Driven To Distraction : Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder from Childhood Through Adulthood
This clear and valuable book dispels a variety of myths about attention deficit disorder (ADD). Since both authors have ADD themselves, and both are successful medical professionals, perhaps there’s no surprise that the two myths they attack most persistently are: (a) that ADD is an issue only for children; and (b) that ADD corresponds simply to limited intelligence or limited self-discipline. “The word disorder puts the syndrome entirely in the domain of pathology, where it should not entirely be. Although ADD can generate a host of problems, there are also advantages to having it, advantages that this book will stress, such as high energy, intuitiveness, creativity, and enthusiasm, and they are completely overlooked by the ‘disorder’ model.” The authors go on to cite Mozart and Einstein as examples of probable ADD sufferers. (The problem as they see it is not so much attention deficit but attention inconsistency: “Most of us with ADD can in fact hyperfocus at times.”) Although they warn against overdiagnosis, they also do a convincing job of answering the criticism that “everybody, and therefore nobody” has ADD. Using numerous case studies and a discussion of the way ADD intersects with other conditions (e.g., depression, substance abuse, and obsessive-compulsive disorder), they paint a concrete picture of the syndrome’s realities. Especially helpful are the lists of tips for dealing with ADD in a child, a partner, or a family member. –Richard Farr
Through vivid stories of the experiences of their patients (both adults and children), Drs. Hallowell and Ratey show the varied forms ADD takes — from the hyperactive search for high stimulation to the floating inattention of daydreaming — and the transforming impact of precise diagnosis and treatment.
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Found the owners manual for my son!
I finally found the owner’s manual for my 8 year old son. I kept finding explanations in this book as to why my son does this and that. For example, he picks fights with his brothers who are much bigger than him. Doesn’t he see the result coming? No, he does it to gain stimulation in his world! Also, he didn’t talk until he was 3 but started reading at 4. These are all signs of ADD. I had thought that since he paid attention to video games and not to school stuff that he didn’t have ADD. I thought he just chose to fight me on the homework and to give his teachers a hard time. But this book explained it all! I’m just glad we caught this in the third grade, and not when it feels like too late.
5 Stars well worth the read.
while it did not capture my interest as much as Delivered from Distraction, this was still a good read with much information that I found valuable. It seems to me to be more of a primer for adult ADD than something for folks who have some background info and are moving into the management stage. However it has some very good moments none the less.
5 Stars Wonderful . . . Book on CD is great for us with ADD!
This cd was wonderful. I have ADD and shared it with one of my friends with ADD. It was a great experience for both of us!
2 Stars Tearjerker
If you are looking for an emotional catharsis about ADD/ADHD, this is the book for you. Almost 200 pages of heartbreaking case studies and personal accounts… it really follows through on the first promise of the title: RECOGNIZING ADD from childhood through adulthood.
I would say that the focus of this book is more on getting that “A-HA” moment for adults who grew up with ADD and didn’t know it. That’s my opinion; I don’t know whether it was the goal of the book, but that is the sense I got from reading it.
The beneficial (for non-Attention-Deficit-Disordered and/or non-catharsis-needing people) bit of the book begins around Chapter 7, which discusses the steps to diagnosis (including diagnostic criteria for children and adults from the DSM-III-R, which I am pretty sure has been replaced by the DSM-IV.) The following chapter highlights practical steps that can be taken to mitigate ADD symptoms.
In the end, there was not much meat in this book. Tragedy aplenty, but little else.
5 Stars Real Answers
No matter who you are or what your reasons for picking up Driven to Distraction, by Dr. Edward Hallowell, be prepared to get some real answers to your questions about attention deficit disorder. The book is organized so that it can easily be utilized in any number of ways. It would be a great reference source for information on particular aspects of ADD, but beware… if you start reading at the beginning you will be drawn into Dr. Hallowell’s detailed, and in some sense very personal, unfolding of what is known about attention deficit disorder and you won’t be able to put this volume down!
I ordered this book as a somewhat disinterested bystander. I was intending it as a sourcebook to pass along to a family of my acquaintance who suspect that they are raising a child who has this disorder. After having read Driven to Distraction, I recognize that there are no “disinterested bystanders” when it comes to ADD. My life is impacted by the syndrome whether or not I am the person hearing the diagnosis being pronounced. You may be the neighbor, relative, employer, friend, or co-worker of someone who is living with this disorder, either aware or unaware of what is happening in his/her life. The symptoms are various and occur in almost limitless combinations.
The effect on the lives of those coping (or not coping) with the fallout from ADD is almost impossible to gauge. It is probably accurate to say that there are hundreds of times as many people who have undiagnosed attention deficit disorder as there are those aware of their condition. If you have a family member undergoing testing for ADD, take heed to the implications for your own life. Dr. Hallowell repeatedly stresses that having an official diagnosis by a qualified professional is essential. The positive diagnosis is a huge relief for many with ADD, but it is only the beginning in terms of finding workable solutions for very real life problems in the lives of patients.
That is when the information gleaned from Dr. Hallowell’s book becomes invaluable. Wherever we find ourselves in the scheme of things with regard to ADD, we can be uninformed and unwittingly contribute to the difficulties ADD patients face or choose to arm ourselves with knowledge about the condition and become a force of encouragement and compassion toward those courageously confronting their ADD challenges. What will it be?
Filed under: Parenting Advice Book Reviews