Health Matters: ADHD

When you think of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, your first thought is likely that it’s a children’s diagnosis, but ADHD is a problem for adults as well.

University Medical Center Clinical Psychologist Dr. John Burkhardt said ADHD is a lifelong issue, but medication, therapy and behavioral adjustments can help those afflicted manage the disorder.

“(A parent’s) thought is ‘I have a son or a daughter who has difficulty paying attention,’ because that’s how it comes up in school, but ADD is not that,” Burkhardt said. “It’s the inability to shift your attention.”

That means if a child is focused on something they’re interested in like video games or reading, it’s hard to pull away from that to accomplish a required task like chores or homework.

“It almost looks like I’m being stubborn because I don’t want to do it, but really what I have is difficulty pulling away,” he said.

Categories: Health Matters, Local News