ADHD REAL STORIES

To include your story, send it to petersenkarin@gmail.com

BACK TO PARENTING SECTION

Bruce's Story: 
I'm a 34 year old adult with ADD and LD.  I was first tested at the age of 12 and been struggling with this disorder for most of my life. There are times in my life, were I was wandering what was going on with me and when am I going to get my life on track again. I have come to terms with my disorder and have learned coping skills to live a less stressful life. I'm now in the retail field and searching for work in the non-profit career field, so I can work wit ADD and LD people and help them in some way. I enjoy music, sports and photography and would like to someday open up a ADD center, where people could come in and ask questions, look at my resources or just need someone to understand their problem.

I always new something was different about me, but I did not know what it was until I was in high school.  In high school I was in a smaller class for my learning problems also I took speech classes and the other kids made fun of me. The way I really new I had ADD or I was different, was when I read a ADD article in 1993 and said to myself  "that's me".  It really hit home then and I really started to get help and improve my life.
As a child growing up, I kind of new I was a little different from the other kids.  I first got tested at the age of 12.  That was not easy for me or my family.  My mother had to fight for an IEP and which school was right for me.  In high school I never really had any fiends or dated. That was caused by very low self esteem, that I had thru out my life.  I also was made fun of a lot in school, which did not exactly boost my self esteem. Going into college I really never had any direction, on what I wanted to do.  I just went to school, cause I thought it was the thing you were supposed to do.  I went to 3 different schools, which did not last very long, because of my ADD/LD I just could not handle the work. I did manage to get jobs in the retail field, but I still find myself today going from job to job.  I get bored easily which I think causes these problems. Now I'm finally getting the help I really need.  I got tested again and am now researching careers and going thru a career evaluation, that will lead to a better life.
A Day in My Life - Just imagine for a minute: always late, always have to write things down to remember them, having trouble budgeting money all the time and trouble
with making any decisions. That in a nutshell is what living with ADD is like.

(Bruce does volunteer work for CHADD, Children and adults with ADD and also for a New York support group called The Manhattan Adult ADD Support Group. He does a lot of PR work, getting the word out about ADD and their meetings. He also writes letters to schools and posts meeting flyers. You can write him at addbruce@webtv.net )

Advice from an 11 year old:
I'm 11yrs. old and sometimes I blame all my problems on ADD but its not all its fault. We just have to fight. Not beat people up fight. but fight. Sometimes kids make fun of me I tell them to stop and they keep doing it then I get mad. And I start yelling at them. And sometimes we get into a fight and get in trouble. I hope no one follows my steps. Here's my advice to you: ignore them, walk away, tell some one, or just tell them to stop and walk away. Then they wont tease you because you wont be any fun to tease and that's how you fight ADD. So take my advice don't get into fights.