ADHD Awareness Week is October 16-22, 2011. Do you think most non ADHD people really understand what ADHD actually is & how it affects people who have it?

If not, read what ADHD Awareness week is about and some ways you can help reduce the ignorance and stigma many people have about ADHD, and increase awareness about ADHD.

The ADHD Awareness Coalition announced the dates for the 2011  ADHD Awareness Week as October 16th to 22nd, 2011. I helped organize an ADHD Awareness Day event in Vancouver, BC a  few years ago. It’s the 7th year of ADHD awareness days in the US, but still none in Canada. Sigh…

The ADHD Awareness Coalition is made up the following organizations.

ADHD Coaching Organization (ACO)

Additude Magazine

Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA)

Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD)

The group encourages our colleague organizations and volunteers to plan ADHD Awareness activities during the week of October 16th to 22nd, 2011. Here’s the website for the 2011 ADHD Awareness week campaign.

Here are some ADD ADHD Advocacy Resources From ADDitude Magazine. They list essential articles, expert Q&As, tools & checklists, and resources about ADD ADHD and learning disabilities.

What can I/we do for ADHD Awareness Day?

Here are some ideas from an older article from a previous ADHD Awareness day that is sadly no longer on their website. FYI if you need to book space for an event, start looking for it NOW, things book up very quickly.

For Individuals

• Hand out the ADDA Fact Sheet in your community. Ask if you can place some ADDA Fact Sheets at your physician’s office, schools, disability centers of your local colleges, libraries in your area, or at local coffee shops (many of which have community bulletin boards, or places to leave information).

• Contact the mental health centers in your area. Ask them to put something up on their website and put flyers in their waiting rooms. Better yet, ask them to sponsor ADHD screenings, informational meetings or other activities on Awareness Day.

• Speak to your PTA meeting, Rotary Club, Chamber of Commerce or other group about ADHD. Offer ADDA as a resource and/or hand out the Fact Sheet.

• Ask your local library to display ADHD books prominently, perhaps with the ADDA Fact Sheet (see the sample letter in the ADHD Awareness Day Kit on the ADDA website).

• Write and op/ed piece or letter to the editor of your local newspaper.

For Groups

• Place an announcement on your website.

• Do an “email blast” to your e-list.

• Sponsor a workshop on ADHD or have an inservice at your local school.

• Sponsor a fundraiser and donate the proceeds to ADDA.

• Ask your local library if you can set up a table to hand out information.

• Participate in local health fairs where you can pass out fact sheets.

• Collaborate with other advocacy or educational groups in your area to sponsor an event to raise awareness about ADHD in your community.

• Try getting your local newspaper to write an article or op/ed piece about ADHD and/or Awareness Day.

• Ask your Chamber of Commerce if your group can have 5-10 minutes at their next meeting to announce National ADHD Awareness Day and hand out information.

• Place an announcement on your cable company’s free community bulletin board.

• Ask the radio station to do a community service announcement on Awareness Day, or be a guest on a local radio program talking about ADHD.

• Write to ADHD authors encouraging them to request book signings in their local area on ADHD Awareness Day. Most Borders, etc. will order books and let authors sign. They also put up signs announcing the event and some even advertise in their local papers and libraries.

The CHADD ADHD awareness week toolkit for local CHADD groups

Here’s the material it covers

Section 1: Recruit Your Volunteers & Delegate
Section 2: Decide on the Type of the Event
Section 3: Developing A Timeline
Section 4: Plan a Budget
Section 5: Select your Location
Section 6: Solicit Sponsors
Section 7: Publicize the Event
Section 8: Share Information
Section 9: Complete Financial Reports

Do you have any plans for ADHD Awareness week?

Any other ideas on what else can be done to promote ADHD Awareness?

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?

THere are the notes and the links for my presentation Adhd – Busting The Myths, Breaking The Stigma, Showing Reality, One Post And Tweet At A Time for Mental Health Camp Vancouver April 25, 2009. I won’t be able to cover all this material during the session so I have some extra info here. Tell me what you think of it in the comments.

Here are the topics I’ll cover.

1. Defining ADHD
2. ADHD Impairments
3. Co-existing or Co-morbid conditions that go along with ADHD
4. Costs of ADHD
5. Positives of ADHD
6. Famous people with ADHD
7. Myths about ADHD
8. Social media
9. Some ADHD links

1. Defining ADHD

Diagnosis of ADHD as a child

Adult ADHD 5 minute screening test from Harvard & W.H.O.

CADDRA Canadian ADHD Practice Guidelines 2007-8.

Detailed PDFs on diagnosis, treatment, medication, dealing with side effects etc. Must read for ADDers, show your doctor

2. ADHD Impairments

From Dr. Margaret Weiss head of the BC ADHD children’s clinic excellent PowerPoint entitled “The Economic Costs of ADHD”. Hope to blog it in more detail later

Smoking, drug use, health costs, driving, accidents, school performance, behavior, academic achievement, peer relations, parental functioning, divorce, work, unemployment, dysemployment, psychopathology, quality of life, adaptive skills, divorce

Faraone SV, 2003. 2. Pelham WE, 2007 3. Barkley R, ADHD, Guilford 2006
Jensen P ADHD State of Science, Best Practices.  Kingston, NJ. Civic Research
Institute

Also higher rates of attempted suicide, teen pregnancy,

3. Co-existing or Co-morbid conditions that go along with ADHD

Here’s a list of some on my website Note, comorbidity is the norm with ADHD, not the exception, that being said not everyone with ADHD has one of these conditions.

Antisocial Personality Disorder
Asperger’s Disorder
Autism
ODD Oppositional Defiant Disorder
Bipolar Disorder
Conduct Disorder
Antisocial Personality Disorder
Depression
Dysthymia
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Learning Disabilities
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
OCD Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
ODD Oppositional Defiant Disorder
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Substance Abuse Disorder
Tourette’s Syndrome

For more detail the Mayo Clinic has good overviews of each condition.

Or there’s a book ADHD Comorbidities: Handbook for ADHD Complications in Children and Adults. Edited by Thomas E. Brown, Ph.D.

4. Costs of ADHD

Here’s info from 2 slides from Dr. Margaret Weiss, head of the BC ADHD children’s clinic PowerPoint entitled ADHD in the Health Care System. Will upload later

Costs of ADHD in Children

Annual cost ADHD in children
$14,600 per individual in 2005 US $
18% health care
34% education
48% crime and delinquency
42.5 billion/year
Comparable to asthma2
Increased risk ER visits, co-morbidity, accidents
Depression costs 44 billion

1 Pelham W 2007; Chan 2002; Leibson 2001, Swensen 2003

Cost of Adult ADHD

Excess per capita health care and work loss age 7 to 44 and family members
Administrative claims data from a large company
Total excess cost ADHD in 2000 in the US $31.6 billion
5% treatment of the condition
38% other health care costs
45% increased health care costs of family members
12% productivity losses of adult family members
1 Birnbaum 2005

Costs not accounted for

From Dr. Margaret Weiss head of the BC ADHD children’s clinic excellent PowerPoint entitled “The Economic Costs of ADHD” Will upload later.

Smoking 2
Drug abuse3
Foster care
Fetal alcohol and narcotic syndrome
Victims of crime
Victims of drug accidents
Insurance rates
Increased prevalence and adult prevalence 4.4% with 90% comorbidity4
Suffering to the individual, siblings, families, other children and teachers
Decreased life1
1 Barkley R 2 Pomerleau 3 Wilens T 4 Kessler R

ADHD in BC

BC has NO strategy for ADHD. None at all.

The ADHD clinic at Children’s hospital added on an adult ADHD clinic, they soon found it took have their case load, and it developed a year long wait list for an entire year They asked the BC govt for money to take care of the wait list and they said no, so they closed down the adult ADHD clinic. One way to deal with politically embarrassing wait lists.

In Feb the BC medical association released a policy paper on ADHD, with 8 recommendations. They noted the cost of ADHD to BC, called for the BC govt to treat Adults with ADHD, develop a provincial strategy for ADHD etc. They said ADHD cost BC half a billion a year, but they only counted the cost of children with ADHD which means ADHD is costing BC Multiple Billions of dollars annually. Actual treatment of ADHD is the smallest cost.

Here are their 8 recommendations:

Recommendation 1.

The provincial government must restructure the Child and Youth Mental Health Network so that it meets more frequently, is supported with an adequate budget, and is responsible for producing tangible outputs outlined in a publicly-available strategic plan.

Recommendation 2.

The provincial government should work with stakeholders to ensure that any new child mental health plan includes a strategic plan for the delivery of services specifically for patients with ADHD.

One consequence of the lack of strategic direction has been the reduction in services offered to patients with ADHD through the province’s sole centre for ADHD diagnosis and treatment initiation at BC Children’s Hospital (the ADHD Clinic):

Recommendation 3.

The provincial government must provide services for adults with ADHD and follow-up services for children who graduate from the ADHD clinic at age 18.

Recommendation 4.
Funding for ADHD services should be increased to guarantee waitlists of less than three months for all ADHD patients.

Recommendation 5.
A billing fee for consulting with third parties, such as teachers, should be added to the BCMA Fee Guide to encourage optimal coordination with teachers in the diagnosis and management of ADHD.

Recommendation 6.
Medical professional associations for pediatrics, child psychiatry, psychiatry, neurology, and family practice should endorse the Canadian Attention Deficit Disorder Resource Alliance (CADDRA) ADHD practice guidelines; or review, amend, and then endorse revised CADDRA guidelines. Such guidelines should be accompanied by the implementation, in primary care offices across British Columbia, of a ‘diagnostic toolkit’ for ADHD.

Recommendation 7.
PharmaCare should expand coverage for long-acting ADHD medication in order to facilitate compliance, minimize stigma and prevent missed opportunities for focused learning.

Recommendation 8.

In order to improve access to services for ADHD patients and foster the kind of collaborative care arrangements necessary to provide optimal care, both the MoHS and MCFD should train specialized ADHD clinicians for mental health teams and provide BC families access to community services to complement treatment by physicians.

End of Recommendations.

The BC NDP who in the 70′s emptied the mental hospitals in the guise of community care and never did that and then abandoned the mental patients to the predators of the downtown eastside, said nothing about it. NONE of the BC political parties have mentioned ADHD in their platform. Hopefully ADDers and their families will start contacting their MLA candidates to show that their is a need for proper treatment.

Here’s a Vancouver Sun article on a local with ADHD

5. Positives of ADHD

Top Ten ADD Advantages in a Hi Tech Career.

This post got me top of Digg, Delicious, 30,000 unique hits in 3 days, and 200+ links. Still my most popular post on my blog.

1. The Ability to Hyperfocus. IF interested.
2. Rapid Fire Mind.
3. Multitasking at Will.
4. High Energy Level.
5. Highly Creative.
6. Quick Learner. IF interested.
7. Stimulus Seeking Brain.
8. Constantly Scanning your Environment.
9. Great in a Crisis.
10. Risk Taker.

151 Advantages of ADD

My ADHD strengths blog post category

6. Famous people with ADHD

Paul Orfalea who founded Kinko’s. His book is called Copy This! : Lessons from a Hyperactive Dyslexic who Turned a Bright Idea Into One of America’s Best Companies

JetBlue Founder and billionaire CEO David Neeleman who attributes his creativity to ADHD

Magic Johnson

Michael Phelps

Justin Timberlake (ADHD & OCD)

Howie Mandel (ADHD & OCD)

Seth Godin Marketer Author Blogger. “I clearly have ADHD,” he says. “Lucky for me the world kind of organized around me rather than the other way around. It’s such an asset.”

Clarence Page Chicago Tribune Columnist & Author Famous for: Winning a Pulitzer Prize. Twice.

Ty Pennington

James Carville Political Strategist who co lead Bill Clinton’s campaign that won the presidency

Payne Stewart who won the 1999 and 1991 US Open & other pro golfers

7. Myths about ADHD

Myths About ADHD Misconceptions About ADHD – Separating Fact from Fiction

Many Parents Want Distance Between Own Kids And Those With Mental Illness

New research suggests that Americans are more likely to socially reject children with mental illness than they are those with physical illnesses such as asthma. Almost 30 percent of the 1,134 participants said they would not like their child to become friends of a child with depression, and almost one in four said the same thing about ADHD. But a kid with “normal troubles” and asthma, only 10%.

Many ways to take action on stigma from SAMHSA’s Resource Center to Promote Acceptance, Dignity and Social Inclusion Associated with Mental Health.

*  Tips on Taking Action
* Organizing a Campaign or Program
* Planning Anti-stigma Events and Strategies

How to Respond to People Who Say “ADHD doesn’t exist”  & Clinical Evidence of The Existence of ADHD as a Real Condition My answer to the flat earth people.

Pencil, Pens and Meds. LA Times Editorial Stigmatizing ADHD Get’s Fisked By Gina Pera

Helping Your Child Cope with the Stigma of ADHD

Silencing Skeptics: The Truth About ADHD and LD
What is ADHD? Does medication really help? Can adults have ADD? Learn to clear up common misperceptions about ADHD with authority.

Overcoming the ADHD Stigma
An expert psychologist shares his secrets for fighting ADD ADHD stereotyping in children and adults.

Myths and Misconceptions About AD/HD: Science over Cynicism

Helping your child overcome the stigma of ADHD

Spread The Truth About ADHD
3 ways to help friends and family understand that ADHD is a real disorder with real symptoms and real solutions.

8. Social media

12 Ways to Fight Mental Health Stigma With Social Media
I created this post specifically for my presentation. Please check it out, and if you have any other ideas, let me know.

What things have you done to fight stigma against ADHD?

What are you willing to do?

9. Some ADHD links

ADDCoach4u My 130 page ADD Website

Pills Don’t Teach Skills Website of one of my ADHD Coaching Clients

CHADD Vancouver Local ADHD support group I’m on the board of

CADDAC Center for ADD Advocacy, Canada

CADDRA Canadian ADD Resource Alliance

Thanks and please let me know any feedback in the comments

This is for a presentation I’m doing at Mental Health Camp Vancouver (a conference combining social media with mental health) called ADHD – Busting the myths, breaking the stigma, showing reality, one post and tweet at a time. While ADHD is especially stigmatized as the orphan of mental health conditions, especially Adult ADHD, it’s not the only one that suffers stigma.

12 Ways to Fight Mental Health Stigma With Social Media

Arranged from more anonymous to more personal, and less effort to more effort. There’s a choice for everyone.

1. Click on a factually correct, non stigmatizing mental health article, or personal story via a blog post, tweet, podcast, YouTube video, Facebook update, Friendfeed, web forum etc. Result will traffic to the site/account, encouragement for the creator to continue to create, possible revenue and good for SEO just from that one simple easy click.

2. Actually read/listen/watch above content. Assuming the content is non stigmatizing, and helpful, interesting, or entertaining do one or more of the following.

3. Vote on it /rate it, i.e. number of stars if available.

4. Socially bookmark it in site’s like Stumbleupon, Delicious, etc.

5. Submit it to sites like Digg, Yahoo Buzz, Reddit, Mixx, Propeller etc.

6. Forward the content to others either without a comment, or with a personal comment by :

a) Email
b) Twitter i.e. Retweet it, or on Facebook, Friendfeed etc

7. Comment on the original article, post, video etc in one of the following ways depending on your comfort level:

a) anonymously
b) with your first name
c) with your full name
d) with your full name and the name of your blog/website/Twitter account etc.

8. Do a response to the original content by a blog post, tweet, or video on your blog or social media account

9. Respond to someone lying, stigmatizing, minimizing, trivializing, or shaming a person with a mental health condition or the actual condition itself. This can be done in a wide variety of creative ways depending on your personality, subject knowledge, and comfort level with conflict, some of us occasionally enjoy conflict for a good cause:) Perhaps involve your social media friends in the effort.

10. Create some original content that’s factual, anti stigma or a personal story or story about someone you know, or all of the above on one or more of your social media accounts.

11. Participate in a social media mental health campaign. I.e., anti stigma, awareness, fund raising, political action, online petition, contacting politicians etc. Could be all online or a combination of online and offline i.e. involving traditional media.

12. Create a social media mental health campaign.

If you know of any other ones or some good examples of the above, please share them in the comments for others. If you think this was useful, please do one of the above for this post:)

Hopefully some of you might take one action now and ask your BC MLA candidate if they support the 8 Recommendations of the BC Medical Association in their February policy paper on ADHD. Currently BC has NO Strategy at all on ADHD, Adults with ADHD are especially ignored, ADHD is costing BC billions annually, and the BC Liberal Party, the BC NDP, and the BC Green Party have all ignored the recommendations, they have nothing at all in their platforms for ADHD. Hopefully BC ADDers won’t be abandoned again.

If you don’t know your riding use the BC MLA finder

List of  BC Liberal Party candidates

List of BC NDP candidates

List of BC Green Party candidates

List of BC MLA candidates on twitter

I received this from John Scrivin, its his response the the Vancouver Sun article that profiled him and Adult ADHD, I’m posting it in full. My apologies for misspelling your name before John.

The Article is now in 2 place on the Vancouver Sun’s website, different headlines but same article, both with many comments. Some denying ADHD exists or minimizing it’s impact and some real stories from people with ADHD, quite moving ones. I guess John’s courage to tell his story inspired other adults with ADHD to do the same. More of those and maybe the BC politicians might take Adult ADHD, currently NONE of the BC political parties mention ADHD in their platform. Looks like they’re going to ignore the BC medical Association’s 8 ADHD policy recommendation’s unless enough ADDers convince em otherwise. I’d encourage everyone to read both of them.

B.C. lacks resources to treat, diagnose adults with ADHD

Man turns life around after ADHD diagnosis at age 55

Here’s John Scrivin’s response.

In response to the article in the Vancouver Sun, April 13 profiling my ADD issues, I would like to add the following. I felt it was a bit unfortunate for the comments on ADDers being accident prone and the fact that I am a professional bus driver and have been for the last thirty some odd years. Several issues need to be brought up here. First, the medications ADDers take should to be very carefully chosen by the prescribing doctor. In my case, several medications were selected and tested out separately on minimal strengths until the best was selected. Each test took about six to eight weeks. After the best (for me) was chosen, the strength was increased to the appropriate level. In my case, they needed to provide focus and not easily and negate distraction when performing the task at hand. However there was also a need not to hyperfocus either. A delicate balance. I would suggest also that the selection of appropriate medications or other therapeutic interventions is critical for all ADDers. I have heard too often that ‘my meds don’t work’ or ‘I can’t handle the side effects’. Perhaps these are indications that the therapies need to be revisited and/or reassessed as to the validity for that particular ADDer. What is true for all people, especially ADDers is to be in the right environment, occupationally, romantically and one’s other associations. We do not fit well in boxes designed by others and therefore often exhibit the well-known characteristics of the stereo-type ADDer that the world seems to know. What is so missing are demonstrations of the positives of ADD. There are thousands of ADDers who have done wonderful things not in spite of their ADD, BUT BECAUSE OF IT. Many entrepreneurs are ADDers who have followed their passion. Perhaps Leonardo da Vinci was the most prolific of all. Steve Jobs is another and I could go on and on. Perhaps we cannot totally emulate these high profile ADDers, but when our environments are right for us, we can soar. ADD is a gift One really needs to enjoy what we do and who we associate with on a day to basis. What are the results? We are infinitely happier. ‘Anger Management courses’ are not required. Our senses of humour are even sharper, others enjoy our company much more and unkind comments either by ourselves or others are minimal. We need not rely on illicit drugs or alcohol to make the world go away. We need not to be aggressive in a negative way. Our physical health improves. Our job satisfaction and performance soars and our relationships are joyful. Need I go on? I remember many years ago an advertisement in a national magazine from an employer who said, “Send me someone who reads.” I look forward to the day when the statement will be “Send me an ADDer.”

I was interviewed on Victoria BC’s CFAX 1070 radio station on adult ADHD monday April 13th. The host was Dave Dixson and I really enjoyed it. Hope to have the audio from the show sometime next week, and will upload it when I do.

Today’s Vancouver Sun Monday April 13th 2009 has an article on Adult ADHD on p A5. The title is B.C. lacks resources to treat, diagnose adults with ADHD by Amy O’Brian. Web version is here.
They interviewed a local adult with ADHD, John Scrivin.

Please check it out and let others that might be interested in it know about it.

If you have any opinion about the article you might want to express it in the comments section at the end of the article. Here’s a few excerpts.

John Scrivin spent his whole life feeling like he didn’t fit in — like he never quite understood what was going on.

As a teenager and an adult, he identified as an outsider. Angry outbursts were common and he was eventually diagnosed with depression.

But Scrivin always suspected there was something more going on.

It wasn’t until he was 55 that he was diagnosed with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD, a disorder most commonly associated with children, but also highly prevalent in adults.”

Finding out it had a name and treatment was huge,” he said.

“Even at the tender age of 55, it made a world of difference in terms of my happiness.”

How many more people will have to wait 5 decades or more to get diagnosed with ADHD?

John Scriven: “There is no doubt I would have been diagnosed sooner if there had been more resources.”

Yes this is a very common problem for adults with ADHD in BC. As an Vancouver based adult ADHD coach, I get calls and emails on a regular basis from people trying to find someone that knows enough about ADHD to diagnose it, especially in adults. Some say their doctor says they can’t have ADHD because they did well in school or work, which show their ignorance of the condition since there’s a MENSA ADHD group with 500 people in it and billionaires with ADHD. But there’s also a lot of addicts with ADHD, people in jail with ADHD and many in between

Medical student’s & psychologists aren’t properly taught about ADHD in University according to many BC based doctors, psychiatrists & psychologists I’ve talked to who DO know about ADHD because they went out of their way to learn about the condition on their own time and dime.

“There are few resources for adults with ADHD and not enough awareness about symptoms and diagnosis, says Dr. Derryck Smith, a Vancouver-based psychiatrist who treats people of all ages with ADHD — including some in their “geriatric years.”

“There’s nowhere to send these people for treatment,” Smith said.

“We want more resources in the adult treatment sector. We want Pharmacare to cover some of the longer-acting, more modern medications. And we want the government to have a treatment strategy for dealing with this as a public health issue.”

The BC government currently has NO STRATEGY for ADHD. None.

Also there’s no sign that the NDP will be any better at dealing with ADHD. The Green party leader is pretty clueless about ADHD.

Expecting people with a condition that’s known for having problems with distraction, impulsivity, poor time management, and forgetfullness to take a pill 3 times a day every day on a regular schedule? Isn’t that sadistic? Even without the problems of the rebound effect of short term ADHD medications? Maybe one day BC will catch up to Saskatchewan, Ontario & Quebec that do cover long acting ADHD medication.

The only public Adult ADHD clinic in the province, the BC adult ADHD clinic at Children’s hospital had a year long wait list for an entire year for adults. They asked the government for money to deal with the waiting list, the BC Liberal government refused and they closed the clinic in 2007, and didn’t reopen the clinic at another hospital, they abandoned adults with ADHD because the long wait list was politically embarrassing.

Hopefully people with ADHD & their family members will ask their potential MLA’s if they will implement the 8 recommendations of the BCMA’s ADHD policy paper. Best time to get a politician’s attention is when they want your vote. There’s a BC election May 12 next month.

contact your local NDP candidate

contact your local Liberal candidate

UPDATE: the 500 million figure is incorrect, it’s actually Billions of dollars yearly. The BCMA underestimated the cost because they only counted the cost of children with ADHD ie 18 and under. They didn’t include adults with ADHD which are far more numerous than kids with ADHD, i.e., 19 years to 70, 80 etc. See page 7, 3rd paragraph of the report

So it’s costing BC MULTIPLE BILLIONS of Dollars Annually to deal with ADHD and the actual treatment cost is the smallest amount, and many are undiagnosed and untreated.

Finally. Finally. Still can’t believe it was written. Thought BC would remain the Canadian equivalant of Mississippi in terms of how they treat or ignore adults and children with ADHD. I.e., in last place.

Here’s the BCMC news release from February 23, 2009 BCMA recommends improved access to treatement for ADHD

Here’s the February 2009 – BCMA Policy Paper – Your Attention, Please: A Call to Improve Access to Care for ADHD Patients It’s a 16 page PDF conclusions, are on page 14 and I’ve pasted their 8 recommendations in below. I agree with all of them especially requiring the govt to treat adults with ADHD and it should have been done 20 years ago. The chair was Dr. Shelly Ross who is a GP in Burnaby.

But if you live in BC and have ADHD or have friends/family members or relatives with ADHD you should read all 16 pages and pass it around to as many people as you can.

I think it’s the most important document ever written on ADHD in BC, period.

The Vancouver Sun covered the story yesterday Feb 24th on p A5 and in their online edition, I was quoted by the reporter Amy O’ Brian. If you think it’s an important story, leave a comment on their site (or here) telling them why this report’s recommendations should be implemented or what’s it like being an adult with ADHD. You don’t have to use your full name.

You might consider writing a letter to your local paper, call in to your local talk show, leave a comment on your local blog about it, or tweet it, mention it on facebook etc. There’s a BC election in May. I’d also suggest contact your MLA as well as the various opposition parties about it and ask them if they agree with and will implement all 8 suggestions. Not just “we’ll study it”. As a political science major, I know governments often respond to public pressure. If ADDers and their family don’t bother to do so no one will, and we won’t get a better chance than this, possible not for a decade.

I’ll list some ways to contact politicians and the media after the recommendations and will blog about the policy document later. Here’s a few excerpts from the report.

In Canada, it takes more than 18 months for a patient with ADHD to be treated after first contact with a physician. Once diagnosed, only half of children and as few as 11% of adults receive treatment. As the waitlist for the BC Children’s Hospital ADHD Clinic shows, demand for such services greatly exceeds supply.

Taking into account the direct health, education, and justice-related costs associated with ADHD, the total costs to the government of British Columbia may exceed $500 million each year – enough money to pay for nearly half of BC’s $1.061 billion PharmaCare budget or more than all of the Ministry’s capital plan budget for 2008/09 (Ministry of Health 2008).

This policy paper on ADHD will propose ways to improve access to care for patients with ADHD. The first section begins by reviewing the economic and social costs of the disorder, followed by an examination of provincial policy and the delivery of care in British Columbia. The paper continues with a discussion of quality of care issues and concludes with recommendations for government and other health care stakeholders.

Simply writing a prescription for ADHD is woefully insufficient care, and practice guidelines universally acknowledge that treatment of ADHD with medication must be accompanied by psychoeducation about the disorder, appropriate environmental accommodations, and behavioural intervention. Prescription of medication without additional support has been shown to be associated with poor compliance, persistence and community-based outcomes. Within a year, almost 50% of parents discontinue their children’s medication.

BC Medical Associations’s List of Recommendations

1. The provincial government must restructure the Child and Youth Mental Health Network so that it meets more frequently, is supported with an adequate budget, and is responsible for producing tangible outputs outlined in a publicly-available strategic plan.

2. The provincial government should work with stakeholders to ensure that any new child mental health plan includes a strategic plan for the delivery of services specifically for patients with ADHD.

3. The provincial government must provide services for adults with ADHD and follow-up services for children who graduate from the ADHD clinic at age 18.

4. Funding for ADHD services should be increased to guarantee waitlists of less than three months for all ADHD patients.

5. A billing fee for consulting with third parties, such as teachers, should be added to the BCMA Fee Guide to encourage optimal coordination with teachers in the diagnosis and management of ADHD.

6. Medical professional associations for pediatrics, child psychiatry, psychiatry, neurology, and family practice should endorse the Canadian Attention Deficit Disorder Resource Alliance (CADDRA) ADHD practice guidelines; or review, amend, and then endorse revised CADDRA guidelines. Such guidelines should be accompanied by the implementation, in primary care offices across British Columbia, of a ‘diagnostic toolkit’ for ADHD.

7. PharmaCare should expand coverage for long-acting ADHD medication in order to facilitate compliance, minimize stigma and prevent missed opportunities for focused learning.

8. In order to improve access to services for ADHD patients and foster the kind of collaborative care arrangements necessary to provide optimal care, both the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Children and Family Development should train specialized ADHD clinicians for mental health teams and provide BC families access to community services to complement treatment by physicians.

I have been trying to get the word out on ADHD and why ADHD adults and children should get diagnosis and treatment for years. This report and the upcoming provincial election is our best shot to make a difference for people with ADHD and their family members.

If you want change, now’s the time to take action.

List of BC Liberal Party candidates

List of BC NDP candidates

List of BC Green Party Candidates

BC Minister of Health Services is George Abbott
Ministers direct phone # 250 953-3547
Toll-free in B.C.: 1 800 465-4911
Minister’s email hlth.health@gov.bc.ca

Here’s some helpful tips on writing a letter to the editor and a list of BC based newspapers websites and editor email addresses courtesy BC Liberal Party

Here’s a list of BC based talk radio shows with phone numbers, host names, times and online comments

I‘ll be blogging about the report in detail later in another post. I’ve asked the BC NDP, the BC liberal minister of health’s office and the Green party for comment. I’ve already got a response from the BC Liberals, they’re quicker than the other two. When I phoned the BC NDP party, I talked to a legislative assistant to MLA’s and said I was a blogger who would like to hear the NDP’s official position on the BCMA 8 recommendations, the NDP staffer said “what’s a blogger?” Wow. Not impressed. Maybe she should read this Obama McCain social media scorecard post or this Vancouver civic election social media scorecard post I did to see why social media is important in politics.

What do you think of the BCMA’s 8 ADHD recommendations?

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Adria Richards

Dr Charles Parker has a good article about sleep and ADHD where he provides

specific treatment considerations for any ADHD symptoms associated with sleep disturbance. Untreated each of these issues aggravates symptoms of ADHD.

Many adults and children with ADHD have sleep problems, it’s almost a diagnostic sign of ADHD. ADDers often have problems with sleep in a few areas.

• Going to sleep. Actually getting off the computer/TV etc and getting into bed
• Getting to sleep.
• Staying asleep. not waking up during the night and staying up.
• Waking up.

here’s a few of his 10 tips

Untreated ADHD or other Comorbid Psychiatric Problems: The most frequent cause of Level 1 sleep issues is untreated ADHD and/or depression associated with worry and prefrontal cortical dysregulation. Comorbid major depression, mood disorder, and other psychiatric problems may also interfere with all three levels of sleep.

Assess Lifetime Duration of Sleep Problems: Many live for years with sleep issues and only in middle age begin to show the significant wear. Just because someone has previously done well with 4 hr of sleep and naps doesn’t help the defragmentation process that takes place in a 8 hr sleep at night. Sleep treatment for these challenges usually results in excessive sleep for days to weeks until the body sets a new calibration.

Excessively Treated ADHD: If stimulant [or other psychiatric] medications are adjusted inappropriately high, and duration of effectiveness of the stimulant medications is not properly adjusted, medications will interfere with sleep on many levels. Paradoxically, when stimulant medications are well adjusted, and comorbid depression is corrected, often sleep medications are not necessary. Always dose psychiatric medications according to the principles of the Therapeutic Window noted in my other articles here.

Sleep deprivation can look like ADHD and can be gasoline on ADHD symptoms. Ideally you want to get of the electronic stimulation boxes (surfing the net, playing video games, watching TV) at least an hour before bedtime in order to allow your racing ADHD brain to slow down enough to get to sleep. Not always easy I can say from personal experience, but very useful. Sleep hygiene is also important. Just use your bed for sleeping and sex, nothing more, try go to bed at the same time 7 days a week etc. Sometimes melatonin can be useful.

What things have helped you to deal with sleep problems?