Comedian Jeff Allen On His ADHD Children And His ADHD Video

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

Here’s a funny video of a comedian who’s gone public with having ADHD. Jeff Allen, a Christian comedian talking about his ADHD children at school and his own experience at school with ADHD. Can anyone relate?

I think many comedians have ADHD both the paid ones and the ones that do it for free:)

Some comedians have gone public with having ADHD ie Patrick McKenna and Rick Green who made the great ADD and Loving It movie on Adult ADHD and the website Totally ADD. Howie Mandel has also gone public with having ADHD.

There are many comedians that some people think have ADHD, who may or may not actually have it and have never claimed publicly that they had ADHD. Some of those have dyslexia or bipolar and are mistakenly put on lists as having ADHD when they don’t. That being said, you can have ADHD and dyslexia and bipolar. It’s not just one or the other. Comorbidity is the norm for ADHD

Do You Know Of Any Examples Of Provincial Or State Official ADHD Strategies?

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

Do you know of any official ADHD strategy by any Canadian Province or US State?

8-10% of children and 5% of adults have ADHD, I hope at least a few provinces or states have an official ADHD strategy, especially for the many undiagnosed and untreated Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Please let me know of any by posting a comment with a link to the strategy.

Some provinces or states have an official strategy paper on depression or other mental health conditions.

Unfortunately the BC Government doesn’t consider ADHD important enough to have a strategy on ADHD despite it’s very heavy social and economic costs.

16 to 31% of adults with ADHD also have major depressive disorder. Dysthymia, a milder form of depression, has been reported to occur in 19 to 37% of clinic-referred ADHD adults, ADHD in Adults What The Science Says p 207. Yet backwards BC’s government doesn’t even mention ADHD anywhere in their depression strategy.

Here’s an outline of what BCs Provincial Depression strategy looks like as an example of what kinds of things might be covered in an ADHD strategy.

Executive summary

I. Purpose

II. Background

I. Rationale for the proposed strategy

a. High burden of disease and cost to society
b. Impact of depression on british columbians
c. Current obstacles and gaps

IV. Environmental scan

a. Prevention and early intervention strategies
b. Collaborative care models
c. Stepped-care approaches
d. Chronic disease management models
e. System-wide initiatives
f. Innovations in treatment
g. Expert search symposia findings

1. Depression in the workplace
2. Postpartum depression
3. Depression in children and adolescents
4. Depression in the elderly
5. Concurrent substance use disorder and depression
6. Cultural expressions of depression

V. A strategy for British Columbia

a. Principles underlying the strategy
b. Goals of the strategy
c. Key provincial depression strategy initiatives

1. Strategies addressing individuals at-risk
2. Self-management, family & community support
3. Strategies to enhance primary care services
4. Optimizing the use of specialist mental health services

VI. Gauging success

References
Appendices

How ADHD Adults Can Better Manage Distractions. Notes From My Vancouver Adult ADD Support Group Meeting

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

Here’s some notes from my discussion at my Vancouver Adult ADD Support Group Meeting, Tuesday April 3rd on how ADHD Adults can more effectively manage distractions. Thanks for Vivienne for taking the notes. Here’s a list of previous meetings where someone sent me notes.

Topic: How ADHD Adults Can Better Manage Distractions

List 2 or 3 examples of feeling the urge to act on a distraction, but you were able to stay present and resist. Discuss individually in small groups.

Check out Shannon Dooling’s blog where she’s looking for stories on how adults in BC had trouble getting diagnosed for ADHD.

Why are ADHD Adults more likely to get distracted?

• Boredom or excitement
• New things are stimulating or under stimulating
• Lack of focus
• Impulsive
• Poor memory
• Trouble with delayed gratification
• Difficulty foreseeing the future or planning for the future
• Short attention span
• Trouble with working memory or with multiple items
• Uncomfortable with calm silence
• Racing mind
• Obsessions or negative hyper focus, ruminations
• Trouble with transitions (starting or stopping things)
• Trouble prioritizing
• Trouble knowing what is relevant and what is not relevant
• Not prioritizing or procrastinating
• Adrenalin/addict lifestyle instead of prioritizing (causing burnout or brown out
• Get overwhelmed/ can’t say no
• Don’t take breaks as needed

Think about:

• When do I get most distracted and what can I do to manage these distractions?
• Don’t try to change 15 things at once. Pick 1 or 2 things and work on those first.
• What are my expectations around my current ability to manage distractions?
• Are my perceptions of reality accurate or inaccurate? Am I delusionally optimistic?
• Can I adjust my perceptions to help manage distractions? The more my perceptions align with reality, the less struggle and strife I will have.
• Eckhart Tolle on accepting the present moment or accepting reality. Here’s a section from a Wikipedia article on one of his books The Power of Now elaborating on what I was mentioning.

Acceptance – Rather than resisting life as it actually is in the present moment, one accepts it for what it is, without labelling or judgment. “Allowing it to be as it is … takes you beyond the mind with its resistance patterns …”

Tolle speaks not only of acceptance of what is, but also of surrender to it.[33] This “is the simple but profound wisdom of yielding to rather than opposing the flow of life … to surrender is to accept the present moment unconditionally and without reservation.”

This may easily be misunderstood, and Tolle goes on to explain that he is not suggesting anyone should accept forevermore some unpleasant situation in life. That is mere resignation. Surrender is a purely inner phenomenon, changing our attitude so we accept how things are at this moment. Then we can act positively to change the ongoing situation, and such positive action is likely to be far more effective than if it arose out of the anger, frustration or despair of resistance.

General Ways to Reduce Distractability:

• Be more present, aware or less stressed out
• Stick to realistic list
• Reward yourself
• Effective audio tapes
• Exercise
• Avoid sugars, eat healthy foods, include protein
• Active meditation (focusing on something specific)
• Make lists (notebook or i-phone, etc)
• Schedule your tasks (planning reduces stress)
• Regular non-electronic breaks
• Regular de-cluttering
• A customized routine
• Allow buffer zones around appointments (bring reading material)
• Hot baths (try Epsom salts)
• A good night sleep
• Consider shopping or doing business in a less stressful place or time
• Organize well enough (plan to organize)
• Have FUN (schedule fun times)

Note: People with ADD forget to eat and forget to plan to eat. Google Hypoglycemia for more information how to eat a more balanced diet with reduced sugars, etc

Situational Things to Help Reduce Distractability

• Stress balls, fidgets
• Use Swiss Exercise balls
• Slow deep breathing
• Scheduled timers
• Focus on your feet planted on the floor
• Prayer beads or rosary (tactile)
• In meetings, stop individual and ask for clarity
• Ask for ‘time-out’ if possible
• If on the phone, ask for a minute & use mute
• Stay hydrated¸ drink water
• Chew gum
• Play some appropriate music for you and situation
• Stay hydrated, drink water
• Healthy snack
• Have a clear idea of the expected outcome- Be sure of the plan
• Make to do list
• Jot down notes for later if things pop into your head at inappropriate times

Think About:

• What are some distractions that happen to me on a regular basis?
• Make to do list
• Is there anything in the list above that can help me overcome it?
• WHY I am procrastinating?
• What can I do to address my major distractions?
• Is it my perception of reality accurate or am I delusionally optimistic? vs pragmatically optimistic.

Do you have anything you want the BC Liberals, BC NDP or BC Conservatives to do about their ADHD strategies and policies in BC? Currently zero.  If so, e-mail email hidden; JavaScript is required your specific thoughts. Again its for provincial wide policy vs just for what you want for your individual needs.

We need an inquiry into the BC Children and Adults ADHD Clinic Donation Scandal My Story in the Georgia Straight

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

I’m in this weeks Georgia Straight a Vancouver based weekly newspaper along with Dr. Margaret Weiss ex BC ADHD clinic chief commenting on the $3 million dollar BC children and adult ADHD clinic donation scandal. Matt Burrows wrote the story. We need an inquiry into this scandal.

See my previous post medical bureaucrats at BC Children’s Hospital & PHSA botch multimillion dollar donation for desperately needed BC Adult & Children’s ADHD clinic. Vancouver Sun health reporter Pamela Fayerman broke this story, her follow up story here.

It’s scandalous that desperate ADHD adults and parents of children with ADHD can’t find people properly trained in diagnosing ADHD in BC. Of the few who are trained in diagnosing and medically treating ADHD,  many do not even have wait lists, and those who do often have very long wait lists.

Don James, the Harley Davidson CEO who has a family member with ADHD,  for 3 years generously tried to give a $3 million donation for an BC adult and childrens lifecycle ADHD clinic to the medical bureaucrats at:

BC Children’s Hospital

The Provincial Health Services Authority PHSA

BC Mental Health Foundation

Although there was initial interest, no one got back to him with a plan or promise to use the money, he said

For 3 YEARS!!! How often in the health system is someone offering you a $3 million donation for a badly needed service? He tries to do the right thing, and that’s how he was treated?

I have people email me every DAY asking for a some name of people who can diagnose ADHD in the Vancouver area, and outside that? Even worse. BC is very backwards on ADHD. I’ve lost track of how many horror stories that have been told to me by adults with ADHD who couldn’t get diagnosed or their doctor didn’t bother to do so or dismissed the possibility of them having ADHD.

And they had access to the money all the time to HELP those people for 3 YEARS but never used it? Disgraceful. Shameful.

I’ve called for an inquiry into this scandal. Dr. Margaret Weiss has agreed.

“I definitely think that there should be an inquiry, because this is not the only instance in which a major donation has not been accepted by the health authority,” Weiss claimed in a phone interview. “And so, given the extreme budgetary constraints on provision of medical services, the fact that they are turning down much-needed money in areas of care that are particular gaps in our system needs to be investigated.”

Matt Burrows of the Georgia Straight for Health minister Mike De Jong comment on the scandal and was told Mike de Jong was “out of the country” and would not be able to respond. Really? No phone or email available in 2012? Where was he? On an arctic ice floe?

The BC Liberal govt closed down the only public adult ADHD clinic in BC 5 years ago after having a politically embarrassing 12-14 month wait list for an entire year. Still closed. I asked then NDP health critic Adrian Dix‘s (now BC NDP leader) office if they’d do something about it, but just got a lot of empty promises and nothing in the end.

There needs to be more than one public clinic for adults and children with ADHD in BC, but we can at least start with one.

The proposed BC adult and children’s lifecycle ADHD clinic seems to be in limbo now. I’ve been told Lion’s Gate Hospital in North Vancouver has been given the money it but it’s not clear if it’s going ahead.

Why hasn’t health minister Mike De Jong done something about this? What will he do about this badly botched multimillion dollar donation?

If you think this is wrong and there should be an inquiry about this, please contact these people and ask for one.

Also ask when they will reopen the much need BC adult ADHD clinic.

Contact BC Health Minister Mike De Jong Email email hidden; JavaScript is required Phone: 250 953-3547

Contact BC NDP health critic Mike Farnsworth email hidden; JavaScript is required 250 387-3655

Contact the BC Conservative party email hidden; JavaScript is required Toll Free:1+866-800-9025

Medical Bureaucrats at BC Children’s Hospital & PHSA Botch Multimillion Dollar Donation For Desperately Needed BC Adult & Children ADHD Clinic

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

The CEO of Deeley Harley Davidson Canada, Don James has been trying to give a 3 million dollar donation for a desperately needed children and adult BC ADHD clinic. For 3 years. Incompetent BC medical bureaucrats have ignored him. Repeatedly.

This is disgraceful.

Pamela Fayerman, the Vancouver Sun’s medical reporter wrote an excellent investigative story on this. Check out her Blog Medicine Matters, Twitter  Facebook. But unfortunately, her 1675 word investigative story complete with a staff photographer photograph that looks like it’s written for the print edition is posted instead in her blog, not the print edition.

Why? Was it spiked? Blog spiked? It’s a great story. Did it offend the powers that be at the Vancouver Sun? Their connected friends or organizations? Vancouver Sun managing editor Harold Munro apparently made the decision. Please ask Harold why an excellent story like this is not in the print edition? Here’s his email address email hidden; JavaScript is required ADHD gets ignored or stigmatized in BC far too much.

Don James, CEO of Deeley Harley Davidson Canada explains why he offered the generous donation for a much needed BC adult and children’s ADHD clinic.

We’ve had some experience with ADHD in our family,” he said. “My wife Ruth, and I, wanted to ensure that children treated there aren’t suddenly dropped as patients when they transition to adulthood,” he said, noting that in 2009, a B.C. Medical Association report drew attention to the need for more services for ADHD patients of all ages.

I wish there were more people like Don James in BC.

James approached various mental health experts at the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA), the BC Mental Health Foundation as well as experts at BC Children’s Hospital. Although there was initial interest, no one got back to him with a plan or promise to use the money, he said.

This is disgraceful.

As an Adult ADHD coach who runs the Vancouver Adult ADD Support group, I get people emailing me on a daily basis, asking for people who can diagnose ADHD in children and especially in adults. I’ve heard far too many horror stories by people who suffered because they didn’t get diagnosed and treated for ADHD.

Many BCers wait months on wait lists to get diagnosed for ADHD IF they can find someone who is actually knows ADHD well enough to give a proper diagnosis. Most medical professionals in BC have no training in ADHD. UBC medical students only get one hour of training on ADHD.

Don James says

If they weren’t interested in our donation, they should have had more respect by referring us elsewhere because we weren’t talking about an insignificant amount of money. We weren’t given the straight goods.

People were protecting their turf and not thinking about all the patients out there who aren’t getting proper treatment. We were handled in an incompetent, unprofessional manner

So adults and children with ADHD in BC who are severely lacking in resources for diagnosis and treatment HAD someone out there willing to fund the services they so desperately needed but didn’t get them because incompetent medical bureaucrats decided fighting ego turf wars was more important than helping ADHD patients?

Or did they just have contempt for people with ADHD? I know people who work in the mental health field who’ve went public at work with their ADHD and experienced discrimination by doctors and psychiatrists because of it.

Dr. Jana Davidson, a psychiatrist and head of mental health at BC Children’s and Women’s Hospital and Health Centre, admitted that, as one of those tasked with handling the pledge, she dropped the ball and left James and his wife dangling for three years.

“I feel badly. These were incredibly generous, well-meaning people, intent on trying to improve services for those living with the negative effects of ADHD. “The responsibility fell on my shoulders. I should have done a better job, especially in the formal communication with them,” Davidson said.

The BC Liberal govt closed down the only public adult ADHD clinic in BC 5 years ago after having a politically embarrassing 12-14 month wait list for an entire year. Still closed. I asked then NDP health critic Adrian Dix‘s (now BC NDP leader) office if they’d do something about it, but just got a lot of empty promises and nothing in the end.

Why hasn’t health minister Mike De Jong done something about this? What will he do about this badly botched multimillion dollar donation? Email email hidden; JavaScript is required Phone: 250 953-3547

I asked BC Premier Christy Clark at her town hall meeting 8 months ago if she would reopen the BC Adult ADHD clinic the BC Liberals closed. Her answer is on my blog post with the audio, she said “I’m Absolutely Committed To Working With You On It”. CKNW and CBC did a story on it. But nothing’s happened.

“James said he made several overtures to experts, including Leslie Arnold, president of BC Mental Health and Addictions Services, a PHSA (Provincial Health Services Authority) agency that has a mandate for ADHD services based at Children’s Hospital.

When James first approached BC Children’s in 2008, the hospital was about to stop accepting adult patients because waiting lists were too long. Even after dropping adult patients, waiting lists for pediatric patients — and their parents who may be taught new parenting skills —are still long. At present, new patients must wait five months to be seen. ”

James said he’s incredulous he’s only recently learned more about the dithering on his pledge. And he’s especially disturbed he discovered about it through a Vancouver Sun journalist (this writer), not from hospital officials.

“No one ever told us they couldn’t use our money or why. We offered money and they simply ignored us.”

Dr. Margaret Weiss head of the BC ADHD clinic, and world renowned authority on ADHD resigned in part over this. She’s worked there for 20 years. This is a big loss.

The Don James donation debacle played a role in the resignation from BC Children’s Hospital of Dr. Margaret Weiss, one of the world’s leading authorities on ADHD. Weiss had practised psychiatry at the hospital for 20 years and had led the ADHD program for about the last half of them until she left a few months ago. The McGill and Harvard University-educated psychiatrist is now seeing ADHD patients and conducting research in her North Shore home office.

She’s one of the world’s most prolific authors of ADHD studies published in prestigious medical journals. She also advises health systems around the world how to provide ADHD treatment programs. Weiss said the diversion of the James donation, coupled with the BCCH policy to stop accepting patients after their 19th birthday, was devastating news to her and her patients. It was one of the reasons she resigned, she said

If you ever wanted to do something about getting back an adult ADHD clinic in BC now’s the time.

“Someone else should do it” rarely really happens in real life. Many non ADHD people don’t even think ADHD is real let alone care about us.

People with ADHD don’t get services in part because far too often many in the media, the govt, and the medical bureaucrats don’t think it’s real, or a real problem. If we want services, we need to tell them why we need them.

Here are a few ways you can help:

Please read the story and pass it on to people you know who might be interested in it and facebook/twitter, consider commenting on Pamela’s blog post or writing a letter to the editor, if you do, ask them why the article is not in the print edition of the Vancouver Sun.

Please call your MLA and demand they reopen the BC adult ADHD clinic and ask them to do an inquiry on why a much needed $3 million dollar donation for BC adult and children’s ADHD clinic got ignored for 3 years.

Here’s how to find your MLA’s contact info

Also please consider politely (cursing gets deleted) explaining to these people why adults and children with ADHD need a BC adult and children clinic. If they don’t think we need resources they won’t give us it. Lots of other groups want the limited resources.

If the PHSA Provincial Health Services Authority won’t help adults and children with ADHD, they should give the resources to VCH Vancouver Coastal Health Authority to do so

1. Lynda Cranston, President and CEO of the PHSA. Provincial Health Services Authority email hidden; JavaScript is required

2. Lorna Howes, Director of Mental Health Services for VCH. Vancouver Coastal Health Authority  email hidden; JavaScript is required

3. Mike De Jong. Minister of Health. Email email hidden; JavaScript is required Phone: 250 953-3547

4. Mike Farnworth BC NDP’s Health critic. Email  email hidden; JavaScript is required
Phone: 250 387-3655

Other ideas?

Far More Helpful Than Anything Else I Have Tried

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

Another satisfied adult ADHD coaching client.

Pete Quily is an excellent coach with fantastic communication skills. He is a compassionate listener and an assertive communicator.

I’ve struggled with ADD for years and I found Pete to be far more helpful than anything else I have tried including a wide variety of medications.

He has a broad holistic approach that includes conventional as well as alternative strategies. Pete uses a combination of solid medical research that is well tempered with experience, intuition and kindness.

I have always believed that medication should be used only as a last line of defense for treating ADD and I strongly recommend using Pete as a first line of defense in conjunction with exercise and diet.

S. G.

What Have You Done Well in 2011?

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

Sometimes we just think about what we did that was “wrong” or didn’t work out.

While it is important to learn from what we did that didn’t work out, often we put most of our focus on that while ignoring what we did that DID work out. Many people do that, but arguably adults with ADHD do that more than most people.

What you focus on expands.

So why not make a list of what you did well in 2011? Well, not perfect.

What did you try and succeed at?

What new skills did you learn?

How can you continue to focus on what you did well in 2011, and do them more often in 2012?

If you want to make some New Years resolutions, maybe include some of those answers in them. Or consider an alternative to a New Year’s resolutions, a New Year’s theme.

First City In Canada To Proclaim ADHD Awareness Week is Vancouver. Thanks Vancouver City Council!

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

8 years of ADHD Awareness Weeks/days for in the US starting with the original nation resolution in the US Senate in 2004

Zero ADHD Awareness Weeks/days in Canada. None at the Federal level. None at the provincial level. None at the municipal level.

But I’m happy to report that on Tuesday Oct 18th The Vancouver City Council declared the week of October 16th to 22nd, 2011 as “ADHD AWARENESS WEEK” at a ceremony at Vancouver city hall.  Mayor Gregor Robertson read out the resolution and I and Parks Commissioner Sarah Blyth who has  gone public on having Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder spoke after.

Just before the ADHD Awareness week proclamation the outgoing Vancouver Poet Laureate Brad Cran in his final speech and poem to council went public that he had ADHD. Great timing! Thanks Brad. I’ll do a post later on that.

In this post, I’ll show a scan of the proclamation, text of the proclamation, photos and videos of the Mayor, Sarah and I speaking at the event.

Usually it take a several months to get city hall to do a proclamation. But I worked with Vision Vancouver Parks Commissioner Sarah Blyth who had recently gone public with ADHD and Vision Vancouver city councillor Andrea Reimer to get this through on short notice and we were able to make this happen. Thanks Sarah and Andrea.

And thanks to all the city councillors from all 3 parties who made this happen, Vision Vancouver, COPE, and NPA Vancouver.

Here’s the scan of the ADHD Awareness week proclamation, courtesy of one of my Vancouver adult ADD Support Group members.

Thanks  to Mayor Gregor Robertson and Vancouver City Councillors: Andrea Reimer, David Cadman, Ellen Woodsworth, Kerry Jang, Suzanne Anton, Tim Stevenson, Geoff Meggs, George Chow, Heather Deal, and Raymond Louie for helping to support awareness of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Here’s the text of Vancouver city council’s resolution as read out by Mayor Gregor Robertson.

WHEREAS Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopment condition that affects approximately 8% of children and 5% of adults. Every mainstream medical, psychological, and educational organization in the world now recognizes that ADHD is a chronic, impairing and treatable medical condition that deserves the same recognition and access to services as depression or any other mental illness;

AND WHEREAS with Vancouver’s problems with drugs and crime, diagnosing and properly treating it’s citizens with ADHD saves taxpayer dollars and prevents needless human suffering. Research shows 20% or more of drug addicts and alcoholics have ADHD, and 21-45% of criminals in prison have ADHD;

AND WHEREAS Whereas there are high rates of school dropouts, underemployment, work problems, divorce, eating disorders, depression and anxiety with ADHD (especially untreated ADHD);

AND WHEREAS there are many positive characteristics of people with ADHD, especially when properly managed, high levels of creativity and energy, hyperfocus, willingness to challenge the status quo and create something new and innovative. 3 Billionaires, several Olympic gold medalists, artists, and entrepreneurs with ADHD have been very successful;

AND WHEREAS some believe ADHD is over diagnosed, yet one in every two children in Vancouver with ADHD and 9 in every 10 Vancouver adults with ADHD will go undiagnosed and untreated;

AND WHEREAS there is a need for education of health care professionals, employers, and educators about the disorder, anti-stigma campaigns and a need for well-trained mental health professionals capable of conducting proper diagnosis and treatment activities;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Gregor Robertson, Mayor of the City of Vancouver, DO HEREBY PROCLAIM the week of October 16th to 22nd, 2011 as

“ADHD AWARENESS WEEK”

In the city of Vancouver.

Photos of the event

Photo of Mayor Gregor Robertson reading the Vancouver ADHD Awareness Week Proclamation

Photo of Mayor Gregor Robertson Parks Commissioner Sarah Blyth and Adult ADHD Coach Pete Quily who’s still in shock that this happened with the Vancouver ADHD Awareness Week Proclamation

Videos of Mayor Gregor Robertson, Sarah Blyth and Pete Quily During ADHD Awareness Week Proclamation.

Here’s the video of Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson Proclaiming the first ADHD Awareness Week in Vancouver.

Here’s the video of Vision Vancouver Parks Commission Sarah Blyth who has ADHD talking about her experiences with it.

Here’s the video of me talking about ADHD in Vancouver and the need for more resources and of course to reopen the closed after a year long wait list BC adult ADHD clinic at an adult hospital.

Maybe you can help get your city, province or state to declare ADHD Awareness Week for next year? Maybe one day Canada will catch up to the Americans and declare a national ADHD Awareness Week?

Pete Quoted in The Globe and Mail Coping With Adult ADHD: First You Need a Diagnosis

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

I was quoted in an article on Adult ADHD in Monday’s Globe and Mail Newspaper (the major National Canadian Newspaper) written by Adriana Barton, Oct. 3rd, 2011 p L1 in the Life section.

Sarah Byth the Vision Vancouver parks commissioner who is the first elected politician in Canada and the US to go public with ADHD is profiled in the article.

I was quoted on Adult ADHD coaching in the article and on the positives of having adult ADHD. I think it was a great well researched article. I do disagree with Dr. Russell Barkley, there ARE advantage of ADHD, 99.9% of all research studies on ADHD are looking for the negatives of ADHD, and there are true negatives but almost no one is looking for the strengths of ADHD.

What you don’t look for you won’t find. Barkley’s done great research on the pathology of ADHD, and there are true negatives of adhd. But Barkley is not a clinician he’s a researcher. He doesn’t actually treat ADHD patients, like clinicians such as Dr Ed Hallowell who has ADHD does.

Dr Hallowell considers ADHD a strength wrapped in a challenge. Talk to clinicians or Adult ADHD coaches who focus on adults with ADHD and you’ll find them talking about the strengths of ADHD as well as the negatives. They don’t consider ADHD 100% pathology.

The title of the article highlights a huge problem with adult ADHD in Canada, Coping With Adult ADHD: First You Need a Diagnosis. But you can’t assume that you can get a proper one reasonably easily. The vast majority of  adults with ADHD are undiagnosed and untreated.

Many doctors, psychiatrist and psychologists have no training on adhd, especially on adult ADHD. At UBC medical school they only get one hour on ADHD during their whole program, totally inadequate.

Why doesn’t the The College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC  and other provinces properly educate doctors and psychiatrists on ADHD, especially adult ADHD by demanding family doctors take Continuing Medical Education courses on ADHD in adults and children?

The preamble of The Canada Health act states that

the objective of Canadian Health Care policy is “that continued access to quality health care without financial or other barriers will be critical to maintaining and improving the health and well-being of Canadians.The primary objective of the Act is to protect, promote and restore the physical and mental well-being of residents of Canada and to facilitate reasonable access to health services without financial or other barriers.” (Section 3).

Well by that definition, aren’t BC and other province are violating the Canada health act by not providing “reasonable access to health services without financial or other barriers”? The barrier being not finding enough doctors competently trained in diagnosing and treating ADHD in adults and children. I hear this complaint constantly. Will someone with ADHD have to sue the provinces to allow ADHD adults and children to get properly diagnosed and treated?

What did you think of the article?

First Elected Politician With The Courage To Go Public With Having ADHD in Canada Or America. Thanks Sarah Blyth!

Post from: Adult ADD Strengths

Billionaire entrepreneurs, Gold medal winning Olympic athletes and entertainers, and pulitzer prize newspaper columnists have gone public with ADHD but up until now no elected politician in Canada or in the US has gone public with having ADHD that I’ve been able to find. I’ve searched the web and asked many people in both Canada and the US who work with people with ADHD.

This is despite many politicians going public with depression, alcoholism, drug abuse, etc.

I’m a political science major who has ADHD, coaches adults with ADHD and who started working on political campaigns at 16 and I’m a long time politics junkie. I think many politicians have ADHD but are afraid to go public with it.

There are many reasons why ADHD can be an asset as a politician that I’ll list below.  I’ve talked to others who work in politics behind the scenes who know ADHD and they agree.

So I was surprised and happy to hear the first elected politician to go public with having ADHD was in my city of Vancouver. Sarah Blyth is a Vancouver parks commissioner and a member of Vision Vancouver and she went public with ADHD in the Georgia Straight Newspaper print and online. I was also quoted in the article written by Matthew Burrows.

Sarah Blyth

Here’s more information about Sarah Blyth. Sarah was a

founding partner of the Vancouver Skateboard Coalition and helped secure the declaration of Skateboard Week, the relaxing of the ban on skateboarding on city streets, and the development of five new skateparks.

She works at the New Fountain Homeless Shelter in the Vancouver’s Down Town East Side  and is a founding member of Portland FC, a soccer team that started out from the New Fountain Homeless Shelter.

There are many problems with having ADHD and as an Adult ADHD coach I see a wide variety of them. But ADHD is not all negative, there are many ADHD strengths.

Here are some reasons why ADHD can be a competitive advantage as an elected politician:

• very curious

• good at multitasking

• good at scanning their environment and noticing what others miss, except for paperwork:) lucky many have staff for that

• high energy levels for those 14 hour days

• can hyperfocus for hours like a laser IF interested

• not afraid to question or challenge authority

• not afraid of changing the status quo

• very adaptable

Here are some quotes from staff writer Matthew Burrows’s great article on Sarah Blyth in the Georgia Straight 

Not surprisingly, Blyth said she looks back on her school days with a certain horror but has learned to have a sense of humour about what were chaotic days.

“Well, you’re more aggressive,” Blyth added. “You’re different socially, I think, when you’ve got attention deficit disorder, especially when you’re hyperactive, because you tend to be a bit impulsive. So you’re poking other kids and fighting. I was a big fighter and a big poker, you know?”

When asked why she was going public with ADHD, Sarah Blyth gave an answer I hope more politicians will one day to develop the courage to do.

Now Blyth is going public about her condition, she said, in part so that other kids won’t suffer the same way she did.

“Mainly, I want to raise it because it’s more about learning disabilities and mental-health issues and kids growing up, and I feel like, maybe if they looked at me, they could go, ‘Well, she’s sort of doing stuff with her life, even though she had challenges growing up,’ ” Blyth said.

“That’s why I wanted to, because I know that young kids suffer. When I was told as a kid that I had a learning disability, you think there’s something wrong with you. You know that you are different and you learn differently.”

I asked Sarah Blyth some questions about ADHD, here are her answers:

Pete Quily: When did you suspect you might have ADHD? Did someone else family member friend work colleague suggest you might have ADHD before getting diagnosed? How did you respond at the time?

Sarah Blyth: I was diagnosed when I was a child in grade 1.  I didn’t understand what it meant I just knew I was different

Pete Quily: Many ADHD adults stay hidden in the ADHD closet because strong stigma against ADHD, what finally made you decide to go public with ADHD?

Sarah Blyth: The only reason was that I want people with learning disabilities and mental illness to know that they can achieve their dreams just like anyone else.

Pete Quily: How have your Vision Vancouver colleagues reacted to you going public with ADHD?

Sarah Blyth: My Vision Colleagues have been really supportive. I feel really supported and accepted for who I am and my abilities. I don’t make excuses for who I am. If someone asked me if I would give up having ADHD as annoying as it is sometimes…I would say no way Jose, its what makes me, me.

Pete Quily: How have your civic political opponents NPA Vancouver, COPE and the Green party of Vancouver reacted to you going public with ADHD?

Sarah Blyth: I think this is an issue that crosses party lines. I think to go after me politically for being open about having ADHD would be a bad political move though I am sure the NPA have given it some thought. lol

Pete Quily: How have your family and friends reacted to you going public with ADHD?

Sarah Blyth: They have all been really supportive.

Pete Quily: How have the voters reacted to you going public with ADHD?

Sarah Blyth: I have had so many wonderful letters. I will say that I have heard from folks that can’t speak about having ADHD for fear of being judged at work school or by family and friends. Its very stigmatized, people don’t see it as an attractive trait even though it has many benefits.

Pete Quily: What are some of the benefits of having ADHD?

Sarah Blyth: Hyper Focus, multi tasking, outgoing, take risks

Pete Quily: The only public clinic in BC diagnosing Adult ADHD the BC adult ADHD clinic was forced to shut down in 2007 after a year to 14 month wait list for an entire year. The asked the BC liberal govt for funding to deal with the wait list and they refused and they shut down the clinic. I asked the office of the then BC NDP health critic and now leader of the BC NDP Adrian Dix to raise the issue in the legislature but just got shuffled around, promises made and ignored.

During a town hall I asked BC Premier Christy Clark about reopening the BC Adult ADHD clinic and she said  “I’m absolutely committed to working with you on it”
and this was reported both by CKNW radio and the CBC, the audio is on my blog.

Drugs and crime are very common issues in the news and in politics in Vancouver yet no one is talking about the high rates of people with ADHD who are self medicating with drugs and alcohol, 20+% of addicts have ADHD vs 5% of the population.

Plus 21-45% of prisoners in jail have ADHD clinical research shows

Given ADHD is 80% genetic and only one out of ten adults with ADHD get diagnosed, do you support reopening the BC adult ADHD clinic at an adult hospital? What needs to be done to make it happen?

Sarah Blyth: I would say we need more support and facilities to diagnose and treat ADHD so I am surprised the province would be shutting facilities down. There is definitely not enough support and many needlessly suffer because of it.

Pete Quily: You’re doing a great thing by going public with ADHD but most Vancouver politicians in ALL parties totally ignore ADHD.

Sarah Blyth: Well I’m listening:) And hopefully we can raise some awareness.

Pete Quily: As a political science major and long time politics junkie I think a lot of politicians have ADHD, it’s actually a competitive edge in politics ie we’re naturally curious, have high levels of energy, not afraid to question or challenge authority, not afraid to ask questions, good at multitasking, can hyperfocus for hours like a laser IF interested, creative problem solver, good in a crisis, good at scanning their environment and noticing what others miss, except for paperwork:) very adaptable, etc

Plus many entrepreneurs, athletes, entertainers and people in high tech have gone public with ADHD but as far as I an tell by searching and asking many ADHD professionals, you’re the first elected politician in North America who’s gone public with ADHD.

Given that plus elected politicians have gone public with depression, anxiety disorders, bipolar, alcoholism, drug addictions etc, Why haven’t more politicians gone public with ADHD?

Sarah Blyth: I don’t know, perhaps they will now:)

Pete Quily: Any final thoughts you’d like to share with my ADHD readers?

Sarah Blyth: Don’t forget to breathe…

If you know of any elected politician in Canada or the US who has ADHD, and that has the guts to step out of the ADHD closet and go public, please let me know.