A review by caedocyon
Driven to Distraction: Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder from Childhood Through Adulthood by John J. Ratey, Edward M. Hallowell
4.0
Read this fast because it was due at the library (amazing how a deadline focuses the mind, isn't it?). Overall it was good and helpful, if a little dated. I probably avoided the worst of the datedness by skimming what didn't feel interesting or relevant. The relationships section seemed miserably straight, so I barely read it. One sour note that did jump out was the theory that Americans have higher ADHD rates than Brits because ""our"" ancestors were suited to be colonists because they were impulsive. So Americans, or the only Americans you're talking to, are all WASPs whose ancestors have been here since the 1700s, is that what you meant to say?
The rating is for the stuff I didn't skim. Contains actually helpful tips beyond "make lists," and the more in-depth connections and case studies I was seeking about ADHD's connection with anxiety. Anxiety as a way to structure and organize your life, and getting depressed when you actually finish/succeed at the thing that's been your millstone. Trying to steer toward good addictions instead of curing yourself of them. (I think I might understand why I read the way I do... 12+ books at once, sometimes feels like binging on an addiction---I was going to try not to overindulge this year, and here I am waaaay ahead of schedule---the way I carried around at least one book at *all* times as a kid as a talisman against getting bored.)
Also that psych testing is often falsely negative (which was my suspicion even at the time). I was amused that the authors kept saying "but DON'T self-diagnose! ask your doctor!!" but it was very clear from the intro that they had both self-diagnosed as ADD.
The rating is for the stuff I didn't skim. Contains actually helpful tips beyond "make lists," and the more in-depth connections and case studies I was seeking about ADHD's connection with anxiety. Anxiety as a way to structure and organize your life, and getting depressed when you actually finish/succeed at the thing that's been your millstone. Trying to steer toward good addictions instead of curing yourself of them. (I think I might understand why I read the way I do... 12+ books at once, sometimes feels like binging on an addiction---I was going to try not to overindulge this year, and here I am waaaay ahead of schedule---the way I carried around at least one book at *all* times as a kid as a talisman against getting bored.)
Also that psych testing is often falsely negative (which was my suspicion even at the time). I was amused that the authors kept saying "but DON'T self-diagnose! ask your doctor!!" but it was very clear from the intro that they had both self-diagnosed as ADD.