According to the latest research, somewhere between 3% and 10% of the population has ADHD. Some of these people are diagnosed but some are not. ADHD is short for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. In some ways this disorder is misunderstood because under certain conditions the attention problem is not seen. For instance, if an adolescent enjoys playing video games the deficit in attention and concentration is not present. In other environments however, such as school, the symptoms may be strongly present.
ADHD most frequently manifests itself under 3 conditions: when there is a lot of stimulation in the environment (thereby causing the person to be distracted), when someone is bored and when an individual has to do a task which is not inherently interesting to them and which requires consistent mental effort. However, because ADHD symptoms do not manifest themselves across all environments many people who actually have ADHD are undiagnosed because they mistakenly believe the symptoms should always be present.
At its core, ADHD is a problem of self-regulation due to a deficit of neurotransmitters in the frontal lobe of the brain. Individuals with ADHD have difficulties with:
- Attention
- Concentration
- Organizational skills
- Time management
- Planning skills
- Judgment skills
There is a subset of people with ADHD who also have difficulty inhibiting responses such as:
- Controlling excess movement (hyperactivity)
- Controlling impulsivity
- Controlling frustration
- Controlling anger
A free brief Adult ADHD Screening Tool can be found on the Psych Central website.
A free brief Child/Adolescent ADHD Screening Tool can be found on the About.com website.
Another free Child/Adolescent ADHD Screening Tool can be found on the WebMd website.
At Affiliated Clinical Therapists we offer comprehensive testing and treatment for adults, adolescents and children with ADHD.
Read more about the ADHD and Learning Disabilities services we offer please click here for an introduction to our ADHD and Learning Disabilities services, here for our ADHD and Learning Disabilities services regarding Children/Adolescents, here for our Educational Accomodations services for those with ADHD and Learning Disabilities and here for our services for Adults with ADHD and Learning Disabilities.
