Adults and children with ADD /ADHD

by LyinEyes 25 Replies latest social physical

• 

  LyinEyes

  I have been doing some research on the condition ADD/ADHD and came across a list of names of people who have this condition.

  This runs in my family and only recently have I been diagnosed with this , which was a real eye opener, and if only I had known about this as a child some things would have been more easily understood by my parents.

  I have two children with this condition, and for the time being, have decided agaisnt medication for them. That is why I am doing research on the meds, behavior modification etc. because as any parent knows dealing with a child with ADD is quiet the challenge.

  I sometimes gets frustrated myself trying to cope with not only my own problems with this but in helping them . I found this list of famous people who were not , as children mainly, seen for the potential they truly possessed:( I know this was encouraging to me,,,,,,,, when I sometimes wonder what talents my children have, if they are only encouraged instead of discouraged).

  Famous People and Attention Deficit Disorder

  (Off-site links will open in a new window.)

  Ansel Adams - Photographer

  Ann Bancroft - (1931-present) - Actress

  Alexander Graham Bell - (1862-1939) - Telephone Inventor

  Harry Andersen - (1952-present) - Actor

  Hans Christian Anderson - (1805-1875) - Author

  Beethoven - (1770-1827) - Composer

  Harry Belafonte - (1927-present) Actor/Vocalist

  Col. Gregory "Pappy" Boyington - (1912-1988) - WWII Flying Ace (Black Sheep Squadron Leader)

  Terry Bradshaw - (1948 - Present) - Football Quaterback

  George Burns - (1896-1996) - Actor

  Sir Richard Francis Burton - (1821-1890) - Explorer, Linquist, Scholar, Writer

  Admiral Richard Byrd- (1888-1957) - Aviator (was retired from the navy as, "Unfit for service")

  Thomas Carlyle - Scottish historian, critic, and sociological writer.

  Andrew Carnegie - (1835-1919) Industialist

  Jim Carrey - (1962-present) - Comedian

  Lewis Carroll - (1832-1898) - Author - (Alice in Wonderland)

  Prince Charles - (1948-present) - Future King of England

  Cher - Actress/Singer

  Agatha Christie - (1890-1976) - Author

  Winston Churchill - Statesman (Failed the sixth grade)

  Bill Cosby - (1937-present) - Actor

  Tom Cruise - (1962 - Present) - Actor

  Harvey Cushing M.D. - (1869-1939) - Greatest Neurosurgeon of the 20th Century

  Salvador Dali - (1904-1989) - Artist

  Leonardo da Vinci - (1452-1519) - Inventor/Artist

  John Denver - (1943 - 1997) Musician

  Walt Disney (A newspaper editor fired him because he had "No good ideas")

  Kirk Douglas - (1916-present) - Actor

  Thomas Edison - (1847-1931) - Inventor (His teachers told him he was too stupid to learn anything)

  Albert Einstein - (1879-1955) - Physicist (Famous Tongue Sticking Out Picture)

  (Einstein was four years old before he could speak, and seven before he could read)

  Dwight D. Eisenhower - (1890-1969) - U. S. President/Military General

  Michael Faraday - (1791-1867) - British physicist and chemist

  F. Scott Fitzgerald - (1896-1940) - Author

  Malcolm Forbes - (1919-1990) - Forbes Magazine Founder & Publisher

  Henry Ford - (1863-1947) - Automobile Innovator

  Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790) Politician / Elder Statesman

  Galileo (Galilei) - (1564-1642) - Mathematician/Astronomer

  Danny Glover - (1947-present) - Actor

  Tracey Gold - (1969-present) - Actress

  Whoopi Goldberg - (1955-present) - Actress

  Georg Frideric Handel - (1685-1759) - Composer

  Valerie Hardin - Gothic poet, Artist, Children's Author

  Mariette Hartley - Actress (Tells of her and daughter's ADD)

  William Randolph Hearst - (1863-1951) - Newspaper Magnate

  Ernest Hemingway - (1899-1961) - Author

  Mariel Hemingway - (1961) Actress

  Milton Hershey - "The Chocolate King" - (1857 - 1945)

  Dustin Hoffman - Actor

  Bruce Jenner - Athlete

  Luci Baines Johnson - LBJ's Daughter

  "Magic" Johnson - Basketball Player

  Samuel Johnson - (Author

  Micheal Jordan - Basketball Player

  John F. Kennedy - (1917-1963) - U. S. President

  Robert F. Kennedy - (1925-1968) - U.S. Attorney General

  Jason Kidd - (1973-present) - Professional Basketball Player

  John Lennon - (1940-1980) - Musician

  Frederick Carlton (Carl) Lewis - (1961-present) - Olympic Gold Metalist, American track-and-field athlete.

  Meriwether Lewis (Lewis & Clark) - (1774 - 1809)

  Abraham Lincoln - (1809-1865) - U.S. President

  (Entered The Black Hawk War as a Captain and came out a Private)

  Greg Louganis - Athlete

  James Clerk Maxwell - (1831-1879) - British Physicist

  Steve McQueen - (1930-1980) - Actor

  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - (1756-1791) - Composer

  Napoleon Bonaparte - (1769-1873) - Emperor

  Nasser (Gamal Abdel-nasser) - (1918-1970) - Egyptian Leader

  Sir Issac Newton - (1642-1727) - Scientist and Mathematician (Did poorly in grade school)

  Nostradamus - (1503-1566) Physician - Prophet

  Ozzy Osbourne - said he was ADHD on TV

  Louis Pasteur - (1822-1895) - Scientist -

  (Rated as mediocre in chemistry when he attended the Royal College)

  General George Patton - (1885-1945) - Military

  Pablo Picasso - (1882-1973) - Artist

  Edgar Allan Poe - (1809-1849) - Author/Poet

  Rachmaninov, (S ergei Vasilyevich) - Composer

  Eddie Rickenbacker - (1890-1973) - WWI Flying Ace

  John D. Rockefeller - (1839-1937) - Founder, Standard Oil Company

  Nelson Rockefeller - (1908-1979) - U.S. Vice President

  August Rodin - (1840-1917) - Artist/Sculpturer

  Anna Eleanor Roosevelt - (1844-1962) - First Lady

  Pete Rose - Baseball Player

  Babe Ruth - (1895-1948) - Baseball Legend

  Nolan Ryan - Baseball Player

  Muhammad Anwar al-Sadat - (1918-1981) - Egyptian President, Nobel Peace Prize Winner (1976)

  George C. Scott - (1927-present) - Actor

  George Bernard Shaw- Author

  Will Smith - Actor/Rapper/Entertainer

  Tom Smothers - Actor/Singer/Entertainer

  Socrates - (469-399 B.C.) - Philosopher

  Suzanne Somers - Actress

  Steven Spielberg - (1946-present) - Filmmaker

  Sylvester Stallone - (1946-present) - Actor

  Jackie Stewart - Grand Prix Hall of Famer

  James Stewart - Actor

  Henry David Thoreau - (1817-1862) - Author

  (Lev Nikolayevich) Leo Tolstoy - Russian Author (flunked out of college)

  Alberto Tomba - (1966-present) - Italian Alpine Ski Champion

  Vincent van Gogh - Artist

  Russell Varian - (1899-1959) - Inventor

  Jules Verne - (1828-1905) - Author

  Werner von Braun - (1912-1977) - Rocket Scientist (Flunked 9th grade algebra)

  Lindsay Wagner - (1949-present) - Actress (Bionic Woman)

  Gen. William C. Westmoreland - (1914- present) - Military (Vietnam Era)

  Robin Williams - (1952- present) - Comedian

  Woodrow Wilson - (1856-1924) - U. S. President

  Henry Winkler - ( October 30, 1945 - present) - Actor (Fonzie)

  Stevie Wonder - (1950 - present ) - Musician

  F. W. Woolworth - (1852-1919) - Department Store Innovator

  While working in a dry goods store at 21, his employers wouldn't let him wait on a customer because he "Didn't have enough sense."

  Frank Lloyd Wright - (1867 - 1959) - Architect

  Orville Wright - (1871-1948) - Airplane Developer

  Wilber Wright - (1867-1912) - Airplane Developer

  William Wrigley, Jr. - Chewing Gum Maker

  William Butler Yeats - (1865-1939) Irish Author

  **********************
• 

  Aztec

  Thanks Lyin Eyes! I completely understand the frustration of raising a child with ADHD. My son is ridiculously hyper (like me) and has the attention span of a gnat (also like me). I refuse to put him on meds because I don't think they do any good and I am not turning my son into a robot. We are trying behavior modification through karate. His first class is tonight!

  It's doubly frustrating trying to explain to people that ADD is a REAL disorder and not all in your head. I, too, wonder what I could have done with my life if I had the ability to focus. Not that my life has turned out so bad but you never know...

  That list was reassuring!

  ~Aztec
• 

  pettygrudger

  Lyin Eyes - if you are doing research into "treatment" options for ADD/ADHD - I would highly suggest obtaining the book "Special Diets for Special Kids" by Lisa Lewis.

  I've been to a few "biological intervention" conferences for my own son's "diagnosis" of Autism, and found that this diet also can perhaps be maybe not a "cure", but from those that have tried it, and definite improvement of their children's condition. I have had now 2 friends that started their children on this diet - & ended up removing all medications their children were taking (ritalin). It doesn't cure every case, but its a good place to look first imho. There are many reasons why certain foods have such an impact into a person's behaviour, and this book really helped our family alot.
• 

  LyinEyes

  Thanks for the replies,,,,,, I really do need to hit the library Petty, and we are cleaning up our food intake right now. I have more things to get in order physically than they do,,,,,,like smoking .

  Aztec you son is soooooo cute. He can be bad all he wants......lol. just kiddin,,,,,,,,, I know how it is. Sounds great he is going to karate class,,,,,,, I wish there was an aeorbics class for ladies here. I need the exercise for mind and body. I would be more motivated with a group and fast pace. Although on a day like today I wouldnt even be able to walk in the front door......... Fibromyalgia.It hurts pretty bad today...... and I have a birthday party for my 16 yr old today.

  Sweet sixteen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! God i am getting old.
• 

  pettygrudger

  Lyin - this diet that has shown results for ADD/ADHD & Autism children has also been known by the mothers that have tried it to greatly reduce dymptoms of auto-immune disorders such as Fibromyalgia. It seems that certain foods (i.e. wheat & dairy products) contribute GREATLY to auto-immune disorders due to the imbalance of yeasts & other stuffs in the body.

  The funny thing is, most parents (especially mothers) of children with these neurological conditions (ADD/ADHD) also turn out to have auto-immune disorders themselves - and researchers are just now beginning to notice the links.

  Eddited to add this link : http://www.west.net/~docloc/candida.htm

  Edited by - pettygrudger on 13 January 2003 15:23:22
• 

  ColdRedRain

  Hey, I'm also an adult diagnosed with ADD.

  A thing that helps a child with ADD/ADHD to concentrate would be a sport or a musical instrument. I know as soon as I started getting into music and sports, my concentration improved.

  Sports I would reccomend would be football and perhaps maybe ice hockey.

  Instruments that I would reccomend would be the guitar or the synth. They're cheap and popular.

  Edited by - ColdRedRain on 13 January 2003 20:2:7
• 

  LyinEyes

  PettyG, speaking of auto immune disorders I have arthritis , had two surgeries on both of my feet when I was 16 and then again at 17. I had alot of some kind of illnesses at this time also , I had bronchitus, tonsilitis, mono, you name it I had it those years in high school. I had a very high white blood count.

  When I got older , I was told I had fibromyalgia, and for years had one doctor tell me it was a real condition and then another say it was the wastebasket catch all illness when nothing eles showed up. They seriously believed I may be suffering from MS, because my right side function , and muscle pain is so much worse on that side. Some days I can't walk, like yesterday, and today I hurt still. Other days it disappears and I feel almost normal and can dance all night. It comes and goes, the weather effects it, as does stress. My husband used to not understand how I could tell it was going to rain hours before it did on a sunny day!!!!!

  I don't care what some doctors say about ADD or Fibromyalgia,,,,, the Reumatology Association has acknowledged it as a real, even to some degrees diabling condition. I guess the question that can't be answered is why, how,,,,,,,,, I honestly think mine problems have alot to do with the year I was so sick , I couldnt get off the bed, and I was an energetic barrel racer when I got sick, I hated to stay inside or sleep.
• 

  NewLight2

  I am an adult with ADD, too. I find that my concentration is at its best when I'm doing something that really interests me. One of my interests is reading, but I know that reading is not a "normal" liked activity for most people with ADD. Try to find projects and activities that seem to "grab" your son's interest. Those activities will act as training for activies that must be done, but do not interest him.

  NewLight2
• 

  Solace

  Thanks so much for posting this.

  My 5 year old son is hyper and has never been able to sit still. He is also very impulsive and fearless. He seems to be in trouble constantly at school and has been in the principals office so many times, I have lost count. The most recent was when I had found out he was in a fight with another boy. I walked down to the office, expecting to see another small child sitting with him. I open the door only to find a huge fouth grade boy slumped in the chair next to my son who was yelling at the top of his lungs how this boy was "LYING!!!" and so on...

  During the first couple weeks of school my son had also pulled a boys pants down on a dare during a football tackle, showed a girl his spiderman undies and pushed another child out of his chair because he was blowing bubbles in his milk.

  I can only imagine what the teachers were thinking and I feel so bad for him, not being able to control himself.

  He is totally fearless and will say anything to anyone! I cant imagine where he gets it from.

  Seriously though,

  My son excels in physical activities. He can out walk, run or jump anyone. As long as we provide him with an outlet for his energy, we are all fine. If not? Look out! Trouble!

  We have held off introducing any meds to him. We thought we would get some of his teachers evaluations in first. Sometimes I wonder though, is it the children who need the medication or is it the adults who cant seem to handle them? I must admit, I love my son, but after spending an entire day with him, I have often thought of taking a mild sedative.
• 

  Aztec

  Heaven, I think our son's are twins! My son has a problem with authority. He's been getting in trouble since preschool where he actually convinced another 3 year old girl to kiss his bare booty. I felt so bad for the girls parents. He is always gettin into trouble in school for something. He had his whole first grade convinced that "the devil and his fire dogs" were coming to get them. Tonight was his first karate lesson and he really took to it so I'm very excited and hope this helps him with his self discipline. I'm sure the teachers agree ...LOL

  ~Aztec