ADHD: An Overview

psychiatrists, because of their training and expertise in mental health disorders, are the best qualified to prescribe ADHD medication.

While the ADHD Hyperactive Type youth are easily noticed, those with ADHD Inattentive Type are prone to be misdiagnosed or, worse, do not even get noticed.   Moreover, ADHD Inattentive Type youth are often mislabeled, misunderstood, and even blamed for a disorder over which they have no control.  Because ADHD Inattentive Type manifests more internally and less behaviorally, these youth are not as frequently flagged by potential treatment providers.  Therefore, these youth often do not receive potentially life-enhancing treatment, i.e., psychotherapy, school counseling/coaching, educational services, and/or medical/psychiatric services.  Unfortunately, many “fall between the cracks” of the social service, mental health, juvenile justice, and educational systems.  

Youth with unrecognized and untreated ADHD may develop into adults with poor self concepts low self esteem, associated emotional, educational, and employment problems.  According to reliable statistics, adults with unrecognized and/or untreated ADHD are more prone to develop alcohol and drug problems.   It is common for adolescents and adults with ADHD to attempt to soothe or “self medicate” themselves by using addictive substances such as alcohol, marijuana, narcotics, tranquilizers, nicotine, cocaine and illegally prescribed or street amphetamines (stimulants).    

There is no “cure” for ADHD. Children with the disorder seldom outgrow it.
Approximately 60% of people who had ADHD symptoms as a child continue to have symptoms as adults. And only 1 in 4 of adults with ADHD was diagnosed in childhood—and even fewer are treated.  Thanks to increased public awareness and the pharmaceutical corporations’ marketing of their medications, more adults are now seeking help for ADHD.  However, many of these adults who were not treated as children, carry emotional, educational, personal, and occupational “scars.”   As children, these individuals, did not feel “as smart, successful and/or likable” as their non ADHD counterparts.  With no one to explain why they struggled at home, with friends, and in school, they naturally turned inward to explain their deficiencies.  Eventually they internalize the negative messages about themselves, thereby creating fewer opportunities for success as adults.          

Similarly to youths, adults with ADHD have serious problems with concentration or paying attention, or are overactive (hyperactive) in one or more areas of living. Some of the most common problems include:
• Problems with jobs or careers; losing or quitting jobs frequently
• Problems doing as well as you should at work or in school
• Problems with day-to-day tasks such as doing household chores, paying bills, and organizing things
• Problems with relationships because you forget important things, can’t finish tasks, or get upset over little things
• Ongoing stress and worry because you don’t meet goals and responsibilities
• Ongoing, strong feelings of frustration, guilt, or blame

According to Adult ADHD research:  
• ADHD may affect 30% of people who had ADHD in childhood.
• ADHD does not develop in adulthood. Only those who have had the disorder since early childhood really suffer from ADHD.
• A key criterion of ADHD in adults is “disinhibition”–the inability to stop acting on impulse. Hyperactivity is much less likely to be a symptom of the disorder in adulthood.
• Adults with ADHD tend to forget appointments and are frequently socially
inappropriate–making rude or insulting remarks–and are disorganized.  
• They find prioritizing difficult.
• Adults with ADHD find it difficult to form lasting relationships.
• Adults with ADHD have problems with short-term memory.
• Almost all people with ADHD suffer other psychological problems-particularly depression and substance abuse.

While there is not a consensus as to the cause of ADHD, there is a general agreement within the medical and mental health communities that it is biological in nature. Some common explanations for ADHD include: chemical imbalance in the brain, nutritional deficiencies, early head trauma/brain injury, or impediments to normal brain development (i.e. the use of cigarettes and alcohol during pregnancy).  ADHD may also be caused by brain dysfunction or neurological impairment.   Dysfunction in the areas in the frontal lobes, basal ganglia, and cerebellum may negatively impact regulation of behavior, inhibition, short-term memory, planning, self-monitoring, verbal regulation, motor control, and

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