ADHD Myths Stigma And Positives

Pete Quoted in The Courier Post on The Myths of Adult ADHD, Anti-ADHD Stigma And The Positives of ADHD

I was quoted in the Courier Post on the myths of adult ADHD anti-ADHD stigma and the positives of having ADHD. Written by Lu Hanessian Feb. 27, 2015.

Pete Quily, who has been an adult ADHD coach since 2003, calls it “Attention Surplus Condition.”

“It’s not so much of a deficit. We see everything. Basically, with ADD, we don’t filter so well, so that means we see, hear, feel, notice more than other people do. So we’re getting more sensory input than others. Our problem is having too much creativity and picking some of those ideas and following them through.”

“I see a realistic view of ADHD,” he says, “Too many view ADHD as mere pathology,” he says, “They only see the negatives of ADHD. As an adult who has ADHD, I know there are real negatives. But, if disease and disorder are the main lenses through which you view us because that’s all you’re looking for, you will miss out on our positive characteristics…
In fact, says Quily, “ADHD isn’t behavioral; it’s brain wiring and differences in volumetric structure, between white and grey matter in the brain.”

Quily, who is the also leader of Vancouver Adult ADD Support Group, offers up a few more.

MYTH 8:You can’t have ADD and do well in school or have a good job. In fact, he says, many small-business owners have attention deficit disorder, and there are four billionaires with ADHD.

MYTH# 10 Other people know your child better than you do. Quily offers, “Each parent must know what works for his or her child. Talk to other parents. There’s shame because there’s ignorance. It’s not just your child who gets shamed by society, but you get shamed by society as a parent. The stress for people with ADHD is off the charts.”