Adult ADD Strengths

There’s a one year wait to get diagnosed at the main place that does it in Vancouver, the ADHD clinic at Children’s hospital according to the clinic’s director Dr. Margaret Weiss. This was mentioned at last week’s CHADD Vancouver meeting, where she spoke. She was very informative and entertaining, if you ever get a chance to see her do go. Her dog does seem to have ADD, as others have mentioned, but I got along with it fine. I’ve been trying to get our non profit Vancouver Adult ADD Support group listed on their website for more than a year.

Takao Arayama, a 70 year old Japanese man who didn’t start climbing seriously until he was in his 40s climbed to the top of Mount Everest. He apparently beat the previous record holder, another 70 year old Japanese man Yuichiro Miura by doing it when he was 3 days older. 175 climbers have died climbing Mount Everest.

How often have you heard people under the age of 60 complain they can’t do something or change their habits because they’re too old? I know people in their 30’s who act older than some people who are senior citizens.

CADDRA the Canadian ADHD Resource Alliance will have their 2nd annual ADHD conference in Toronto, ADHD: Essential Knowledge for the Healthcare Professional, Educator & Parent.

I went to their 1st one in Vancouver, and it was well worth it. This one will be at the Renaissance Toronto Airport Hotel 801 Dixon Road, Toronto, Ontario and will be 3 days instead of the previous 2.

The first 2 days is for professionals and is fully accredited, although everyone is welcome, the 3rd day is for educators, parents and adults with ADHD, though professionals are also welcome.

For those of you who live in the Lower Mainland, there’s a group of people on the North Shore (West Vancouver and North Vancouver) that are going to be starting up an ADD support group for parents of children with ADD and adults with ADD. They’ll be meeting somewhere in West Vancouver.

They will be having an organizational meeting sometime in June. If you’d like to get involved in helping to create the ADD support group or just want to show up at the meetings please contact Fran Jones. Her email is fbjones AT shaw.ca or ph 604-926-9908.

When politicians have something to confess, it’s usually after everyone knows about and they can stay in denial no longer. For some denial never ends until the cell door closes. Political courage is unfortunately in short supply these days.

That’s why it’s refreshing to see a politician admit a something potentially politically damaging on his own accord.

George Smitherman is the Liberal health minister for Ontario and is openly gay, he says coming out on this is “much more terrifying.” He said for 5 years in the early 90’s he was addicted to street stimulants used as “party drugs”. He didn’t list the type of drug(s), possibly crystal meth?

Finally got my interview published in Metro Newspaper today in the Toronto edition, unfortunately not the Vancouver one, but fortunately the online edition version. I’ve now learned not to predict when an article is coming out since both I and the reporter have no control over the when, that’s the editors decision.

Title of the article was Attention disorders can affect work and was written by Jill Andrew who writes articles and has a weekly column at Metro Newspaper as well as her own multiple entrepreneur website. Check it out, she’s quite the renaissance woman.

Here’s a few tools that can be used for the perpetual hard to wake ADDer, from Uberreview Top Ten Most Annoying Alarm Clocks, via ADD Consults

Here’s a few I like

The Puzzle Alarm

wakes you up by firing four puzzle pieces up in the air, then it is your mission to get the pieces and put them back in the alarm clock or it won’t turn off until then.