations and learn how to work with them and overcome them if possible, it is quite another thing to go around announcing them to others, particularly people you don't know well, and using a label they don't really understand.   

Correct me if I'm wrong, anyone from the UK, but the British seem to adore their "eccentrics". In the US we seem to have a sort of strange love/hate attitude toward those who are outwardly different.  I think the ever-tolerant Canadians neither adore nor discriminate.  We won't stop discriminating until we stop labeling people.

I enjoy coming here because I can talk to people who are so much like me, and I learn so much about myself from you all.  Avoid labels, celebrate peoples strengths and tolerate their weaknesses.  Peace on earth  (there goes my idealist side again, shut up boggled!)

For me as a manager I would think it would be pointless for my employee
to discuss something that isn't affecting their performance. If it isn't an
we can't cope with the things required of us in a certain job we should do
ourselves a favor and the employer a favor by finding a postition either
internally or with another employer that we have the capability of doing
appropriately. I would look at it as an excuse for the employee for not
performing their job. Or possibly an excuse to not perform in the future.

I'm newly diagnosed myself and I might be alone or a minority in this
view. But I would never ever bring it up to my boss. It's my personal
business and medical history. It's never stopped me from doing what's
required of me at work. It's made me often wait to do things until the last
minute but I don't see it as an adequate excuse to not perform. It's our
responsiblity to get the appropriate treatment.Wrxified38355.8303472222

For concentrating on a a task maybe headphones could help. I know if I hear people talking or walking past my work area I can't concentrate. For me to focus on something I need no other destractions.

I think the biggest problem is the last minute way the guy training you is handling his responsibility. ADD or not if you start a new job and are supposed to be trained in how to do something then they need to actually show you how to do it. They shouldn't be giving you last minute deadline stuff while simutaniously trying to teach you how to do it. For that situation there is no need to tell them you have ADD because anyone would need more time while learning so there is no reason to seperate yourself in that respect.

Are you on meds, not sure how bad your ADD is but I know for me without meds I am a mess. I can't focus at all with the hundreds of thoughts going through my head and the noise of others distracting me. Meds would help with the blurting out too. Although another way for your boss to see that is that you are just over eager. I don't know any employer who would complain about having a gung ho eager employee.

I still would not mention the ADD like losergirl I've seen office gossip spread quickly about anyone that has admitted a problem. I've had co-workers that have been bi-polar, recovering alcoholics and anxiety sufferes and have seen the way they are looked at. The bosses always treat them carefully giving them less work or slower jobs basically treating them like they are retarded instead of just offering aid to let them work at the same level. Of course they never know that there work load is less but the resentment starts to grow as everyone elses work increases also any tiny mistake made by the person will get the eyes rolling and a mention of the persons problem. It's rediculous but just how it is and it happens even if the person does nothing wrong. The computer crashes and the work can't be completed on time it's their fault because it wasn't done earlier. Meanwhile a co-worker that loses work during a computer crash just has bad luck but it's not there fault. 

Of course it's ultimately your decision but I've worked with tons of strange characters before that didn't have ADD or another disorder at least not one you could see. It is just their personality and there is much less of a stigma attached to being the free spirit, or creative one in the office then there is to being the one with the disorder.

I too have suffered with this dilemma and I think most adults with ADHD have at one time or another. I think it depends on your relationship with your boss, the work environment you have and whether it affects job performance.

If it isn't affecting performance, I don't see the point. If it is, and you feel comfortable and your boss is not a manipulative jerk, you could try talking to him about it in a calm, professional manner. Don't cry, get angry, pout or whine (I'm not just talking about women- guys whine just as much but in a slightly different way). Just tell him but let him know this was a difficult decision and you trust him with that information. If your coworkers are jerky, keep it between you and your boss (assuming he is trustworthy).

US job market is extremely competitive and the economy doesn't make it any better. Nowadays people are practically ripping each others' throats out to get ahead or just get a job! This is stressful enough but if you have ADHD it's a total nightmare.

Good luck

Jen, I disagree with the others. Especially if you genuinely enjoy this job. Go in and have a chat with him. If it is effecting your work it will make him happy you are trying to improve yourself. If he is unbearably rude, go find yourself another job- there are plenty of great, down to earth employers out there and it's part of their job to be up to date with how their staff are going both proffesionally and mentally. You deserve the chance to be happy in what you do.

I suppose I should have explained further...

My job is not a typical office job where everything is high-stress and paperwork and deadlines. I'm a web producer for a news-related website. I'm the sports producer. We have morning meetings to discuss the day's news and I often blurt out my contributions before my boss is ready to get to me. I forget what I'm doing in the middle of doing it. I get distracted by office chatter and random thoughts. I feel like I seem flaky to my co-workers because I may or may not be "all there" in any given conversation - whether it's work-related or just general conversation.

I just started six months ago and the guy I replaced is still here. His idea of training is to tell me to do something the day that it's needed - usually some drawn-out project that I have to learn for the first time or that I'm still learning. He can do the job in seconds compared to my constant questions of "how do you do this again?" and getting distracted while working, etc.

My work environment is very friendly and family-oriented. I know my boss would understand if I was clear about the issue and what I needed from him. My problem is I'm not clear yet and I wondered if any of you had similar experiences at work.

I've read in a few different AD/HD books that telling people at work is a good thing because they will understand you better and not think you're a total flake. There's just a way to handle it and I'm looking for anyone who has.

I'm terrified to tell my boss about my diagnosis. I'm afraid he'll be one of these people who don't "believe" in AD/HD and will think I'm just trying to... I don't know! Get a free ride, get out of being responsible? Something like that. He's very dry in the first place and difficult to communicate with (we're total opposites). He has three school-age children so I've wondered if I should ask him if he's ever had to deal with it or what he thinks about it before I talk about my own problems.

I don't even know what kind of help or support I need at work though so it'd be pointless to tell him if I don't have an actual request, right? I'm still in the process of figuring out what I need in terms of support.

Any related experiences would be great!

Thanks!

Jen

Why would you tell him at all. I've never told any of my employers about my diagnosis it would cause more problems then it could possibly solve.

If you do decide to tell him definately work on figuring out exactly what kind of support your looking for before approaching him. Unless the person has kids with ADHD or is a sufferer himself he most likely won't understand so keep it simple.

What kind of work do you do and what are your ADHD problems? Maybe we can help by offering suggestion on how to survive at work or at least give you somebody to bounce ideas off of.

I agree with Mafia.  I went on the meds and starting doing a lot of reseach on how to cope professionally with ADD.  In the year since I have managed this part of my life more proactively my bosses have only sung my praises on my professional growth etc....but I sure didn't start out by ever telling them anything nor will I.  If it was someone who seemed more open to the discussion I might change my mind but most people aren't.  I think most think of it as crazy, or not a true problem or for that matter just an excuse to be slipshod at work which is not nearly the case.  For myself, since I have stuggled with this my whole life, I also think it falls into the deeply personal category.

ALso, I had a friend at work who told our boss she and her husband had seperated and she was deeply depressed and asked for some patience as she worked through some things (she had been distracted etc.) This boss pulled me aside to blab her issues shortly there after. It just gave him fuel to add to the fire regarding her performance....

 

I don't think it is any of your bosses business.  I do agree with you though that it could possibly become necessary if you really need need to make arrangements that are outside of what is normally done in the office, for instance if you need a cubicle with solid walls instead of sitting in front of a glass window.  Even then, you could probably just explain that a solid wall/headphones/whatever would be very helpful for you to concentrate, and don't mention the ADD.  There is nothing wrong with being considered a bit quirky, in fact it can be an assett.I am not the least bit ashamed of being adhd. I even like it sometimes.

HOWEVER i had a boss who thought the whole thing was hogwash. When i
confided in him, he told me that external changes were crutches, and that
i should change internally. the next year i was fired.

Yes the world shouldn't be that way. But you opening your big mouth
won't change it.

Yeah but the public has a long way to go before ADHD is accepted. As far as disorders go this is the new kid on the block. People with mental disorders have been scorned by society for way longer than ADHD has been around. The general populous has known about Bi-Polar disorder, for example, for a long time now. However public knowledge hasn't stopped the discrimination against that group yet. Sure it will come in time, I mean we used to institutionalise Epileptics way back in the day. Everyone looks at that now and says what were people thinking.

I agree that we need to spread the word and educate the masses. But I think we are no where near ready to bring it into the workplace. We have doctors that don't even believe in ADHD right now so expecting mass acceptance is a lofty goal.

There is definately nothing to be ashamed. Of in fact everyone I know outside of work are more then aware that I have ADHD. In my social life if someone was so close minded as to think less of me because of this it wouldn't bother me. I have more than enough friends to make up for a few creeps. At this point in my life I don't have more than enough money to support myself if I run into that kind of predjudice at work. When it comes to spreading the word or keeping my house I choose my house lol

Boggled-

Wouldn't you agree that being ADHD is no worse than being "quirky"? Your post made me think that you consider ADHD something to be ashamed of and to hide at almost all cost. The reason I gather this from your statement is because you suggest some significant accomodations (headphones, walls) and suggest considering himself "quirky" rather than ADHD.

The problem is, there is enough misinformation out there that it is critical for those afflicted to educated the public and there is nothing wrong with being ADHD, it's just the public doesn't know that yet.