ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)

ADHD Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder is a disorder of the mental health of a person. This disorder includes various types of problems which occur persistently and repeatedly, the problems could be:

• Not able to pay attention properly or having difficulty to do so

• Very impulsive kind of behavior

• Hyperactivity

When an adult suffers with the problem of ADHD he can face problems such as, he will not be having any stable relationships, performance degrades in school/college, work efficiency decrease or becomes poor, have diminished self-esteem and other related problems.

Even though ADHD occurs usually in the adulthood of a person, the symptoms for this start during the early stage of a person's childhood which continues to grow till the adulthood of the person. There are certain cases in which the ADHD of a person goes unrecognized or undiagnosed till that person becomes an adult. Symptoms of ADHD during childhood are much clearer than that of during the adulthood of the person. The problem of hyperactivity might be lesser in the person's adulthood but he will struggle with a lot of problems such as difficulty in paying attention, impulsive nature and restlessness.

For the treatment of ADHD, the procedure in a child's ADHD is similar to that of an adult's ADHD. The treatment of ADHD in adults includes medications, psychotherapy (psychological counseling) and a lot of procedures are done for any kind of mental health issues which occur along with ADHD. 

Symptoms: 

The number of symptoms might start to decrease with the increase in your age, but the major symptoms of the problem occur persistently in adults and affect their regular and everyday chores. The symptoms in adults can be said to be ranging from mild to severe. The main characteristics of ADHD are impulsiveness, restlessness and having problems paying attention. 

Many of the people with ADHD who are in their adulthood do not even know that they are suffering from the problem, instead they think that their everyday errands and chores are very challenging to do. Adult patients of ADHD will find so much difficulty in concentration and prioritization, which will lead them to forget about meetings, missing deadlines or social planning. This problem of them to not control their impulses will lead them to become impatient while they are stuck in traffic or standing in a queue or bursting out in anger and mood swings. 

Symptoms of ADHD in adults can be: 

•  Coping with stress becomes troublesome

• Impulsiveness

• Planning becomes poor 

• Prioritizes problems and disorganization

• Hot tempered

• Management skills become poor

• Your focus on a task becomes problematic

• Completion of tasks and following through becomes problematic

• Mood swings become frequent

• Multitasking becomes troublesome

• Frustration tolerance decreases

• Restlessness or excessive activity

Causes: 

The exact cause of ADHD can not be stated clearly even though continued efforts are being made for the research of the reason. There are several factors which leads to the development of this condition are as follows: 

• Genetics: When there is ADHD running through the family history and studies have also given clear evidence that genes are factors that can lead to ADHD.

• Environment: There are certain environmental factors too which are capable of increasing the risk of this disorder. One such condition is when a child is exposed to lead he becomes vulnerable for this disorder.

• Problems while developing: A major factor which is responsible for the disorder to happen is when you face problems with your Central Nervous System which is a vital part of a person's growth and development.

Risk factors:

There are certain risk factors which may increase the chances of ADHD are given below:

• Having a close blood relative such as a parent or sibling who suffers from the same problem of ADHD or some other mental disorder.

• During the time of pregnancy the mother drank alcohol, used drugs or smoked.

• Because of exposure to environmental toxins such as lead which is commonly found in paint or old building's pipe when you were a child.

• Premature birth of a baby.

There are few complications also linked with ADHD, such as:

• Unemployment

• Poor self-image

• Poor school or work performance

• Suicidal tendencies

• Poor physical and mental health

• Frequent accidents which can be vehicle or other accidents

• Financial problems

• Usage of alcohol or other substances 

• Unstable relationship

• Trouble with the law

Coexisting conditions:

ADHD can sometimes lead to other developmental or psychological problems and other disorders. These problems along with ADHD makes the treatment much more complicated and difficult. These problems can be:

• Mood disorders: People having ADHD have several other disorders like bipolar disorder, depression and other mood disorders. 

• Anxiety disorders: This is a very common occurrence in the case of ADHD and may cause several problems like nervousness, worry and other problems.

• Learning disabilities: People suffering from this condition are prone to scoring less marks in academic examinations and have less knowledge than they are expected to have at their age. Their intelligence and education is greatly affected and reduced because of this. This will ultimately lead the person to face problems in understanding anything and communicating with anyone.

Treatment of ADHD

ADHD in adults does not have any standard treatment and has certain steps such as medication, skills training, education and psychological counseling. These steps altogether will prove very effective in the treatment of many symptoms of ADHD but can not help curing them and the best way which proves beneficial for you could take some time to be recognised. 

• Medications: Stimulants such as amphetamine and methylphenidate are commonly prescribed and other medications which are non-stimulant atomoxetine and certain antidepressants like bupropion which can be used for the treatment of ADHD.

• Psychological counseling: This will help the patient improve his skills in time management and organization, will help in the improvement of self-esteem, help improve your relationships etc.

You should be taking care of your mental health as equal as that of your physical health and you should try to avoid any kind of negativity, work or anything which affects your mental peace.

If you have these symptoms or problems you should take the dose of medicine in limited or in prescribed quantity and practice healthy mental health exercises and meditate regularly.

BE MENTALLY HEALTHY