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Author:
Angie Dixon

It was one of those "Well, DUH" moments for me. I was researching ADHD and came across the headline, "Ignoring Useless Information Aids Memory."

Well, of course it does. But if you have ADHD, especially if you're a child with ADHD, determining useless information in the first place can be a major challenge.

What's useless? If you're 10 and have ADHD, grammar is useless. But ignore it and your memory will really improve. You'll have a clear memory of flunking fifth grade English because of ADHD.

Or maybe the author meant frivolous information--things like the names and life histories of all of Harry Potter's freinds. Those, indeed, could safely be ignored most of the time, even by an ADHD kid.

So here I am, a ten year old ADHD fifth grader who hates grammar and loves Harry Potter. My attention deficit both makes it hard to focus on anything for long and makes it hard to shut things out. Too many stimuli.

What do I do? If my ADHD makes it hard to study in class and remember my grammar, I take refuge in Harry Potter and enjoy his exploits and make friends with Ron and Hermione. I let my ADHD help me hyperfocus on what I do enjoy and get something out of.

So while "Ignoring Useless information Aids Memory" may be a great breakthrough, it's not for those of us who have ADHD. We already know that ignoring much of what our ADHD brains pick up would help us.

We don't avoid this ignoring because we don't want to do it. Everyone with ADHD--be we politicians, teachers, or just ADHD kids--want to focus and can't.

I didn't read the article, because I was hyperfocused on something else. I'm just riffing on the headline. But it seems to me that knowing the problem is a long way from solving it, and telling ADHD people to "ignore" anything is not as helpful as it might seem at first glance.

Angie Dixon is a writer and ADHD mom of an ADHD son, Jack. For a free report on helping your ADHD son, see Angie's site "That's My Son!" at http://www.Raising-the-ADHD-boy.com

| Article Keywords: ADHD News

A Quick Note From The Publisher... If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to ADHD News... ADHD: Three Tips for Avoiding Medicine Battles I should start by saying my ADHD son is only ten, and the battle might start in earnest at any point, but so far we have not had major conflicts over taking his ADHD medicine. Twice he's spit it out, both times within about a month at about 8.5 years old. Both times I invoked some mild punishment and sat him down for a talk, and it hasn't happened since. I have some tips that I think have helped in our house, and might help you with ADHD medicine routine problems. 1. Make sure your ADHD child knows what the medicine does. My son sometimes asks, when he's having a bad day, "Have I had my medicine today?" He knows the medicine controls his ADHD impulsivity and distractability and helps him focus and be sociable. We've discussed this many times, in varying degrees of complexity, since he started ADHD medicine four years ago. 2. Have a routine. My son takes his ADHD medication when he brushes his teeth and before he puts on his shoes to go to school. We never forget it on a school day, because we have a routine. We even remember on Sunday, because we get up for church. But on Saturday, look out! His dad steps in and helps on weekends, because he knows I can't remember my own medication without a routine, let alone someone else's. Routine is key. 3. Have a rule. My ADHD son WILL take his medication. If he decides to try to fool me and spit it out, I will take away a privilege. If it happens a second time, I will take away two privileges simultaneously, and they will be gone longer. And so on. Deliberately not taking his ADHD medication has only been an issue twice when he decided to test me. I stood my ground, and it hasn't been an issue since. If your ADHD child knows the medication helps, he will be less likely to avoid taking it. A routine helps prevent forgetting....