Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Day Dreaming
Distractions are a major challenge in the life of an adult suffering from ADD. This was once was referred to as day dreaming. These distractions can affect a persons personal and professional life. A simple task that most people are able to complete in a short amount of time may take some one with ADD up to twice as long to complete. This is primarily due to the amount of distractions that are taking place at any given time. Most people do not realize the amount of outside interference that takes place with in one work hour. The slightest thing can easily distract an ADD sufferer for a short or long period of time. For example if I leave my office door open just the passing of a coworker or a client can distract me from my current task. As a counselor the largest problem that I encounter is while in session having the phone ring. This usually always distracts me from what my client is trying to convey to me. Ironically in modern day society most employers are unable or unwilling to make basic accommodations for an individual with ADD. This has been my personal work experience based on several different jobs in the past ten years. The feeling of constantly being over whelmed due to the enormous amount of paper work can become very draining for some sufferers of adult ADD. The largest problem that I have found is the new stance that the school systems are taking nation wide. Children who use to be in special needs classes to help the learn the coping skills to deal with their ADD or ADHD are no longer in inclusions classes but made to attempt to learn these skills surrounded by their peers. The major problem with this current policy is that a child that is distracted my a pencil falling will not be able to focus long enough to do his class work and learn these skills at the same time. By working in the school system for over a year it is obvious that this is not a functioning system. Yes these children are intelligent enough to do the same assignments as their peers but they are not leaning the coping skills that they will need for the work force or to attend college successfully. There will be an increase in adults with ADD who are unable to function in the current work force due to the lack of coping skills. Distractions aka day dreams are a very challenging and intricate part of a typical day in the life of an adult suffering from ADD. Many people think that it is easier for these people to take medication for this problem however, the side effects from most medication for ADD has extreme side affects and is often not worth the trade off. One of the biggest difficulties is when a person goes to do a certain task but gets sidetracked and then will often forget what they intended to do in the beginning. This can become a major problem depending of the type of work that a the person with ADD is currently preforming. Distractions are around at all times but usually are not a problem but remember what you may not notice the person with ADD usually will.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
To have a child go to school and sit down and focus on the task at hand would be a great treat for most teachers throughout the country. Contrary, this is not the case and kids are turning up on school campuses as though they drenched in red bull. For many of these high charged students a collection of them will end up being labeled special needs. Their daily appearances border an infusion of parent neglect and a toy that is wound to tightly. Ironically, I went to school with a bunch of kids who resembled these children, and oh by the way I was one of them too. What is happening from county to county in the public education community is that singling out children does not bold well for long term effects. Historically, special education programs that focused on this type component had only incited concerns around peer pressured attacks and criticism that led to bigger problems for children in need. When we fix the problem of identifying who needs special need help and needs special parent help, then we can better aid children in the professional need category.
Ashley, I don't have any answers or anything in particular to add. All I can say is that I feel your pain. I was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 21; however, it is painfully obvious- in retrospect- that this was a problem long before that age. I was that child with the behavioral problems who impulsively blurted out anything that came to mind...who was virtually an insomniac because my mind wouldn't refrain from racing a thousand miles-per-hour, jumping from one topic to the next a hundred times a minute...that child whose head twisted and turned so often in reaction to every conceivable distraction, it is miraculous I never suffered from whiplash. Anyway, today was a rough day- maybe my Adderall just isn't as effective as it used to be(that stuff is evil anyway). Who knows? Anyway, at work I hit the forty hour mark for the week at noon. But instead of going home to work on school assignments, I decided to stay at the office and work on them to avoid 'distractions.' Hah! From everything to bugs crawling on the wall to Seroquel stress reliever balls to pacing around the campus of my community mental health center to chain smoking, I stayed distracted straight up until five o'clock. By then, what was the point of staying at the office? Hell, apparently I could find distractions in a black hole of nothingness. Anyway, I just needed to rant and it is comforting to know someone else in this program is familiar with my frustrations.
Post a Comment