Lynn Weiss PhD - The New Attention Deficit Disorder in Adults Workbook

A Different Way of Thinking

Lynn Weiss, Ph.D.

Copyright 2005 by Lynn Weiss

First Taylor Trade Publishing edition 2005

This Taylor Trade Publishing paperback edition of The New ADD in Adults Workbook is an original publication. It is published by arrangement with the author.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review.

Published by Taylor Trade Publishing

An imprint of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.

4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200

Lanham, Maryland 20706

Distributed by National Book Network

ISBN 978-1-58979-248-7

The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

The first acknowledgement I wish to make for this book is to the many folks in Dallas, Texas, in the early 1990s who spent time and energy to learn about their own ADD characteristics and what it would take to stay true to themselves while making it in the majority culture. We met together in small groups over a number of years, ferreting out many ways to survive and grow with an ADD style of brain construction. Without each of you, my work with this subject would have never progressed to the level it has.

Reality struck with the actual writing of this book. Thats where the Rowman & Littlefield (Taylor) staff has helped me fashion the material into a readable unit. First thanks go to Janet Harris and Camille Cline, my editors, Rick Rinehart, editor in chief, and Stephen Driver, production editor who have stood by my side, guided me, and run interference when needed. Thanks, ladiesI truly appreciate you.

Thanks, too, to the many other Rowman & Littlefield folks who made sure that the book was finished with a quality look and opened the doors so it can find its way in the hands of those who can make use of it.

On a personal level, there are my dear friends Judy and Mike Weinrobe, who graciously turned their spare bedroom over to me for my editorial trips to Dallas. My Bastrop friends and colleagues, Tiffany Green and Fleeta Cunningham, writing cohorts who listened to my tales of woe, soothed my tense brow, and rejoiced in the completion of this manuscript. The Bastrop Writers Group cheered me on and let me test the material further. And finally, my son, Aaron, who is always willing to take a minute to answer a computer question or burn a CD. Thanks one and all

In this book I talk about a brain diversity issue that is simply a stylistic set of traits passed from generation to generation through a family line. Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), a term Ill use in this book synonymously with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), is a perfectly normal style of brain construction. It is not a pathological condition to be diagnosed and treated. I am not talking about Acquired ADD such as results from diet, head injuries, cocaine or alcohol abuse, metal poisoning, birth defects, or allergies.

Ive seen many of us lose touch with the usefulness of our innate ADD style because our natural style didnt fit the expectation of the world around us. We have resources that go unrecognizedresources that we can use to achieve our goals. Instead of feeling hopeless to get our work, studies, and relationships right, we can learn to act in ways to reach our goals effectively.

We all have to learn to go about the job of discovering our inner resources. Then we must find ways to use them on our own behalf. Sometimes we have to find ways to heal the feelings of hopelessness and helplessness that we learned as a result of not being tuned into our hidden resources. These lessons make up the themes woven through this book.

Many of us no longer see our innate talents. We dont recognize and have not received appropriate training to use our natural skills and talents. We have underachieved and been hurt as a result, and weve often given up trying to get things right.

The skills in this book were originally forged with people who have a high number of ADD attributes. Ive come to realize, however, that many of the issues that emerged for them are issues many more people experience to some degree. Each of us must find out how our own brain is made. We must be sure we find the right places to utilize our resources so we may use them positively. We must, above all, refine our thinking tools to accomplish outcomes that make sense for each of us and maximize our effectiveness.

Then, strong in our own right, we can team up with others who have a different constellation of skills. Together we become unbeatable.

You will find three themes woven throughout this book. Many of the suggestions are geared to help you recognize and support the innate brainstyle attributes with which you are bornthe ones that reflect your greatest strengths.

But when your innate strengths are pressed into learning and living environments that dont fit them, you end up hurt. As a result, you will need to find ways to heal those hurts so you can use your natural skills effectively.

Finally, you will discover ways to accommodate your natural skills and interests to situations that dont fit you. The trick here is to do what you need to do without damaging yourself in the process.

You have a natural style of brain constructionone with which you were born. I call that style the True You. It is from the core of your True Self that the hidden resources, previously dormant or disallowed, will be encouraged to come into full bloom. In this book, you will be encouraged and helped to recognize and respect your hidden resources. What lay previously undetected or underdeveloped can be embraced and used in your personal and work life for the benefit of all.

The True You is the unwarped, unjudged, unwounded, natural you. All of the original innate skills, talents, attributes, and gifts with which you were born are available to you to use as you choose. In this book, Ill ask you to focus on the way in which you think, act, and express yourself. Ill talk about what you like and how you can go about reaching the goals that are important to you in a way that fits your natural bent. Ill look at how to make use of your brain in ways that can provide you with both happiness and success.

Youll learn to recognize what fits you by noticing feelings of enthusiasm and hesitation within yourself. You will be drawn to activities and situations that are right for you, that support your natural skills, and that provide you with a sense that you can reach your potential. In contrast, you will begin to learn to recognize your hesitation to engage in activities and situations that dont naturally fit you and that are not good for you. As you honor this wisdom within yourself, your life path will smooth out. Your journey will belong to you. Your pleasure will increase. And you will come to know meaningful success.

No matter how you were raised or what your style of brain construction, you undoubtedly bumped into situations that did not fit your natural style of learning and working. You are likely to feel bruised as a result. You also probably learned to disregard your natural resources for learning and accomplishing things so that they went underground, out of your conscious awareness.