Delivered From Distraction - 05 edition

Chapter 1 THE SKINNY ON ADD: READ THIS IF YOU CAN'T READ THE WHOLE BOOK Most people who have ADD don't read books all the way through. It's not because they don't want to; it's because reading entire books is very difficultsort of like singing an entire song in just one breath. We want to make this book accessible to people who don't read books all the way through. For those people our most dear and treasured brothers and sisters in ADD we offer this first chapter set off from the rest of the book. Reading this will give you a good idea of what ADD is all about. If you want to learn more ask someone who loves you to read the whole book and tell you about it. Or you can listen to it on a tape or CD. We offer this chapter in the ADD-friendly format of Q&A. You can get the skinny on ADD in these thirty questions and answers. For more detail and research-based answers you can refer to the chapters of particular interest. For those blessed readers who intend to read the entire book some of what's in this Q&A will appear again but some of it won't so you too should read this section. Q&A ON ADD Q: What is ADD? A: Attention deficit disorder or ADD is a misleading name for an intriguing kind of mind. ADD is a name for a collection of symptoms some positive some negative. For many people ADD is not a disorder but a trait a way of being in the world. When it impairs their lives then it becomes a disorder. But once they learn to manage its disorderly aspects they can take full advantage of the many talents and gifts embedded in this sparkling kind of mind. Having ADD is like having a turbocharged race-car brain. If you take certain specific steps then you can take advantage of the benefits ADD conveyswhile avoiding the disasters it can create. The diagnostic manual of mental problems called the DSM-IV defines ADD by a set of eighteen symptoms. To qualify for the diagnosis you need six. These diagnostic criteria are listed in chapter 12. But be careful when you read them. They describe only the downside of ADD. The more you emphasize the downside the more you create additional pathology: a nasty set of avoidable secondary problems like shame fear and a sharply diminished sense of what's possible in life. The pathology of ADDits disorderly siderepresents only one part of the total picture. The other part the part that the DSM-IV and other catalogs of pathology leave out is the zesty side of ADD. People with ADD have special gifts even if they are hidden. The most common include originality creativity charisma energy liveliness an unusual sense of humor areas of intellectual brilliance and spunk. Some of our most successful entrepreneurs have ADD as do some of our most creative actors writers doctors scientists attorneys architects athletes and dynamic people in all walks of life. Q: What is the difference between ADHD and ADD? A: It's just a matter of nosology the classification of disorders. There is an arbitrariness to it all. By the current DSM-IV definition ADD technically does not exist. By the DSM-IV definition the term ADHD includes both ADHD with hyperactivity (the H in ADHD) and ADHD without hyperactivity. Technically this means you can have ADHD with no symptoms of H hence there is no need for the term ADD. But ADD the old term is still used by many clinicians including the authors of this book. Whichever term you use the important point to know is that you can have ADHD (or ADD) without showing any signs of hyperactivity or impulsivity whatsoever. ADHD without hyperactivity or impulsivity is more common among females. Q: What is the typical profile of a person who has ADD? A: The core symptoms of ADD are exce

Advance praise for Delivered from Distraction ''Delivered from Distractionis just what it promises. In this remarkable volume Ned Hallowell and John Ratey bring the latest information on ADD to homes and hearts everywhere conveying the burgeoning scientific information with humor hope and clarity. As the authors point out ADD needn't be a sentence to secondhand status. The ADDer who hearkens to their sage and practical whole-life advice will make the most of his or her talents. This book is certain to be a classic for the next decade.'' PETER S. JENSEN M.D. Ruane Professor of Child Psychiatry director Center for the Advancement of Children's Mental Health Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute ''If you read only one book about attention deficit disorder it should be Delivered from Distraction. No two psychiatrists in America have thought more deeply about ADD than Ned Hallowell and John Ratey and no one writes about it with more feeling understanding and accuracy. Most important Hallowell and Ratey share their wisdom about living a good life with ADD. What an optimistic and helpful book!'' MICHAEL THOMPSON PH.D. New York Times bestselling co-author of Raising Cain ''Edward Hallowell has written a comprehensive easy-to-understand book on ADD. This is clearly the definitive source of information on Attention Deficit Disorder.'' HAROLD S. KOPLEWICZ M.D. Arnold and Debbie Simon Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry director Child Study Center New York University School of Medicine ''A deeply wise and truly helpful book written with frankness humor and tremendous empathy. As a pediatrician I have been recommending Driven to Distraction to parents for many years and this new book brings the reader fully up to date in a rapidly changing field combining the important information about the science and treatment of ADD with powerful advice about getting through life succeeding in life and enjoying life.'' PERRI KLASS M.D. author of Quirky Kids ''What is unique and particularly valuable in Hallowell and Ratey's approach is the hopeful message insistently repeated that 'at the heart of ADD lies a bonanza of wonderful qualities' and that in treatment these strengths and talents can and should be identified and developed.'' CHARLES MAGRAW M.D. past president Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute From the Hardcover edition.