Could this be me? | ADHD Information
I have ADD w/out hyperactivity; it took me almost 32 years to be diagnosed. I have had mixed success with school and did well when I was interested. Jr. High and High School were terrible because I was bored and had no interest. I went back to school a few years ago and will graduate Sat. with my BA in Psych. Since returning I have carried basically a 4.0 in all my classes-Except 2 for reasons I could spend hours venting about but I won't. I have received many scholarships and awards and others say I am an overachiever. With that said let me also state that I am extremely unorganized, a terrible speller, and need a calculator for basic math! I would say that most likely if the symptoms fit minus the "overachievement" part I would bring it up to your doctor.
I never really paid attention much in school to be an overachiever. I did poorpy in school & thought it was boring. However, I knew unusual facts not taught in school that irritated some of the students.Thanks for your responses! On the inside, I feel very scattered and unfocused all the time. This has turned into chronic anxiety and stress. The funny thing is that I "compensate" and fake it so well that most people who know me would laugh if you told them I was disorganized. They have no idea that I'm totally flying by the seat of my pants, so to speak.
I guess that brings up another question I have. If I've covered up the way I feel so well that no one but me recognizes these traits in myself, can I still have ADHD?
WW
Wonder Woman38471.6519907407[QUOTE=princessbride22]Would get bored and lose my focus but could still read. [/QUOTE]
LOL
! I wish I had a nickel- heck, even a penny- for every time I've gotten to the end of a page and thought, "What did that say???"
University was a different story - the innate intelligence that allowed me to coast through high school wasn't nearly enough anymore. My grades dropped to Ds and Cs, and I eventually opted for early graduation, foregoing having a "major" listed on my diploma in favour of simply having a general BA with an "area of specialization" (3 years instead of 4).
If I had been more interested, I may have achieved better. I found most of my courses boring and/or a little too theoritecal for my taste. Either that, or I procrastinated too much to pull off a decent grade (a 10-page essay written in 4 hours with little or no time for review can't compete with a well-planned, expertly reviewed essay that was completed over the course of weeks).
Hi!
I just found this board today and I can't tell you how much I have enjoyed skimming through the posts! My 11 yr old daughter has ADHD dx at age 6. She was on Adderall to start wityh but switched to Concerta a few years ago due to poor weight gain. Even though the possibility of my having ADHD has been brought up several times by her docs in discussing family history, etc... I always dismissed the possibility because I was an overachieving super student from kindergarten through grad school. I thought that if I truly had ADHD that would be impossible for me to achieve. If you take out that factor, though, I could be the poster child for ADHD and in fact was frequently in trouble in my early school years for incessant talking and loud/disruptive/inappropriate behavior.
I've recently started reading a little more about this disorder in adults, and I'm really thinking this fits. I see many of my other issues listed as "comorbidities" etc.... Before I go off on a tangent, though, are there any of you out there with ADHD who were also academic overachievers- or should I go back to the drawing board and keep looking for another explanation?
Thanks for taking the time to read my post!
Wonder(ing) Woman
Hi Wonder Woman,
in response to what you wrote I was the opposite of you. Well I did fine up through high school making As and Bs. College has been horrible for me though! I have totally felt like a failure because I have failed some classes or made C-s or Ds and have had to take classes over and have ended up having to take a lot less hours than most people take which is slowing my graduation now! I still have another year and I'm a senior right now! Anyway, it is very possible that you've had the hyperactive/impulsive side of ADHD. I was reading all about ADHD when I got diagnosed and found that people struggle more with college who have the inattentive side of ADHD which I have(along with some impulsive). I dont know if you really have ADHD or not but you should go to a doctor. I know from experience about this. My brother had the hyperactive ADHD growing up. All through high school he got ALL As and was almost valedictorian or however you say that. In college he didn't struggle either. But I swear he has hyperactive ADHD. He has learned to control himself a little better but is still a hyper,loud,impulsive person lol. He has totally succeeded with college making almost all As there like highschool. There was only an OCCASIONAL B and no lower! He'd get very very upset when he even got a B which I am soo thankful now when I get one lol. He has now graduated and is a very successful financial analyst or something like that. I've tryed so hard not to compare myself to him but let's just face the facts:he IS smarter and it is easier for him to focus. I just have had the worst time focusing in class and concentrating as well as being motivated. I space out and daydream due to the inattentive adhd. It's been horrible! I've ended up just wondering if I'd ever succeed. I still don't know what I want to do with my life. I don't know if this is the right major for me but am determined to finish it no matter how long it takes! Anyways, my brother is a lot like you ....he has not gotten diagnosed but I have read SOO much on ADD i think he should because I'm positive he has it! and my mom as well....not my dad though. Anyway, i hope this helps about my brother. He is definitely a overachiever!! and he also used to get in trouble in highschool talking wayy too much in class yet would still do wonderful. Sickening for me! I'm quiet but when I talk i miss important things and am not able to just somehow wing it and do well like my brother. My brother would also back talk the teachers and made one cry. Horrible! I'm so sensitive that i can't even imagine. He sure had nerve to back talk! I have a horrible time confronting. Okay this is too long but anyway i think you should go to a doctor definitely! hope this helps! I know i got a little off track....sorry! lol
-Princess-
princessbride2238471.6357060185Wonderwoman:
I have two sons (4 & 13) who are both diagnosed adhd, and it wasn't until I had them and they started to see a dr for it that the concept that I, too, might have it even entered my mind!
You sound JUST like me when I was in school! Talk about an over achiever! Man, the rush I would get from being the first to put my pencil down after a test, or being the first one to put my assignment on the teacher's desk, hooboy! ahahah I've never been "strong" in math, but it's my only "weakness". Carried a 3.8 all through school, and talked all the way through it! My mom was getting calls as early as 1st grade with complaints about how I was always up out of my seat and talking to everyone and disrupting class....I don't think I ever sat in one place very long at all till I got to highschool! I never had homework, as I'd always manage to find a way to complete it before I left school, rarely if ever had to actually break down and "study" for a test, was in HEAVEN if our tests had written portions to them, as I was usually quite eloquent and elaborate in my writing anyhow, had lots of friends, was into sports, and was moving and grooving non-stop all the time! ahahahhaha yay! I'm not alone!
Oh, and I have a theory on why us adhd'ers might not do so hot once we hit college, and keep in mind, it's just a theory: In grade school through high school, your teachers RIDE YOU LIKE A HORSE about your assignments, etc, it's relentless! But in college....they tell you like once, and that's it...it's on YOU to remember and keep up, no one doing it for you, no constant reminders like in years past, maybe it's something to do with the sudden loss of structure that affects us? Just a thought.....
pjcofer
Yes! I was the A student anal overacheiver all the way til I hit college. I became an artist at covering up my symptoms, as well. I still do, to the point where my therapist said that if he didnt know about everything I had told him about my problems, and how I tested, he'd never have suspected I had adhd. Little did he know that after the therapy session I got into my car, looked at the key and sat there for 10 minutes not moving be couldnt remember how to make the car go. Well, at least I knew where my key was! [QUOTE=Wonder Woman][QUOTE=princessbride22]Would get bored and lose my focus but could still read. [/QUOTE]
LOL! I wish I had a nickel- heck, even a penny- for every time I've gotten to the end of a page and thought, "What did that say???"
[/QUOTE]
You can get to the end???