Personal Narrative: Living With Attention Deficit Disorder

I was diagnosed with ADHD when I was around ten years old, but I was not informed of this until the end eleventh grade, when I accidentally stumbled upon the information. I have trouble controlling my focus and completing work in a timely manner, particularly with essays and I occasionally have trouble following along during class lessons, especially with math. I have always had high expectations for myself in school, but had difficulty producing work that displayed my mindset. This was frustrating because I spent twice as much time on homework than my classmates, but still found myself behind on assignments. I always completed my homework, however, the late penalties I often received greatly impacted my grades each year. My parents told the

Instead of succumbing to the the stereotypes, I knew that I wanted to succeed. Medication along with my own coping strategies have helped, but the struggle still remains- there is a constant mental battle to stay focused on one task

Challenges have varied throughout my life in both health complications and society itself. Early trauma has conflicted my mom for sometime whose brothers died in a horrendous drowning accident in 1979 . As life progressed and I came into the world, drug addiction and other illnesses manifested in our outside family, eventually making its way to my older sister. These events at a young age helped me understand reality faster than a normal person.

“SAIL!... Blame it on my ADD!” This line from an alternative rock band’s hit song was what I let define my life for the longest time, or at least with its disorder cousin, ADHD. From the age of 9 I hid behind this disorder as the absolute excuse as to why I couldn't. From a life of dealing with ADHD I learned that I can't do this anymore and that my disorder gave me no excuse to fail or to not succeed at something. That just because something is hard or unfair doesn't give you an excuse not to do it.

From the day I entered kindergarten class at the age of five my accomplishments in school have been tainted by behavioral problems. Every week my mother would inevitably receive calls from teachers and principals complaining about my inattentiveness and hyperactivity in the classroom. I never had a problem with the work and I was always one of the smartest students in my class so my parents just assumed that I was a rambunctious child. My parents completely subscribed to the belief that “boys will be boys” and although I certainly was reprimanded for my behavior, the last thing to have crossed my parents’ mind was that this type of behavior was a symptom of a disorder. The disorder I am referring to is called Attention Deficit

Being a child with ADD I found school to be very challenging even at an early age. My first year of high school was a big leap from elementary and middle school. It was very hard for me to get use to the tests and work that were given to me. During that time I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do and that made it very difficult for me to really want to do well in school. Once freshmen year past I went on a trip to Europe which changed everything for me after that I knew I wanted to do something with international travel. I heard about a family friend who was involved in international business and how he got to travel everywhere and at that moment he was living in Brazil. To me that was everything and I had found my goal. I started to do better

Salt water droplets tickling my cheeks as they make their way down to my empty heart. I always knew something was off about me, but I didn’t know exactly what it was. That is until fourth grade when I found out that I had been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, ADHD for short. At first I didn’t want to accept that I had something wrong with me, even though it’s always been there. I would read a short passage fluently, but as soon as one of my teachers asked me what I just read, I totally forgot. You hear people being diagnosed with ADHD every year, and you may not think that it's a big deal, but when a disorder like this affects the way you learn and comprehend things, it turns into one.

This last year has been a rough one for me, mentally and physically. The beginning of the school year I was dealing with some medical issues, which were preventing me from attending my classes. It’s a gastral and thyroid problem that causes me to vomit frequently. I have been having this problem for the last year or so, but it had been progressively getting more intrusive. I'd wake up every morning either light headed or nauseous. Some days I would power through it and go to classes; others I could barely pull myself out of bed. I have a very independent personality, so I didn’t go to the doctor until it got significantly worse. I have attached a copy of my discharge papers from the hospital. My health is still an issue I am dealing with, but I am taking medication and have a health plan in place with my doctor. So far I have yet to experience the vomiting that was once a daily occurrence.

One of the most difficult things I have ever Experienced has been My ADHD and when I was younger I had a hard time controlling my bowels. This was the cause of a lot of ridicule throughout my life and had built up a lack of confidence. The Problems were even at home, although my parents were and are very supportive my siblings were not as kind. My older brother had made me feel almost worthless and when my younger brother started to mock me it destroyed me I didn't like feeling like I was lower than my younger brother I wanted to be his role model. There were also problems at school it had effected my school work I wasn't able to perform to the best of my ability which left me feeling dumb and when I had to constantly go to Doctors appointments

The most significant challenged I ever faced is being diagnosed with severe Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome my junior year of college. Receiving my diagnosis I was upset and negative about the situation. I knew financially I could not get the surgery, and I knew I needed to push on through college. Nevertheless, I never let my diagnosis get the best of me. My diagnosis did not get the best of me because I started to see it as a positive challenge. Additionally, I realized my diagnosis taught me important life lessons. One of the life lessons taught to me, by my diagnosis, was to not add constant stress to the situation out of my control. If a situation is out of my control, like being diagnosed with WPW, the worst response is constant

The current diagnosis of childhood ADHD helps the patient to reach his or her full emotional and intellectual capacity. This improves the relationships of family and educators. By educating and supporting family members of ADHD, this can have a positive affect on the outcome of the child's disorder. Excellent communication must be in order between family, doctor, and teachers (DeMarle, Denk & Ernsthausen, 2003).

It can be argued, due to myths and misconceptions children with ADHD continue to go undiagnosed and untreated. If your child displays behavior signs of ADHD, don’t believe the myths you have heard, get educated, visit your child’s doctor and if diagnosed, determine the appropriate treatment plan. Share the education, knowledge and experience you have gained with others. You never know, there might be parents today, struggling with their own “Liz” and by providing them awareness and education on ADHD, you may be the one, which helps them have their own success story, much like Liz’s 6th grade teacher did for us. All children deserve a life, where they are given every opportunity to reach their full

Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

I was diagnosed during my sophomore year of high school. Not knowing that it would lead to anything, I mentioned to my doctor that I was having trouble focusing in school. I knew that ADD and ADHD existed, but I never thought that I would have it. She suggested getting tested, just to be safe. When I finally was diagnosed, I was immediately relieved. Learning that my inability to focus on simple tasks was finally not my fault was the greatest news I had heard in a long time. There was finally an

From the time I was a seven years old till the current day, as a Sophomore at Benedictine University, I have wanted to become a teacher. The four years of high school, Oswego High School, I truly become passionate to become a teacher. I took the necessary general education classes, and my elective classes learning about child development and early childhood education. Once I graduated high school, I felt confident to become a teacher, but I discovered that special education was what I truly wanted to do. From the first day or first grade up to now, I have become a success student, which I can’t wait to become teacher I want to be an aspirational teacher one day to my future students.