THE ADDER SEEKS STIMULATION

Most ADDers fluctuate in their levels of arousal and have a high need of stimulation in jobs, home life, school and social situations. Nowadays a large proportion take stimulant medications to keep their attention focused and maintain a high enough state of arousal to accomplish tasks and goals. Risk-taking activities are part of the ADDer’s brain style, which can be adaptive( e.g. becoming an entrepreneur) or dangerous( driving way over the speed limit, drug-taking)
One thing is for sure: ADDers can not easily “relax” in typical ways ( e.g. reading a long book that is not a mystery). Since they can readily become fidgety and distracted, they would do better to engage in an activity with high stimulation( e.g. running or walking on a treadmill or watching an action movie).

Another way some ADDers seek stimulation is to worry and hyperfocus on physical symptoms. They are often not aware that they are hypochondriacs, and they run to doctors all the time ( That is not to say that symptoms should not be checked out).

I recommend that an ADDer, when unstructured or bored, needs to have at hand a variety of stimulating activities to engage in that are not dangerous. In fact ADDers do better when there is too much to do, rather than nothing to do.

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ADULT ADD: MEDICAL ISSUES WITH STIMULANT MEDICATION

There have been documented severe medical problems with a small percentage of children taking stimulant medication. One stud reported five deaths in children taking Adderal. The deaths were attributed to known cardiac impairments prior to taking the medication. Yet today, few children get EKG’s before and after tsking stimulant medication. One friend of mine with a six year old having very severe AD(H)D with no known preexisting cardiac condition went ahead with getting an EKG before and after the medication. She felt relieved he had no cardiac involvement; however, he was adopted, and how could she be sure.

Nowadays many adult ADDers have possible cardiac and other medical conditions, especially older adults who are taking stimulants without having, at least, a physical. Exam. I encountered a client today who is taking a combination of stimulants and has cardiac issues, but is being carefully monitored. Interestingly, I tried various stimulants for my AD(H) D and was more focused, but had a tremendous increase in heart rate. I had an EKG which was normal, but I was very uncomfortable with a strong feeling of tachycardia. I’m a very anxious person, and occasionally encounter this well known stimulant side effect, though many adults who are anxious as well do not experience a rapid heart rate.

Importantly, I think it’s critical, particularly for older adults to have a check-up and maybe an EKG before starting stimulants, because many will not know whether they have a preexisting or current cardiac condition.

Stimulant Medication and the ADDer

Many adult AD(H)Ders come to my office to learn strategies to help them with poor time management, social impulsivity, lack of organizational skills and other behaviors associated with ADD. Some are taking stimulant medication, some are not, but are considering it. Most taking medication say it’s helpful for alertness and focusing; others find it not particularly useful. I find, that in general, expectations are very high for medication users, but they come to see me for coaching because the medication can not produce gains in all problem areas.

My AD(H) D son is a young adult who did not try stimulants when he was young because they were just starting to be used, and possible negative side effects on a child’s brain were being seriously considered. Now that I work with ADD adults I wonder if I had to do it over again, would I have him take Ritalin or analogues when he was a school age child.? As a school age youngster, he was very hyperactive and impulsive, and got into a lot of trouble. hyperactive and impulsive. As an adult he tried Ritalin and stopped taking it because it altered his cognitive style which led him to overfocus on one task or activity and lose his ability to integrate information from other sources in his environment. After all being a good “radar screener is a great asset for an ADDer.

As it turns out, his positive attributes have far outweighed the negative aspects of ADHD. Without medication, he has shown great creativity, spontaneity, and very importantly, incredibly impressive entrepreneurial abilities.

Have you found stimulant medication to be very helpful.? Are there areas in which you still need help. For those of you who have not used medication, what resources or strategies have you used to aid you in trying to accomplish your goals?