STRESSFUL WEEK

My youngest daughter, DQ, has been diagnosed with ADD since she was about six years old. I had seen symptoms earlier than that age, but it can't truly be diagnosed until the child is in school. As a mental health professional, I have treated countless kids with this disorder - but it is different when the child is your own.

DQ isn't the "typical" kid with ADD. First of all, she isn't hyperactive, which is what the majority of lay people think of when you first mention Attention Deficit Disorder. Second of all, she's has a very high IQ - which has been her saving grace - but then, it makes it more difficult to convince the teachers that DQ truly does have a learning disaibility. So many of DQ's teachers have said to me, point-blank, "There is no way she has ADD - she's too intelligent - so, she is just being lazy and irresponsible".

When a child has the inattentive type of ADD, they have difficulty concentrating and following through on a task. They often lose things necessary to complete the task. They have great difficulty with organizational skills. If I had a dime for every time I've said to DQ "Pick up after yourself", or "Are you done yet?", then I honestly would be a billionaire by now.

Medication helps to a certain degree, but the main thing to tackle is the lack of attention to detail and the disorganization. This can be VERY frustating for someone like me who is extremely detail oriented. At the same time, I am so very grateful that I have the background and the skills necessary to help DQ with some of her "problem areas".

This past week has been a very stressful one at my house, as DQ has gone downhill aprubtly in her schoolwork. The first quarter, she was on the Academic Honor Roll. The second quarter, she slipped some, but not alarmingly so. However, the past few weeks, she's let her quality of work slip dangerously. Needless to say, this has caused a lot of strain in our relationship. The older she becomes, the less willing she is able to accept advice or constructive "criticism", or assistance with study/organizational skills. We have been butting heads, to put it mildly.

On top of it all, I've been having to finish taxes and scholarship applications. I haven't even touched insurance paperwork. Going to the Bahamas sounds really, really good right about now. . . But, now you know why blogging has been light for me the past week!