ADD: What Is This Article About Again?

Do you find yourself unable to focus in class? Ever nod off and start to daydream in the middle of a conversation? Well, maybe you have Attention Deficit Disorder or ADD. A condition that can affect anyone, ADD can begin in the early childhood and last throughout life. According to the Mayo Clinic, there are around 3 million cases of ADD being reported annually. It requires a medical diagnosis from a licensed doctor. As a student in high school, I was one of those people diagnosed.

The common symptoms of ADD consist of attention difficulty, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, but symptoms can differ from person to person and age to age. ADD cannot be cured, but should also never be ignored. Different types of therapy and medication are highly recommended by most doctors. According to Wikipedia, ADD and its counterpart ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder) are commonly found in connection to various other associated disorders. These can include OCD, bipolar disorder, restless leg disorder, and more. But just because you may have ADD, it doesn't necessarily mean you have any of these other disorders as well.

Despite lack of attention, ADD is found in some of the greatest artistic minds, such as Jamie Oliver and Justin Timberlake. People with ADD aren’t limited to their disability, much like other various conditions such as OCD and Bipolar Disorder. ADD helps the mind run constantly and extends levels of creativity, which may not be such a bad thing.

In the long run, people with ADD are just normal people like everyone else. People should not be labeled by what they can and can’t do.  It is important to accept people for all their complexity.

​Henry Davis