What is ADHD?
ADHD is a lifelong, neurodevelopmental condition which affects 3-5% of school age children around the world. Psychiatrist Edward Hallowell has likened it to having “a Ferrari brain with bicycle brakes. Strengthen the brakes and the control, and you have a champion.” Around 1 in 100 children in Greater Glasgow and Clyde have an ADHD diagnosis.
ADHD has three core symptoms
With the right support, people with ADHD can enjoy successful careers and personal lives. ADHD is associated with many strengths including creative thinking, energy, humour and willingness to take risks. A number of well-known celebrities, entrepreneurs, sportsmen and women and public figures have achieved high levels of success because they have been able overcome difficulties during the early years and to then exploit the positive features of the condition.
The three core signs of ADHD are:
Inattention
Children with ADHD can pay attention, but they find it hard to control WHAT they pay attention to, and they are easily distracted. ADHD is associated with a poor short term memory, so children may struggle to remember instructions or where they put things.
People with ADHD can also hyperfocus when they are really interested in something. This can make it hard to switch tasks
2. Impulsiveness
Children with ADHD tend to act without thinking things through, on the spur of the moment. This can get them into trouble and lead to risky or thrill seeking behaviour - especially in the teenage years when the brain is going through huge changes.
Impulsiveness - or willing to act decisively and take risks - can have great benefits too. No wonder many successful entrepreneurs have ADHD.
3. Hyperactivity
This is the symptom which people often associate with ADHD. Many children with ADHD are hyperactive: they want to be on the move all the time and they may climb things, roll around on the floor or seek other kinds of sensory stimulation.
But not all children with ADHD are hyperactive: those with the inattentive subtype (ADD) are not, and they can be missed when it comes to realising there is a problem. Also, even those with hyperactivity may grow out of it into adulthood - though a fidgety restlessness can remain.
The energy which comes with hyperactivity can be a real asset to people with ADHD.
Watch Dr Thomas Phelan explaining ADHD and the brain…
How is ADHD diagnosed?
In Scotland, ADHD is diagnosed either by a CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health) team, or a paediatric team. ADHD is diagnosed using clinical interviews with parents, observation of the child and questionnaires completed by parent, teacher or anyone else who knows the child well. The criteria they use are in the DSM V manual of the American Psychiatric Association which you can read by clicking the button below
If you think your child may have ADHD, talk to your GP about it. Schools can also refer directly to CAMHS.
ADHD is a very heritable condition - it has a strong genetic component and often runs in families, together with related neurodevelopmental disorders like Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Dyslexia, Dyspraxia and Sensory Processing Disorders. However, there is no single genetic or clinical test for ADHD (such as a blood test or brain scan).