Archive for the ‘Adult ADHD’ Category
Does ADHD medication treatment in childhood increase adult employment?
Although ADHD used to be considered a disorder of childhood, follow-up studies indicate that between 30% and 60% of children with ADHD continue to experience symptoms and impairment in adulthood. And, even when ADHD symptoms decline over time, many individuals continue to experience significant impairment in important areas of functioning.
For example, children with ADHD havepoorer academic achievement as adolescents compared to their peers and this trend continues into adulthood. Research pertaining to occupational functioning is limited but available data clearly points to poorer employment histories in adults with ADHD. Predictors of occupational outcomes in individuals with ADHD have not been carefully investigated, however. Read the rest of this entry »
Pitfalls in the Diagnosis of Adult ADHD
Pitfalls in the Diagnosis of Adult ADHD
The diagnosis of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in adults poses a challenge for patients and clinicians alike. Hyperactivity is a less prominent sign in adults with ADHD than in children. Attention problems may be due to a variety of conditions. A common mistake is for a diagnosis of ADHD to be made based on a scale assessing attention problems. This is an inappropriate diagnostic strategy unless attention symptoms can be liked specifically to an ADHD and not some other psychiatric or neurological disorder.Kessler and colleagues recently published a study examining the current DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. Read the rest of this entry »
Adult A.D.H.D
Adult A.D.H.D
As Dr. Barkley points out, A.D.H.D does not develop in adulthood (part of the current diagnostic criteria includes evidence of the disorder in childhood), but with greater awareness of the diagnosis, many adults are just being diagnosed and seeking treatment (including skills training, psychotherapy, and/or medication) for the first time. If an adult is being diagnosed for the first time, it is likely that he or she displayed symptoms throughout the lifespan, but those symptoms were ignored or explained as “laziness” or “misbehavior”. Some adults, particularly women (who are more often able to “blend in” as children than hyperactive male counterparts) may not have even become truly aware of A.D.H.D. symptoms and the challenges they pose until faced with the more rigorous expectations of higher education and/or career. Many adults who suspect they have undiagnosed A.D.H.D. do not seek treatment out of embarrassment, the belief that it is a “kids’ condition,”or the fear that the only treatment is stimulant medication (skills-based therapy is a highly effective concurrent or alternative treatment). As a result, they may struggle unnecessarily in their personal and professional lives.
