I can be intensely focused on a single task to the point that I can shut out everything else.
For example, I can tackle a particular publishing project -- a magazine layout or special publication -- and “get in the zone,” working for hours at a time and it seems like minutes. I take a break to stretch or visit the bathroom and realize half the day has passed and I haven’t eaten, haven’t drunk any water or noticed that I’ve missed calls and messages. The not eating part especially is not good for someone who is also diabetic.
Brett Campbell
But this type of focus happens seldom, maybe a few times a year.
A more normal day might involve 30 minutes or so of this type of focus, but the majority will be filled with easily-distracted moments and so much more. It’s the stereotypical understanding of what more than 6.1 million children in the United States deal with in attention deficient hyperactivity disorder. That’s about 9.4% of American children.
Approximately 1% of American adults have been diagnosed with ADHD, as well, or ADD.
In my opinion, calling the condition -- which is mostly mental, not physical or behavioral -- ADHD does very little to help “normal” people understand what it is and is not.
Although many people diagnosed with ADHD do present symptoms like hyperactivity and in the inability to focus for long periods of time on a single task, the opposite is also true for most -- the ability to sit still and focus intently on one thing for periods of time others may think are much too long.
Imagine a quiet hillside sloping down to a beautiful verdant pasture, edged by the most tranquil lake you’ve ever seen. The few cottony clouds in the sky are moving slowly and a cool, gentle breeze moves over your skin as the birds sing softly and everything is absolutely at peace. Think of this as the average person’s mind.
Now, introduce into that beautiful, serene area a platoon of militarized monkeys, a troupe of juggling clowns discussing Shakespeare and deep theological treatises, all of the most interesting animals ever created, all of your favorite songs and movies playing at once, a childhood toy you’d all but forgotten, a person whose face you’re sure you recognize but just can’t place, and frenzied anxiety as you try to focus completely on each individual thing and person at the exact same time, catching bits and pieces, but not really catching any of it fully.
That’s the average mind of a person diagnosed (or undiagnosed) with ADHD, at any given time.
Telling this person to just focus, or try harder, or pay attention and stop daydreaming is like telling anyone else to just stop breathing. It’s not only not easy, it’s almost impossible.
Learning focusing techniques helps, but only to a point. Medication can help also, but also only to a point.
After I had been officially diagnosed with ADHD as an adult by a doctor who specialized in adult ADHD, and we had been working to determine which medication worked for me and at what dosage, he leaned back against the counter in the exam room one day and crossed his arms, sighing.
He looked at me and said, “In my 25-plus years of working with adult ADHD patients, almost every one has benefitted from one (specified dosage) pill per day. A few have needed two a day.”
At this point, I’d been taking one pill every morning and another every afternoon. I’d reported to the doctor my impressions and those of my wife and co-workers as to their level of effectiveness on my day-to-day life.
“In all of that time,” he said, “I’ve had three or four patients who would probably benefit from four or five pills a day. You’re one of those.”
I was surprised, honestly, and asked if he was going to tell me to take that many pills.
“No!” he replied. “I’m not prescribing that much medication for anyone. You’re just going to have to deal with it.”
I was glad. I certainly didn’t want to take more. A few years later, a different doctor found a different medication that worked better for me in a lower dosage, with fewer side effects, too.
This month is ADHD Awareness Month, and if you are personally affected by the condition directly or indirectly, you are certainly aware of it. Please try to be more understanding, and a little more patient, if possible. It is a mental disorder, which can easily lead to or aggravate anxiety and depression -- a disorder that begets disorders.
Those of us with it don’t want to be defined by it or confined by it. Sometimes it gets the best of us. There’s no cure, but kindness goes a long way.
Thanks to all of you who have put up with me over the years.
And yes, shiny things do distract me.
