There’s no such thing as ADHD.
ADHD is just a matter of willpower.
Smart people don’t have ADHD.
According to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder experts, these and other thoughts are among the top myths associated with ADHD. Edward Hallowell, founder of the Hallowell Centers, which helps treat people with ADHD and other cognitive and emotional conditions in Boston, New York City, San Francisco and Seattle, says holding tight to such thoughts does a disservice to the ADHD population.
[See: Hoarding, ADHD, Narcissism Inside the Minds of History’s Great Personalities.]
It’s a Curse
One common myth he finds bothersome is that ADHD is a problematic condition that automatically means a person’s life will forever be ruined. “A top myth is that having ADHD is a terrible curse,” he says. Hallowell explains that like any other disorder, ADHD can be extremely challenging, but only if people are untreated and misinformed. However, he says it also “can be an incredible asset,” pointing to successful people such as entrepreneur and JetBlue founder David G. Neeleman, who Hallowell says refers to his ADHD as the key to his success.
It’s Only About Hyperactivity
Another myth, according to Hallowell, is that ADHD only pertains to hyperactivity. He reinforces that hyperactivity is just one component of the acronym, adding that many people with the disorder may be inattentive and as such, daydream frequently. In fact, not everyone has strictly one ADHD symptom. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that three presentations, or kinds, of ADHD can occur, based on the DSM-5 criteria. (The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, is the American Psychiatric Association’s classification and diagnosis standard.)
The three types:
— Combined Presentation: if enough symptoms of both criteria — inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity — were present for the past six months
— Predominantly Inattentive Presentation: if enough symptoms of inattention, but not hyperactivity-impulsivity, were present for the past six months
— Predominantly Hyperactive-Impulsive Presentation: if enough symptoms of hyperactivity-impulsivity, but not inattention, were present for the past six months.
Thomas E. Brown, director of the Brown Clinic for Attention and Related Disorders in Manhattan Beach, California, and a consulting psychologist at Understood.org, a free online resource and community supporting parents of the 1 in 5 kids with learning and attention issues, agrees about the hyperactivity myth. “There’s a perception that ADHD is only about being hyper,” he says. “It’s not just about being hyper or talking too much. Many people with ADHD are on the quiet side and have never been hyper.”
He expands on this concept in his book, “Outside the Box: Rethinking ADD/ADHD in Children and Adults — A Practical Guide.” That ADHD is primarily an issue with hyperactivity, impulsivity and behavior problems is a top assumption he highlights. The fact of the matter, he writes, is that “the primary problems of ADHD are with attention, broadly conceived as the management system of the brain, its executive functions.” He writes that many students with ADHD have struggles organizing things like notebooks, desks and lockers, while adults with ADHD have “chronic difficulty” maintaining financial information, keeping track of bills and organizing household items — all part of executive functioning, or organizational and prioritization deficits that are common for those with the disorder.
[See: 10 Concerns Parents Have About Their Kids’ Health.]
You Can Outgrow ADHD
Brown also says that a common ADHD myth is that a person will outgrow the disorder. He explains that this “old myth” isn’t true. Previous mindsets held that ADHD was something people might outgrow in early adolescence, he says. “We know now that 7 out of 10 kids with ADHD will still have problems with ADHD impairments as adults.”
Hallowell agrees. “A person doesn’t outgrow it,” he says. “They may learn to compensate, which can make it appear as such, but the idea of outgrowing it is not true.” Additionally, the CDC states that “because symptoms can change over time, the presentation may change over time as well,” which is not the same thing as saying a person may eventually no longer have ADHD as they age.
Thoughts About Intelligence and Willpower
The idea that intelligent people don’t have ADHD, that it can be turned on or off through sheer willpower or that having ADHD translates to ignorance are also myths.
Brown explains one ADHD child he interacted with excelled in sports and even managed to win a state championship. He says his intelligence was in the “superior range,” yet he was often in trouble with teachers and frequently told that it seemed as though he “was out to lunch most of the time.” The fact that he is smart and has ADHD debunks the intelligence myth, while also opening up people’s eyes to the willpower myth. Because he was able to excel in sports but unable to focus nearly as well with teachers and on other tasks, people often assumed he could control his ADHD as he pleased, Brown says. The notion that people with ADHD choose to focus in some areas but not in others isn’t about lacking willpower, Brown explains, but rather a matter of brain chemistry and engaging in activities that are “intrinsically interesting” to someone.
Similarly, Hallowell takes issue with the notion that ADHD and lack of intelligence go hand in hand. “The idea that having ADHD means you’re stupid — that’s not true,” he says. The terms “smart” and “stupid” are subjective anyway, he adds, asking, “Stupid at what? Smart at what?” Some people with ADHD are really good in some areas and not in others, just like anyone else with distinct assets and challenges, whether they have ADHD or not, Hallowell says.
Never Say ADHD Isn’t Real
Finally, the notion that ADHD isn’t real is a concept that Hallowell says is “no longer up for grabs.” “MRIs and studies have made clear that there are metabolic and brain differences for people with ADHD,” he says, adding that it’s highly heritable. Those who believe that ADHD doesn’t exist “likely still think the Earth is flat,” he says.
[See: 8 Ways to Relax Now.]
Education and Proper Treatment Are Key
These myths, Hallowell says, are all the more reason for people to “get a handle” on what ADHD is all about. “It begins with education,” he explains, and also includes exercise, taking medication — which he says is just one of many tools in the ADHD treatment toolbox — eating the right foods and finding a job that best fits an individual’s ADHD needs.
“The real key is identifying what works best for each person and understand that ADHD is not a moral failing,” Hallowell says.
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Top ADHD Myths and How Adults Can Overcome Them originally appeared on usnews.com
