Finally, A Book About A Boy With Inattentive ADHD
Written by Kristin Wilcox, the boy’s mother and a board member of iadhd.org
“My brain is an overstuffed garbage can the lid doesn’t stay on, and stuff is falling out all over the floor.” This is how my son describes what it is like to have ADHD. When he was diagnosed, I thought I understood ADHD. I was a published academic researcher with a Ph.D. in pharmacology who studied ADHD medications. It turns out my background as a scientist did not prepare me for the challenges of being a mom to a son diagnosed with the inattentive subtype of ADHD.
But wait a minute! Inattentive-type ADHD usually affects girls??? Boys are hyperactive, impulsive, and in constant motion! ADHD in boys continues to be associated with hyperactive and impulsive behaviors. Boys are three times more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD due to hyperactive and impulsive behaviors compared to girls who predominantly display symptoms of inattention. However, there is more to ADHD than just hyperactive little boys, the children who sit quietly with their inattention, disorganization and forgetfulness.
When searching for books to help me as a parent, I discovered the current literature falls short of discussing the inattentive subtype of ADHD in boys, and the researcher in me immediately saw the need for a book to help parents and their boys with inattentive-type ADHD. Andrew’s Awesome Adventures with His ADHD Brain: Helping Children and Parents to Understand Inattentive-type ADHD dispels the myth of hyperactivity and impulsivity as the defining symptoms of ADHD in boys.
In part one of the two-part book, children will learn about their own inattentive-type ADHD through my son’s challenging, humorous, emotional, and creative experiences with an ADHD elephant in his brain. The book goes beyond discussing how to manage the inattentiveness, forgetfulness and disorganization of ADHD, and shows how being fearless, a creative thinker, and an awesome problem-solver makes you A Determined Hyperfocused Dreamer (Yes! ADHD) instead of Always Disorganized and Hopelessly Distracted (or Ugh! ADHD). The story will help children realize their ADHD does not have to limit them, but instead they have limitless possibilities.
In part two of the book, parents/caregivers and educators will learn the science behind ADHD from someone “in the trenches” as they read about my personal experiences helping my son to manage his inattentive type ADHD. Parents will learn they are not alone in the overwhelming task of helping their child manage his/her ADHD.
Parents want to do their best for their children and raising a successful child with inattentive ADHD is no small task. I have been guilty of forgetting that ADHD is a neurobiological disorder and that my son is not choosing to fail classes in school, be disorganized, or have uncontrollable emotional outbursts. I had to learn to work with my son’s ADHD brain to help him to be successful. Over the past nine years of helping my son to manage his ADHD, I realized one of my most important roles is to advocate for my son and to teach him to advocate for himself.
I know he is more capable than his performance sometimes reflects. Raising a child with inattentive ADHD forced me to change my perception of what I thought I knew. ADHD is not just negative symptoms that need to be treated, but ADHD characteristics like creative thinking, hyperfocus and risk-taking contribute to unique problem-solving skills and are known characteristics of entrepreneurs. I admire my son’s ability to dive head-first into a project and not worry, like me, if it will turn out alright. My son has taught me you don’t always have to have all the answers, sometimes you just have to try and see what happens.