Attention Deficit Disorder
Adults, as well as older children, who’ve outgrown the hyperactivity of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may suffer from attention-deficit disorder (ADD). At Uptown Psych, located in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, the practice’s team of licensed therapists are experts at evaluating and reviewing symptoms from friends, parents, teachers, and schools staff to diagnose this often quieter cousin of ADHD and address the concentration and functioning issues it poses. Make an appointment by phone or online to learn more.
Attention-Deficit Disorder Q & A
What is the difference between ADHD and ADD?
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and Attention-deficit disorder (ADD) both affect the way you are able to remain focused on everyday things like schoolwork, job responsibilities, and even mundane things like cooking or getting dressed.
The starkest difference between the two disorders is the hyperactivity component, the “H” in ADHD. People, often kids, with ADHD, cannot sit still and are so overly active, that it is fairly easy to spot. Teachers and parents usually can tell when kids are suffering from ADHD because they act out with rowdy behaviors
For people with ADD, it is not as easy to spot. Take kids with ADD, for example. Rather than act out constantly in the classroom, kids with ADD are more likely to stay quiet, dozing off or daydreaming rather than getting attention bouncing on the walls. Kids with ADD still have the same difficulties with focus and require added resources to thwart this condition to succeed in school, but since they are not as easy to identify, they often fly under the radar and do not get the help they need.
How can you spot ADD?
Parents and teachers need to be very alert. Since ADD is not characterized by the symptoms of hyperactivity prone to kids with ADHD, it is much more difficult to identify. Kids with ADD listen to what adults tell them but are not able to process essential information from non-essential information, and sometimes appear as if they did not listen to instructions.
Look for things like this: If you tell your child to clean up their room and 30 minutes later they are watching television and have not done what you have asked.
As a parent in this scenario, it can be frustrating but remember that kids with ADD are listening, in fact, they listen closely to everything they hear. They just cannot separate what is important to pay attention to and what is not.
Also, 75% of patients who have ADHD usually outgrow the hyperactive component of the disorder by adulthood, but 90% do not outgrow the attention deficit part. Constant monitoring throughout the life of someone with ADHD as it develops into ADD is important, too.
How do you treat ADD?
The most important step in treating ADD is recognizing it and getting the help you or your child needs. After that, Uptown Psych’s team of mental health professionals offers comprehensive talk therapy and counseling to address concentration and executive functioning issues, with the aim of providing techniques to help cope with ADD. Also, Uptown Psych’s therapists often prescribe medication to help complement therapy and achieve optimal results.