Like medications for any other mental or physical condition, medications for ADHD can also have some side effects.

Unfortunately many doctors are not properly trained on ADHD in medical school. For example, here in Vancouver BC Canada, UBC medical students only get one hour on ADHD. So unless they went out to learn more about ADHD on their own time & dime, many aren’t that familiar with the condition of ADHD, let alone the medications which are one of many ways to manage ADHD, let alone how to manage some of their side effects.

Ideally, your doctor will tell you about the possible side effects of ADHD medications, how to manage them, and realistic expectation (pills won’t teach skills), but if they don’t, here are some tips from WebMD. Of course, before doing any changes to ADHD medications, ALWAYS discuss them with your doctor. If your doctor doesn’t know about ADHD, point them to CADDRA’s Canadian ADHD Practice Guidelines so they can learn.

Keep in mind one size never fits all, and one ADHD med never fits all. It can take time to get the right medication(s) and the right dose for you, they’re called medication trials not medication psychics. You might also want to do an ADHD medication log too. The more information you can give your doctor on how/when the meds are working, the better they can adjust your dosage for maximum effectiveness

WebMD has some good tips on how you can reduce the side effects that sometimes come with ADHD medications. While they’re focused on children with ADHD, some of their medication tips are applicable to adults with ADHD. Here’s one of their sections of tips on managing side effects of ADHD medications.

Managing difficulties with sleep

• Give the morning dose of ADHD medication earlier in the day. Discuss medication changes with the doctor. It may be necessary to try shorter-acting medications.

• Don’t allow your child to drink caffeinated beverages. Cocoa and many sodas, coffees, and teas all contain caffeine. A child who drinks these in the afternoon or evening may be tossing and turning at bedtime.

• Establish a sleep-only zone. Your child’s bedroom should be dedicated to sleep — not for homework, not for entertainment. Move the computer, radio, television, toys, and games to another room. A few stuffed animals are fine, but there should be no other distractions.

• Teach your child to relax at bedtime. A special blanket or a stuffed animal can help a child fall asleep. But it’s best to avoid bedtime activities that depend on a parent’s presence — like rocking or holding the child until sleep comes.

• Establish consistency. Bedtimes and waking times should be the same seven days a week. Waking times are more important than bedtimes in establishing sleep rhythms. It is easier to enforce a waking time than a bedtime. “Sleeping in” can be a sign that the child is not getting enough sleep.

• Establish daytime routines. Regular meal and activity times help, too. Routines make it easier for children to “wind down” to sleep.

• Discourage midnight visits. Waking up at night can become a habit for children. It can also be a way to get attention. While you don’t want to let a child cry themselves to sleep, it’s best to discourage middle-of-the-night visits with mom and dad or midnight snacks. Also, don’t allow interesting toys near the child’s bed (a stuffed animal or two is fine).

• Avoid sleep medications. Medications stop working over time, and may affect daytime alertness. They may also wear off during the night, and cause night waking. Some medications may cause nightmares or other types of sleep problems. If medications are absolutely necessary, talk to your child’s doctor about safe and effective treatments.

• Consider medical problems. Allergies, asthma, or conditions that cause pain can disrupt sleep. If your child snores loudly and/or pauses in breathing, medical evaluation is necessary. Consult your physician for help with the possible medical causes of sleep problems.

I find that it’s also useful to turn off all stimulating electronic devices like computers, tv, cell phones, video games an hour before you go to sleep so you give your racing ADHD brain time to slow down so you get to sleep earlier AND have better sleep. Sometimes this is easier said than done, I know by personal experience:)

For some people, having a snack with protein before bed helps them get to sleep, for others it keeps them awake, so experiment to see what types/quantity/timing of food(s) works best for you.

Another tip I and some of my adult ADHD coaching clients have found useful is to have a pad of paper and pen by your bed. So just as you’re getting ready to bed, if you think of something you have to/want to do the next day/ worry/concern, to write it down on the pad and remember to look at it the next day near your daytimer. That way you don’t have that thought/worry rattling around in your brain all night taking up psychic rent when you’re half asleep and too tired to do anything about it.

Check out the other tips on managing the side effects of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder medications on Web MD’s site.

What tips have you found useful in managing the side effects of ADHD medications?

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Ever been told you’re talking too fast?

More than a few people with ADHD have. You might enjoy this response by Chris Matthews who is the host of Hardball, a political talk show on MSNBC who was on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno show. You might enjoy Jay’s response even more. It starts about 3.35, and I think it was on May 20th, 2010.

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I’ve done a one question anonymous survey on kwiksurveys.com

If you’re an adult with ADHD and you haven’t gone public with it (public as in being able and willing to talk about having ADHD with your family, friends and work colleagues) please consider answering the one question survey. You can skip the explanation part and go right to the survey question or read the explanation for background on WHY I’m asking the question.

I don’t want your name, I just want your answer.

Here’s the link to the single anonymous question I’m asking

I’ll be blogging the answers later.

thanks

Pete

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Update2: Maybe the new opening of the The Robert Lee YMCA in downtown Vancouver might have something to do why their apology is not on the front page of the Greater Vancouver YMCA’s homepage. Saw their 8 page advertising supplement on it in Saturday May 8th’s Vancouver Sun.

UPDATE Someone emailed TBWA \ Vancouver (no company Twitter account but here’s Stefan Hawes, Managing Director) & explained why the ad was a problem &  asked them why they created it. They told me they emailed them back, admitted they created the ad and gave them basically the same apology that the YMCA did that I mentioned in my previous post i.e., basically sorry ADHD families were offended with the ad but didn’t admit they made a mistake. Still nothing on TBWA\Vancouver’s website or anywhere online about this. My apologies for not posting this sooner, read his initial email, but missed the 2nd one with TBWA\ Vancouver’s response. I’ve updated the original post

Further to my original blog post about the Greater Vancouver YMCA ADHD stigma ad, who are @WDCG_YMCA on Twitter, here’s some new information.

Rebecca Shields, the Executive Director of the Vancouver Burnaby  branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association
told me that she talked with the director of communications of the Greater Vancouver YMCA about their Ritalin ad, here’s her email to me about the topic, posted here with her permission.

I wanted to let you know that I followed up with the YMCA this morning.  I spoke at length with their director of communications. The official response to the ad was posted on the YMCA website.

Furthermore, they have pulled the ad. YMCA is clear that they were in error and understand the wrongness of the message the ad sent and apologize to those individuals and families affected by ADHD as well as the community at large.  Furthermore, we spoke at length about lessons learned by senior management from this incident. I think it was a learning experience for them regarding the difference between trying to be provocative and realizing the negative consequences of those types of strategies.

I am confident that the YMCA, who provides services to 15000 children a year, will in future ensure that their communications create awareness and fight stigma, rather than perpetuating it.

I’m grateful, and I think the tens of thousands of families with ADHD children in Vancouver are also grateful that the head of the Vancouver Burnaby  branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association took the time and energy to talk with the Greater Vancouver YMCA about their stigmatizing ad. I’m also glad the Vancouver YMCA learned something about the experience and maybe they will attempt to learn more about families with ADHD, Caddac and TotallyADD are 2 places to start.

Hopefully other non profits and companies in Vancouver  & BC might learn from the YMCA’s experience.

That apology wasn’t on the website before I made the post because I searched the Greater Vancouver YMCA’s website for the keywords ADHD and Ritalin the day I found out about their ad and several days after and did not find that page. I used both their website’s search engine and Google’s search engine, i.e., site:www.vanymca.org ADHD

Disappointingly, there’s no link to the apology from the YMCA’s front page, like you would expect if they wanted families of ADHD children, the public or their membership to find it.

If you click on the “What’s New” link on the home page & click on the “media click here” button you’ll find it.

So I’m glad the Greater Vancouver YMCA has put the apology up online,  have a look at it.

They mention in the apology that the ad ran only once in Metro Vancouver newspaper and 24 Hours Vancouver newspaper and not in any other media outlet, good to know that. I’ve updated that on my original blog post.

Here’s the video that started the TBWA\Vancouver Greater Vancouver YMCA’s “Where did community go?” campaign that the ADHD Stigma ad and the foster children ad was part of

or here on the Greater Vancouver YMCA’s offical YouTube channel Here’s the text of a comment that was removed by user MrUnsellables000 and later flagged as spam when they posted the same comment again

This was good but they ruined the good part with their disgusting ads about medicated children and children with ADHD. What did kids do before they had medication? They LIVED with a condition that made their life more difficult. No apology from TBWA/Vancouver

Wonder why the YMCA deleted that comment when these arguably more critical comments were let through?

ProjectWander: Someone else blaming bad parenting on the internet. Pretty sure until a child is 18, parents can control everything they are exposed to. In short, blame bad parenting on the internet, but say that the YMCA is a get out of jail free card. nice.

frackle: only good thing ymca did was provide a base for the early gay community now it is a relic of the past sorry ymca you had a good run

theMarcusBC: The YMCA is in search of purpose in Vancouver as it’s services become less attractive in a city with new infrastructure. When they say it’s time to take the community back the Y means it want’s its market share back.

To anyone still unsure why The Greater Vancouver YMCA / TBWA\Vancouver ADHD stigma ad is a problem, read Sandy Alletto-Corbin’s strong blog post on the YMCA’s ad here’s an excerpt

…there is a very strong sub text implying that with “good ole hard work,” or if you would just ” tighten those boot straps” and get these kids involved with some healthy exercise, and a little strong discipline, then that is the KEY to success with these KIDS”, which implies the stereotype  that these kids are just lazy  and/or just not being raised properly, which is the other stereotype, to lay all the blame on home and upbringing. Of course that usually lands on the shoulders of the MOM!

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Update: I’ve done a follow up post to this with new information.

The YMCA has done many good things for many people, they’re a large multimillion dollar organization with a big impact on many members of the community in a very wide variety of ways. I can’t think of any negative media mentions about the YMCA I’ve ever come across before this ad. That’s why this highly controversial and stigmatizing ad was so shocking to me and to others with ADHD.

This post and all content on my website, blog and twitter account are solely my opinions.

The YMCA has worked hard to build a great brand reputation and this is very “Off Brand” as marketers would say. The YMCA is not like some shady supplement company trying to pass off their concentrated horsetail extract as a fake “cure” for ADHD that you see far too often on Twitter. People with ADHD were very shocked to see this ad was approved by and paid for by the YMCA.

The YMCA ran this ad in 24 hours Vancouver (link expired but have full PDF)  Thursday April 15th page 10 and in Metro Vancouver (PDF) page 4 the same day. The combined daily circulation of both papers is about 250,000. it seemed to be part of their “Where did community go?” ad and Facebook campaign where technology & the internet was portrayed in a negative light that was damaging “community”, and the solutions seemed to be basically defined as go and pay for programs at the YMCA.

If you were a parent of an ADHD child taking ADHD medication and saw that YMCA ad, how would it make you feel? How would you explain that YMCA ad to your ADHD child taking a YMCA program?

Would the YMCA do a similar ad and substitute Prozac for Ritalin? Or substitute Insulin for Ritalin? Would 24 Hours Vancouver and Vancouver Metro have run those ads?

Ritalin is not just a word for the actual medication itself, it’s also used many, many  times to denigrate, trivialize, stigmatize and demonize the actual neurobiological condition of ADHD which is 80% genetic.  If the child has ADHD the parents should be screened for it. Many people avoid getting assessed for ADHD because the stigma is so strong. Most adults with ADHD don’t know they have it.

I did an interview with a CBC reporter on Friday on the ad and asked people on Twitter what they thought of it. The YMCA ADHD Stigma ad stirred up some strong reaction on Twitter, here’s a few examples.

BC_Iconoclast: @petequily There are times when I value ADHD, and there are days where I wish I did not need ritalin to make my day work. YMCA bugs me today

ADD4Adults: YMCA has really stirred up the ADHD pot of controversy & pissed a lot of people off with this advertising in Vancouver http://bit.ly/c05r00

AureliaCotta: @WDCG_YMCA @petequily YMCA You had better pull the ads and apologize officially, and publicly. Many families with ADHD are watching

AureliaCotta: @petequily @WDCG_YMCA @TBWA I would also like to see the ad agency who created those disgusting ads to publicly apologize.

lizditz: .@petequily great work on rebuking #YMCA for ad that stigmatizes #ADHD #specialed http://bit.ly/bZjbxC

Stigma is one of the worse things about mental health conditions, it prevents or delays many people from seeking diagnosis and treatment. As an adult ADHD coach who has ADHD and runs the Vancouver adult ADD support group, and is on the board of CHADD Vancouver, I hear too many horror stories of adults with ADHD and parents of children with ADHD who didn’t seek a diagnosis and treatment because of the heavy stigma against ADHD.

People without the condition may find it hard to understand why this is so important, might read this for more insight. I hope that people with ADHD will start speaking out about this & educating people about ADHD & stigma. If we don’t do it no one else will.

It’s not just about Ritalin

It’s not just about ADHD medication.

It’s not just about the YMCA.

There are many Common Myths, Misconceptions, and Stigma Surrounding ADHD

If you had a kid with ADHD & saw that ad, would you be more likely to go to the YMCA? Or go to a gym that might be more ADHD friendly like the ones at the 24 Vancouver Park Board - Community Centres? Or one of the many other Vancouver Gyms?

There are parents who will let their ADHD child fail a whole year of school because they’re afraid to use medication because they’ve bought into the stigma that this YMCA ad is perpetuating.

Ritalin is only one of many ADHD medications. Stimulant medications have been around for 70 years, they’ve been studied more than most of the meds you’ve ever taken. How you manage your child’s ADHD or is a decision between yourself, your child and your doctor, period. No one should stigmatize you for choosing to manage your ADHD they way millions of people with ADHD do every day.

I know of people with ADHD who bought into the stigma around ADHD medication that this YMCA perpetuates who didn’t want to use ADHD meds and ended up using illegal drugs to self medicate and became drug addicts. Research has shown that children who are treated with medication are less likely to get addicted to illegal drugs later in life.

@SuperADDMom my blog response to the #YMCA #ADHD Advertisement. ( includes picture of the ad)” So Tired of the Stigma

It struck a chord on Twitter. Here’s a bit from her blog post on the YMCA Stigma ad

The stigma of living with ADHD is pretty negative at times. The negative impact it has on our day to day lives, and the people we live with can get pretty stressful. So stressful in fact that without help from medications to regulate brain chemistry, and being on top of RIGID routines to make life easier, we can end up being sucked down the big black ADHD holes of depression and inability to cope…

So, as a person with ADHD it really pisses me off when people make jokes about my medication, or imply that I must be a “happy mommy” because I take amphetamines to “get through the day”. Or they joke and ask me how I pulled off an ADHD diagnosis just to “score”. They say things like ” nice deal if you can get it” …

You’re stigma, prejudice and “jokes” are offensive. PLAIN AND SIMPLE.

The only way to stop stigma against people with ADHD is to stop being silent about it.

I recently talked to an ADHD adult  who used crystal meth to self medicate his ADHD,  became a meth addict, became homeless,  got clean, used long term ADHD stimulant meds and other methods to manage his ADHD instead of doing it with meth, and has totally changed his life around. Not all come out alive of drug addiction.  In one study  1/3rd of teens using meth in that study had ADHD. Only 8% of kids & 5% of adults have ADHD. I keep hearing people telling me that drug & alcohol treatment centers in BC still don’t screen for and treat ADHD despite 20%+ of addicts in clinical studies have ADHD. The Vancouver drug court is not screening for ADHD despite the higher rates of addiction & crime with ADHD. But ADHD is not all negative, there are billionaires with it, and the blog is called Adult ADD Strengths:) here’s some of the positives of ADHD.

If it’s not acceptable to stigmatize people with Anxiety, Depression or Diabetes to get attention and make money, why is it acceptable to stigmatize people with ADHD to get attention and make money?

If the YMCA can stigmatize ADHD children and claim that  “We don’t see this really as a mistake, we see this as our organization is inclusive and open to everyone.” (YMCA’s Charlene Giovannetti-King VP, Funds Development) And no one really calls them on it, then who will stigmatize ADHD children and adults next? What about other mental health condition will be the next to be stigmatized? People with Anxiety Disorders? Bipolar? Depression? If we’re any easy target now, will your condition be next?

I have some action steps at the end of this post if you want to break the silence.

The Vancouver YMCA’s Ad Agency of Record is TBWA \ Vancouver hired to “revamp their brand” This ad seems to be part of this campaign the YMCA is running. “Vancouver YMCA wants to take community back from technology” Seems a bit like technology & the internet is kind of evil lets go back to the 1950’s. Well one thing about the 1950’s there certainly was a lot of stigma about mental health conditions then.

I asked Stefan Hawes  @hawes who’s the managing director at TBWA\ Vancouver via Twitter if his agency did the ad. He has not replied. UPDATE TBWA\Vancouver has admitted they created the ad but still nothing on their website about it. see my followup post TBWA\ Vancouver has not commented on it anywhere. I was first directed to TBWA\Vancouver by @wswalcott on Twitter

wswalcott: @TBWA /Vancouver, you should be ashamed! YMCA ad: p. 10 http://bit.ly/bGN5Zj and p5 http://bit.ly/94B1wD

wswalcott: @Marketing_Mag: TBWA/Van & YMCA ad propagates ignorant #ADHD stigma (p5 http://bit.ly/94B1wD Will next flight make diabetes into a joke?

wswalcott: @globeandmail ROB reports on success of #ymca campaign, forgot to mention blunders http://bit.ly/d3Noac

wswalcott: @petequily, @Marketing_Mag – TBWA\Van “tasked with building the charitable organization’s community credentials” http://bit.ly/aPZ9Uk #adhd

I asked the Greater Vancouver YMCA on Twitter @WDCG_YMCA how many times the ad had run and if it ran in any other media outlets in Vancouver or elsewhere? They have not answered. update it only ran in those 2 papers & ran only once. After an ADHD parent had the courage to contact them to complain (many adults and children with ADHD don’t go public with it because of stigma around ADHD, the kind the YMCA has just added to) to them they have stopped running the ad. Good move. I’m glad they moved quickly on that.

How the Greater Vancouver YMCA responded to the criticism of the stigma ad also was criticized on Twitter

As an adult ADHD coach I could make more money by demonizing ADHD medication to sell my services since so many people have been exposed to stigma about ADHD meds from people who think like the YMCA, vs actual science and research on ADHD. But I don’t. Because I know for most people with ADHD if they have a doctor that knows enough about ADHD, which is rare in BC (we’re pretty backwards here on ADHD, UBC med schools students only get an hour on ADHD) and they willing to try a few meds and a few doses to get the one that works for them, they’re usually effective. If they can afford most people with ADHD take the long term ADHD meds instead of 3 or so daily dose of short term meds like ritalin or dexedrine.

Even the drug companies are now saying the ADHD medications are useful, but are not a magic bullet for ADHD, that pills don’t teach skills. What they do is put an ADDer in a better position to learn those skills and self awareness. Statistically speaking the best way to manage ADHD is multiple methods.  Here’s 10 ways to manage Adult ADHD. Some professional athletes have ADHD and some of them take ADHD medications.

The Vancouver YMCA could have been more creative & made the point that exercise was useful for ADHD and other mental health conditions without stigmatizing ADHD families for using one well researched method for dealing with ADHD, prescription medication. If ADHD is not treated many ADHD children and adults self medicate with illegal drugs, alcohol and tobacco since they all boost dopamine like ADHD meds, exercise, music, sex, meditation etc do.

The Vancouver YMCA did stop running the ad. I got an email from the YMCA’s Charlene Giovannetti-King which I later found out an ADHD parent who complained about the ad got a similar email.

Dear Mr. Quily,

Shortly after the ad first appeared on Thursday we received a call from a parent of a child with ADHD. As a result, we immediately pulled the ad from circulation. The ad was never intended to make light of children with ADHD and we are very sorry if the wording caused hurt or offense to them or their families.

The YMCA has been supporting children, including those with learning, attention deficit and other disorders and disabilities for the last 125 years in Greater Vancouver. Of the 15,000 children who go to our day and residential camps every year, there are many who take medication, including Ritalin, so we know what it is that these kids live with. That’s why we offer residential camp programs with the option of a one of one counsellor to camper ratio–at the same price as regular camp–to ensure that these kids get the extra support and attention they need to have a successful camping experience. We believe that physical activity is an important part of good mental and physical health and are committed to providing equal access to those opportunities for all children.

Sincerely,
Charlene Giovannetti-King
VP, Funds Development
YMCA of Greater Vancouver

It was good the Vancouver YMCA stopped running the ADHD stigma ad. It was good that the YMCA was “very sorry if the wording caused hurt or offense to them or their families.”

But the Vancouver YMCA didn’t say they did anything wrong by running the ad. They didn’t show they understood that the ad stigmatized ADHD families.

But there was no mention of this on the Vancouver YMCA’s website.

There was no media release of this “official apology” to the media after the ad went out to a potential audience of a quarter of a million people.

Here’s a quote from Charlene Giovannetti-King of the YMCA about the ad on CBC Radio’s Early Edition.

“Rick Cluff: So you pulled the ad, did your organization admit to making a mistake here?

Vancouver YMCA VP of Funds Development Charlene Giovannetti-King: We don’t see this really as a mistake, we see this as our organization is inclusive and open to everyone.”

Wow.

Do you think it’s a mistake to stigmatize families with ADHD?

Families where some decide to treat their ADHD children with medically approved prescription medication for ADHD that have a clinical research background of hundreds if not thousands of peer reviews studies?

Is it “inclusive and open to everyone” to stigmatize children who have ADHD? That doesn’t seem inclusive or open. What do you think?

I have some action steps at the end of this post if you want to break the silence.

Transcript of CBC Interview on YMCA ADHD Stigma Ad

CBC Vancouver Early Edition host Rick Cluff Interviews Adult ADHD Pete Quily and Charlene Giovannetti-King the Vice President of Funds Development for the Vancouver YMCA April 21st 2010 approx 8.12am. I was representing CHADD Vancouver (Children and adults with ADD) an international ADHD support group which I’m on the board of and is the parent group of The Vancouver Adult ADD Support Group which I lead. All my comments after the interview on my blog, website and Twitter do not represent CHADD Vancouver, they’re just my personal opinion.

Rick Cluff: The YMCA has pulled a newspaper ad over complaints that it trivialized ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. The ad shows kids wearing sports gear lined up in a gym and the caption reads “ Before video games, before Facebook, before Ritalin, there was basketball”. Pete Quily used the chair of a support group for families dealing with ADHD in Vancouver. This was his reaction to the advertisement.

Pete Quily: Video games and Facebook, those are voluntary activities right, you can use them or not use them. Ritalin is a prescription medication that’s, one of the useful treatments for ADHD, they are implying that they are the same and I mean, would you say it to a diabetic, you don’t need insulin, all you need to do is join the YMCA and play basketball. It almost seems that they are sort of trying to stigmatize ADHD to sort of market their programs.

Rick Cluff: Pete Quily, the Chair of the Vancouver ADHD Support group he was reacting to that advertisement for the YMCA.

(PQ Clarification I’m on the board for CHADD Vancouver and the leader of the Vancouver Adult ADD support group in this interview I’m speaking on behalf of CHADD Vancouver. On my website, blog and twitter I’m speaking for myself)

Charlene Giovannetti-King is the Vice President of Funds Development for the YMCA and is on the line with us now, good morning.

Charlene Giovannetti-King: Good morning.

Rick Cluff: The ad has been pulled.

Charlene Giovannetti-King: The ad has been pulled.

Rick Cluff: And why?

Charlene Giovannetti-King: We pulled the ad because we received a telephone call from a parent who expressed concern about the ad and immediately we pulled that ad because we understood the concern. Although that was not our message, our message was really to encourage people to think about living a balanced lifestyle.

Rick Cluff: Where did the concept come from?

Charlene Giovannetti-King: This is a concept that came from a campaign that we are working on and that we are giving out in the community and sharing in the community and it was just one in a series of ads that we’ve been running.

Rick Cluff: You are trying to portray an image of a balanced lifestyle.

Charlene Giovannetti-King: That’s right.

Rick Cluff: But Mr. Quily says your ad trivializes and stigmatizes ADHD. What are your thoughts now on his assessment of the advertisement?

Charlene Giovannetti-King: We certainly didn’t intend that and we are extremely apologetic if we have offended anybody by that ad therefore, that’s why we pulled the ad instantly as soon as we heard from the parent who expressed concern. We certainly understood the concern and wanted to respond to that very quickly and we did so within 24 hours.

Rick Cluff: So you pulled the ad, did your organization admit to making a mistake here?

Charlene Giovannetti-King: We don’t see this really as a mistake, we see this as our organization is inclusive and open to everyone. We see this as us being responsive to the concern.

Rick Cluff: Was there a formal apology made?

Charlene Giovannetti-King: There was. Both a formal apology to the two people that we heard from. From the mom who phoned and expressed her concern and also to Mr, Quily, we formally apologized to him over the weekend.

Rick Cluff: So what are you replacing this ad with now?

Charlene Giovannetti-King: We continue to run a series of ads and one of the other ads for example is, focuses on camp and the caption on that ad is, “A great leader requires patience, a sense of humor and an appetite for marshmallows” So from that you can tell that the series of ads is really to invoke some conversation and to invoke some interest in people and the community around getting back to their, our values and getting back to a bit, a healthy lifestyle.

Rick Cluff: Charlene, thanks for your time.

Charlene Giovannetti-King: Thanks so much for calling and including us.

Rick Cluff: Charlene Giovannetti-King, the Vice President of the Funds Development for the YMCA. Now the organization has dropped the ad with the slogan. What are your thoughts on this and how this advertising campaign was conceived and delivered? You can call us with your thoughts at 604-662-6690 or send us an email to let us know, our email address is earlyed@cbc.ca

Some actions you can take.

People with ADHD like options. So instead of one, I’me throwing out a couple, maybe pick one that feels intuitively right for you. If you’re extra motivated, do one and then come back and chose another. Or do something different.

The only way to stop stigma against people with ADHD is to stop being silent about it.

1. Express your thoughts on this blog post in the comment section or do a blog post of your own on the topic and let me know about it. Or tweet it a link and comment on this post, or post it on Facebook. Maybe you could do a guest post here or on another blog explaining what living with ADHD is really like and what kind of stigma children and adults with ADHD have to face so non ADDers can understand. Here’s 12 Ways to Fight Mental Health Stigma With Social Media. Know any more?

2. Contact the media. The more people that do so, the more likely the media will take it seriously enough to do a followup story on it. The BC Liberal party (which isn’t really very liberal) has a good free contact list for letters to the editor and ways to contact talk radio too.

3. Contact the YMCA and them some questions about why they ran that ad that stigmatized ADHD families? Why haven’t they responded on their website? Update they have done an apology on their website see this post, but you can’t find it anywhere on their homepage Are they trying to hide the story? Also ask them to explain this “We don’t see this (ad) really as a mistake, we see this as our organization is inclusive and open to everyone” And let them know how you feel about the ad and their response. BUT please do so in a respectful, productive way vs. a counterproductive one.

Vancouver YMCA on Twitter @WDCG_YMCA

Contact The Greater Vancouver YMCA

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Can your BC doctor / psychiatrist / psychologist diagnose ADHD? If not, let them know about this workshop.

As an Adult ADHD Coach who’s often asked where can I find a doctor / psychiatrist / psychologist who know’s enough about ADHD to diagnose it, who’s heard far too many horror stories of what happens when people with ADHD DON’T get diagnosed and who emails out many copies of a list of people known to diagnose ADHD in the Vancouver area on regular basis, sometimes several a day, I’ve very, very happy to let you know about this.

If you medical professional doesn’t know enough about ADHD, you might want to tell him about this one day workshop in Vancouver next week to teach people how to diagnose adult ADHD and associated comorbid conditions by Dr. Anthony Ocana, Dr. Cyril Melck, and Mr. Lawrence Sheppard April 21st at Robson Square. Currently UBC medical students only get 1 hour on ADHD.

Also they’re giving a Free Public Seminar – Parenting the ADHD Child – April 21, 2010 – 7-9 pm at Robson Square.

Please pass the info on to anyone you know that might be interested in it.

Learn to Recognize and Assess Adult ADHD and Associated Co-morbidities

Approved for 6 CME Credits by the College of Family Physicians of Canada

April 21st, 2010    8:30 am-4:30 pm

UBC Downtown Campus at Robson Square

800 Robson St, Vancouver, BC

604-822-3333| robsonsquare.ubc.ca

This workshop, appropriate for family physicians, psychiatrists, psychologists, pediatricians, clinical counsellors, pharmacists, mental health clinicians, social workers, human resources professionals and teachers, will give you an opportunity to assess and examine actual patients with three of Vancouver’s leading Adult ADHD clinicians: Dr. Anthony Ocana, Dr. Cyril Melck and Mr. Lawrence Sheppard.

The Learning Objectives:

1. Review the neurobiology of ADHD and associated co-morbidities based on the latest research.

2. Review the diagnostic criteria for ADHD in adults vs. adolescent and/or children.

3. Discern the signs and symptoms of common co-morbidities associated with ADHD such as substance   use, impulse control disorders, and bipolar disorders.

4. Observe experienced clinicians conduct an ADHD/ co-morbidity assessment using an actual patient.

5. Undertake an ADHD/ co-morbidity assessment and critique the assessment of your partner.

6. Learn how to bill for the time taken to assess and manage patients with ADHD and associated co-morbidities.

Agenda

8:30am – 9:00am: Registration and Breakfast
9:00am – 10:00am Update of latest ADHD Research – Dr. A Ocana, Mr. Lawrence Sheppard, Review of Diagnostic Criteria – Dr. C Melck

10:00am – 10:30am Break

10:30am – 12:00pm See One’: Watch live patient interviews

12:00pm – 1:00pm Lunch

1:00pm – 3:00pm ‘Do One’: Each participant takes a history from a patient. ‘Teach One’: Each participant gives feedback to his/her partner.

3:00pm – 3:15pm Break

3:15pm – 4:15pm Discussion and review of cases
4:15pm – 4:30pm Closing Remarks

This seminar is supported by an unrestricted educational grant from: Janssen, Lilly, Purdue, Shire

Register for the workshop here

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Here’s a short video from NBC’s The Today Show titled Does my child have ADHD? Today show host Matt Lauer interviews Dr. Steve Kurtz, the clinical director of New York University’s Child Study Center, Assistant Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry; and Clinical Director, Institute for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity and Behavior Disorders, and Beth Kaplanak is the parent of a child with ADHD via @ADHDBrevard

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Matt: and in terms of your interactions with your son what was that interaction like?

Beth: A roller coaster of emotions he was very on the go, constantly into things had trouble attending, he was distractible to every level on a scale of 1-10 I’d put him at about the 8-9 range of his hyperactivity and impulsive characterisics and inability to attend… the school issues started happening when he started going to school but he was also easily frustrated and had a low frustration tolerance and that low frustration tolerance was very frustrating as a parent

I don’t know Matt Lauer that well, but I like how Matt  stood up to 2 people who attempted to intimidate him. tom cruise aka – I know more about mental health conditions than doctors or psychiatrists despite having no medical degree  “you’re glib Matt”, and a photo of him and George Bush in the White House I saw with Bush trying to nearly push him over he was so close and Matt stood his ground, unlike many congressman and senators.

ADHD is the 2nd most genetically inherited condition after height, 80%

If you have a child with ADHD, what were some of the symptoms of ADHD that you noticed, perhaps in hindsight?

How would you explain those ADHD symptoms to other parents of children who don’t understand ADHD?

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Update: as promised, here’s the extra ADHD coaching web resources I did for the presentation

CHADD Calgary is holding their 11th Annual ADHD Resource Conference, ADHD See It Through My Eyes on March 6th from 8am to 4.30pm at the Red and White Club, McMahon Stadium. Why not check it out if you have a chance?

I will be on of the 3 speakers. My topic is Adult ADHD Coaching: One size never fits all.

The other speakers are Dr. Declan Quinn, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Associate Professor at the University of Saskatchewan. He’ll be speaking on Developing Character Strengths and Virtues in ADHD.

Also Heidi Bernhardt, RN, Director of CADDAC, the Center for ADHD Advocacy Canada, and the Executive Director of CADDRA, the  Canadian ADHD Resource Alliance.  She’ll be speaking about ADHD organizations in Canada and how they can help people with ADHD

CHADD Calgary is an ADHD support group (Children and adults with ADHD) that

provides information and support for parents, children, and adults in and around the Calgary area, who are affected by and struggle with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

I’m on the board of CHADD Vancouver and the support group I run The Vancouver Adult ADHD Support Group is the adult group of CHADD Vancouver, so  I think local ADHD support groups can be pretty useful. I’m looking forward to meeting the members of CHADD Calgary and learning from the other presenters, I already know Heidi, haven’t met Declan yet.

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I’ll be doing an interactive presentation on Adult ADHD coaching at The Vancouver Adult ADD support group this Tuesday, February 2nd from 6.30-8.30 at Ravensong Community Healthcare Center, 2450 Ontario St, near Main & Broadway.

As part of the presentation, I will also be doing a short live demonstration of Adult ADHD coaching of someone that I haven’t coached before.

If you want to be coached at the meeting, please come with an openess & willingness to change yourself and 1, not 3, very specific practical goal or problem. I.e., get organized, get focused is too general and vague. Be very focused and specific, i.e.,  location, context, people etc.

For the curious types, I’ve got an overview on what Adult ADHD coaching is all about on my website including comparisons to therapy and consulting, articles on ADHD coaching, benefits of ADHD coaching, coachability quiz (not everyone is coachable at every point in time), and notes from a live coaching session I did.

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Information overload is not a new thing. Here’s a piece from Stowe Boyd’s thought provoking /message blog

Denis Diderot, “Encyclopédie” (1755)
As long as the centuries continue to unfold, the number of books will grow continually, and one can predict that a time will come when it will be almost as difficult to learn anything from books as from the direct study of the whole universe. It will be almost as convenient to search for some bit of truth concealed in nature as it will be to find it hidden away in an immense multitude of bound volumes.

Some of us ADHD Adults (like myself) self medicate with information. I love learning about new things and ideas. Quite stimulating and a great way to boost dopamine, the neurotranmitter that does many things but helps us focus & is the reward chemical among other things. ADDers have lower levels of dopamine so we do positive and negative things to help increase it.

If you’re an entrepreneur, you’re probably at greater risk for information overload. There’s so much more information available now in more easily accessible formats, and much of it free, we’re wired to look for possibilities and opportunities, we’re more likely to have many areas of responsibility, and learning is a competitive edge.

It is very easy for some of us to binge on new information and we need to realize & recognize when this is happening and find different strategies to deal with it. One aspect of this is to use reminders to help us get out of that state of hyperfocus on information. I did a post on Internet addiction wakeup devices with a few examples. It’s also useful to find ways to develop greater bodily awareness because for many of us it’s so easy to live in our heads all day and be semi asleep below the neck. Awareness is the first step in dealing with information overload but not the only one.

What methods do you find work for you to help cope with information overload?

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