Opposites Attract

Opposites attract

After my inaugural blog post, my BFF Cathy Morrow posed the question of how do I find the time to write. She's well aware of the fact that I work for 5 employers so I can have the flexibility to work primarily from home in order to earn an income to support a family, manage (and micro manage) my kids, run a household, and still have somewhat of a social life. I consider myself to be the polar opposite of a person with ADD. I'm highly organized, rarely procrastinate & if I ignore my kids, husband, needy dogs, random texts, calls from students, and calls from nursing homes regarding my patients, I am able to maintain focus for extended lengths of time and tackle a large amount of work. Sounds great, doesn't it? Well, for my own personal sanity & success, yes.  However, it has proved to be my downfall in caring for my daughter. I believed if I shared with her organizational skills and abilities based off of personal experience and research into organization, she could overcome her disorganization (a VERY common symptom with ADHD). Yeah, not so much. All it did was lead to frustration on her part, as well as mine. I'm giving you the tools to be successful! How can you NOT do this? Well, because she can't. Her brain doesn't work that way. The hardwiring of her brain is different than mine. The chemical composition of her brain varies as well. Not that she can't be organized, but without medication, her brain can't organize the way mine can. Even with medication she may not find success in following Mom's Tips for Leading a Highly Organized Life.  She has to organize by her own set of guidelines. Not mine.

Oh, believe me, I’ve done all the basics; charts, graphs, lists of responsibilities, schedules, and the list goes on and on. But keeping up with it all is quite the challenge for this overworked mom. I've always led the way in this organization with little input from Nevia, primarily because when she was younger, she didn’t know how to organize anything! Now as a teen, she has some of the basic skills to organize. Maybe some of Mom’s Organizational Tips did rub off on her.  Developing this plan can be time consuming, but is something we will have to do!

Remember I mentioned how the chemical composition in the ADHD brain is a bit different than us neurotypical (non-ADHD) individuals? Well, here’s a basic discussion on what I mean. There are three primary chemical neurotransmitters out of balance with ADD.  What are neurotransmitters you ask? Neurotransmitters are chemicals in the brain that transmit information along pathways in our brain. Simply put, it is how one part of our brain communicates with another part of our brain. While there may be as many as 200 neurotransmitters in our brain, only 50 have been identified. Research has determined that many common psychiatric disorders result from deficiencies in specific neurotransmitters. Disorders such as anxiety, depression, anger-control problems, obsessive compulsive disorder, and yep, you guessed it, even ADHD/ADD.

So of the 50 identified neurotransmitters, the three main culprits involved in ADD are: norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin. ADHD was the first psychiatric disorder found to be caused by a deficiency in norepinephrine. It was also the first disorder to respond to medications to correct this neurotransmitter imbalance. Research on these neurotransmitters suggests that different characteristics occur with certain chemical imbalances;
         Distractibility: too much norepinephrine in relation to the amount of dopamine activity
         Impulsivity: too much norepinephrine or too little dopamine
         Obsessiveness: too much dopamine in relation to the amount of serotonin

So while these psychiatric disorders are literally “all in your head”, rest assured that you cannot control the symptoms related to these disorders without the help of medication (some may find alternative therapy or diet works well enough, but this is not the case for many).  A kid with diabetes can’t control his glucose level without the medication called insulin. Well, just because a disorder occurs in our brain doesn’t mean we can ‘control’ it without medication. We consciously control merely a minute amount of what goes on in our brain. But, if you don’t believe me, then the next time your ADHD kid acts impulsive, tell him to decrease the norepinephrine release in his brain or up his dopamine. Let me know if it works.

Glad you asked about neurotransmitters, aren't you? I could go all scientific on your ass and discuss more, but I will cut you some slack.

Whew! So hopefully I have helped to open some minds to a starting point to understanding ADHD. And trust me, this is only a starting point in understanding this complex disease process. Some people expect these kids to be able to control their symptoms WITHOUT medication. I know I did. Again, my self-directed education has paid off. Hopefully it’s paying off for you all as well. I realize I was all wrong about the management of my child with this disease process. So now we move forward.

How, you ask? Well how the heck do I know? Don't you remember me saying I'm the polar opposite of my child? I know MY way of organization. Not hers. Perhaps I haven’t taken enough time recently to learn her ways. I’ve always tried to stuff her into MY organizational mold. She'll fit. Well, no. She didn't fit in that mold.

Thankfully, opposites attract. We can look for a day when our neurotransmitters are best aligned and come up with an organizational plan that works. One that works on her pole, not on mine.

Dr. Donna Poma Fife DNP, MS-ARNP

Disclaimer: The purpose of this blog is to provide information on ADHD/ADD. It is an informal platform in which I can share experiences and education regarding this disease process. It includes a lot of generalizations of the disease. If you don’t fall into those generalizations, don’t stress it! This blog in no way is providing you with medical advice. Please see your medical professional for medical advice, since you pay them, not me.