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ADHD Possible ADD or Dislexia/Displaxia

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I'm unlikely to spend the money for a formal diagnoses as there are too many things in my life demanding the contents of my pockets and some I have been neglecting for a long time.I have been toying with doing this for the last 10 years but am now accepting am unlikely to do so. I know no one can diagnose me and am not expecting anyone to do so. What would be helpful is if it could be pointed out if a difficulty doesn't fit with one or the other of these, or both. I have had 2 friends with ADD and children with ADHD and who know me fairly well say they think this is an issue for me. Have had a friend who is a clinical psychologist say the same. A client and one of my previous therapists. Dyslexia has also been mentioned. If dyslexia is part of this then I suspect it doesn't affect me enough to be an actual diagnoses. I have found ways around many of the things I found hard. A lot of issues I had were due to dissociation but as the mist is clearing I am seeing a few other issues more clearly.

1. My mind doesn't stay on the rails and keeps going off the track at random times. In fact that is my normal state. 20 000 tributaries at any one time.
2. I have been doing a lot of writing recently and have realised I find it hard to go directly from a to b in a coherent way. There are always little asides, comments, other thoughts etc.
3. The grammar is hard to contain. Its not that I am totally ignorant but putting it in the right order is hard and time consuming. If I want it to read properly it takes time and energy. Things are back to front and upside down. It doesn't really match what I know.
4. Spelling has improved and I was never totally incapable but it isn't easy and I swap words around. It used to be much much worse until I spent a lot of time really trying to change this.
5. I can't list and remember things unless I write them down. Then I struggle to find the list.
6. I struggle to find anything in paper form. Looking for a file or invoice can be really painful and intimidating. If its on a computer I can search for it. If not I have a real block about it in a way that doesn't match my intelligence or general mental health functioning. Its a bit like having a type of vision impairment.
7. I hyperfocus or struggle to focus. Those are my two modes.
8. I find it easier to concentrate when there is information dense stuff in front of me tham if something is what most people find easier.
9. I often need to draw diagrams to make sense of information said to me.
10. It takes longer than it should take me to process information or write it down coherently considering my level of intelligence (average) and functionality. For example I am neither depressed nor chronically dissociated at present. I am also not experiencing these things because of excessive rumination and distraction.

Any input is welcome. I'm hoping to find further understanding of myself and resultant improved ways of approaching things, Thanks so much.
 
Dyslexia or dysgraphia are super common cormorbids of ADHD. Spatial reasoning (2D with dyslexia or 3D with dysgraphia) is almost always affected in one way or the other, often enough to rise to cormorbid levels, but not always. Ditto sensory issues & SPD.

So if you have ADHD... and I agree with your friends who are uber familiar with both the disorder and you, it’s likely you have it (extremely likely if you also have ‘opposite stimulant reaction’)... then expect either spatial reasoning & sensory processing to either be facets affected or full blown oomphy cormorbids.

There’s a helluva lot more info out for Adults now that it’s finally been reclassified. 2 of my favorite resources are the book “You Mean I’m Not Lazy, Stupid, Or Crazy?!?” by Kate Kelly & Peggy Ramundo & the website www.Additudemag.com
 
Thank you so much @Friday That is interesting. The main thing that has confused and made me doubt myself before has been that some of these issues don't fit with either one or the other.

May I ask what the paper issue is likely to be about? The possible term for No 6. Thanks again!
 
May I ask what the paper issue is likely to be about? The possible term for No 6. Thanks again!

I would suspect 2D spatial reasoning issues, with that one. Whether or not that’s dyslexia or dysgraphia or something else? Not qualified or experienced enough with to have an opinion.

They test it with kids in the WISC and other tests by using tangrams and other “make a representation of a 3D shape in 2D”. Like making a sailboat sillouette out of triangles. (3D spatial reasoning is done with those block towers of bizarre shapes and a timer, amongst others. Dysgraphics and 3D spatial rockstars usually stack them in seconds like they were square blocks, most people take several minutes to work out how the pieces fit by trial and error, dyslexics and 3D deficits are often unable to stack them at all).

The things with dyslexics and dysgraphics is that there’s a disconnect between 3D & 2D.
- Dyslexics tend to transfer 2D into 3D, hence why letters sort of pile on top of each other as they’re trying to take the information IN.

- Dysgraphics can see 2D (and 3D) perfectly fine, the information going in is uncorrupted, but when they try to replicate it, it becomes a 3D interpretation OUT. Which means they also usually score off the charts for 3D spatial reasoning, which is rare. Most people muddle along. Not in a mean/average kind of way, either. Human beings aren’t exceptionally 3D creatures, especially once one add velocity and other variables. You find an inordinately high percentage of dysgraphia in 3D fields, like fighter pilots, prosports, and applied mathematics. It’s been theorized that you used to find a whole lot in medicine (IE doctors handwriting got its notoriety legitimately!) but since medicine has specialized instead of dealing with the whole person (before scanners, labs, exploratory surgery, etc. GPs had to essentially imagine all the systems in play and how they were affecting each other, and extrapolate a diagnosis, rather than memorizing what a level of this salt or that acid in the lab result means) this disorder -like others- is now a lot less concentrated. <<< My son is dysgraphic, so I know this disorder a lot better than dyslexia, although not a huge amount is known about it, in general. It’s sort of where dyslexia was in the 80s.

Dyslexia has a whole lot of different and varied interventions, but dysgraphia only has one that I know of - use a computer (or typewriter). Because the computer bridges the disconnect, and keeps things from piling on top of each other. Whether you’re talking words or images, you’re working in 3D using keyboards, mice, etc. and then it’s translated into 2D for you. Voila.
 
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Thank you so much @Friday. That is very interesting. I will have to think on this for a while and do a little research. Some online tests may help too. What is a bit confusing is that I am pretty good at aspects of language. Dysgraphia sounds more accurate. Some of those symptoms like the crunched up hands and struggles writing are a match. Writing by hand as a child or even now is not an easy match for me. Actually, In language, its comprehension that is and was always my forte.

I don't believe I have 3D deficits and I suspect I may be above average in that in area. 2D? hmmm.. Not so sure. Did a few now and it was painful and I didn't do fabulously. Probably not totally terribly either. Maybe that mixed with poor organisational abilities and concentration is what is making certain things so hard for me. I am trying to do everything possible on my computer and it has made such a difference in my life. I'm almost looking functional! ?? And almost speedy whilst doing so.

I didn't have a problem reading as a child although I was slow and not wonderful. I have realised my eyes jump around a lot and I backtrack etc so I have compensated a bit for that and find I have to really concentrate. Also use colour as read about that helping those with dyslexia a while ago. It does help. My eye definitely doesn't just run along the page in a nice controlled way. Have thought Meares-Irlen syndrome was a possibility but in truth it is inconvenient rather than really affecting as I have found ways to compensate. But doing this writing really made me think as what I do doesn't match what I know. Its like all the parts of the sentence keep wandering off in different directions and I have to corral them to be coherant. Guess some of that could ADD attention stuff.

t’s been theorized that you used to find a whole lot in medicine (IE doctors handwriting got its notoriety legitimately!) but since medicine has specialized
Makes sense. Interesting.
My son is dysgraphic,
I can see why that would give you insight. Glad he is diagnosed and receiving the right help. ? Credit to you for making sure that happened.
you’re working in 3D using keyboards, mice, etc. and then it’s translated into 2D for you. Voila.
Viola indeed! I am feeling like this makes sense for me. Its how I feel when things are done this way. Phew. Thank goodness for technology.

A huge thanks again. Shall read further.
 
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