Are there some ADD characteristics that any of you have which you have come to appreciate? For example, my husband (undiagnosed ADHD, but we're sure he has it) tends to think that noticing everything (he prefers "is very observant") is a virtue. My husband also thinks that the ability to do several things simultaneously (multi-tasking) is an ADD trait and another virtue.

(Of course I'm not sure that multi-tasking is an ADD trait because I do it (multi-tasking) and I'm not sure I have ADD myself.)

Multi-tasking is something I can do very well. The ability to have energy when everyone else is dog tired helps. The multi pathways in my head makes my problem solving ability great! I think up ideas that no one else in my office has. (Saving lots of time too) Hyperfocusing -haven't I discussed this to death?!- Has helped me finish jobs in crunches time and time again. I have hyperactive in me while I understand other ADDers do not. So my traits might differ. :)

Your post reminded me of something Bob Seay (former About.com ADHD expert, now working for ADDITUDE magazine) wrote about the positives of having ADD. It's actually a very colorful, font-varied page, but here it just comes out as one long blurb. Therefore, I'm altering the list by putting each item on one line.... You'll find several things listed below about which many, many threads here have been started....

50 (or so) Great Things About Having ADD!

excerpt from the poster written by Bob Seay, the excellent and funny web guide at the About.com ADD site!

Entertain your friends with witty one-liners and sharp come backs. ;
Insomnia makes for more time to stay up and surf the net! ;
The drive of Hyper-focus ;
Sparkling personality;
Drop names like Edison, Einstein, Walt Disney and Beethoven in conversations ;
Can see all of your wordly possessions at one time.. because they are all over the floor ;
ENTHUSIASTIC;
innovative;
A strong sense of what is FAIR ;
Willing to take a Risk;
Alert ;
Eager ;
creative ;
provides original ideas ; or isn't afraid to steal them. ;
Make far reaching analogies that no one else understands. Write them off as "Deep Thoughts" ;
Theoretical ;
Abstract Thinkers;
Spontaneous ;
Always Hopeful ;
Keeps meetings lively;
The Mind of a Pentium - with only 2Mgs of RAM ;
Aesthetically oriented ;
Pleasantly and constantly surprised by finding clothing you had forgotten about. ;
Able to tie seemingly unrelated ideas together;
Funny;
Able to see The Big Picture while others stumble around in the dark.;
Independent ;
Demands to know WHY?;
Last of the ROMANTICS ;
Has a wide variety of interests ;
Good conversationalist;
Qualify for bulk rate mail on tax returns because you have at least 24 W-2's attached.;
At IQs of 160 and above, virtually all people have ADD symptoms; An innately better understanding of intuitive technologies such as computers ;
In class popularity contests, always voted "Most Entertaining"; "Most Energetic";
Great Improvisors;
Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound (did you actually read that?) ;
Honestly believes that anything is possible ;
Great at Extemporaneous Speaking ;
Quickly assimilates new information;
Usually a little smarter than the average bear ;
Willing to "step out in faith" ;
Rarely satisfied with the status quo ;
Empathetic;
Can easily replace missing childhood photos with panels from "Calvin & Hobbes" ;
Pleasantly and constantly surprised by finding money you had forgotten about.;
Blows up, but then usually recovers quickly ;
An unstoppable dynamo of human energy;
Doesn't know when to quit;
Intuitive ;
Compassionate ;
Persistant ;
Spunky;
Hidden TALENT;
Closely attuned to the moods of those around them ;
ADD is especially common among artists, musicians, and other creative people ;
Can always be depended upon to provide a different perspective ;
Visionary;
An Individualist;
Many successful entrepreneurs exhibit ADD behaviors;
Provides job security for writers of Spell Check programs ;
Will fight for what they believe in ;
Excellent motivators of others;
Highly organized, punctual and generally responsible (OK, so I lied);

Definitly use these on your resume! Thank you, Smooch!

K~

Isn't that list just awesome? No matter how many times I've read it, I still bust out laughing and giggling.... :D

It makes you a fantastic improv comic. :D :D :D

I have to admit; it did put a smile on my face and made me laugh!.

I do just love how well we can be described sometimes...and then wonder why people think it's a disorder??

I love my ADD, I just wish the world did to.

Sleepz

Can see all my worldly possessions at one time? Because they're all over the floor???:D :D

A great list Smooch...thanks for posting it....

Jo Anna: I think some people with ADD can multi-task and others cannot....and some can with much frustration....I generally cannot....

but I can have several tasks going on in my head at the same time..and several thoughts...and I can work on several tasks and problems in my head....but not in real life.....

The only times I can really multi-task are when the tasks are fun things...not work things....or when they are REALLY stimulating...such as I can play Chess with one person and Scrabble with another person at the same time....and keep up....but then again, who cares and how does something like this help society???? It doesn't....

Do you remmeber when it was neat to have a guy get on TV and spin plates on sticks.

It always ended with plates crashing on the floor breaking.

The guy would get a bunch going, but instead of respinning each one in order, he'd wait for one to wobble, then another. It looked like he was doing a lot at once. but really, he was just spinning one plate at a time, just jumping fom one to another accross space. I think that is what most ADHD people really do... get a number of things going that interpt for attention at different times, but they aren' REALLY, mostly, doing more than one thing at any instant. The external interuptions keep them moving, because, like the Pink Floyd song, no one tells the ADHD when to start! The starting gun goes from still being in the future to suddenly already being in the past, when they rely on an internal timer. You can set it, but the bell doesn't "ding" when the time is up!

What a morning waker upper

good one

I think you husband is right about multi-taksing. I have ADHD and my wife certainly does not. I, however, multi-task at a higher level than she does. When we were in college together she could only study one subject at a time. I study for 3-5 courses and exams at one time and get the same or better results than she did. But then again I can't read a book from cover to cover, either and I always make those silly not-paying-attention mistakes on exams and she did not. Its a curse as well as a blessing.

lol
MightyMouse


Originally posted by Jo Anna
Are there some ADD characteristics that any of you have which you have come to appreciate? For example, my husband (undiagnosed ADHD, but we're sure he has it) tends to think that noticing everything (he prefers "is very observant") is a virtue. My husband also thinks that the ability to do several things simultaneously (multi-tasking) is an ADD trait and another virtue.

(Of course I'm not sure that multi-tasking is an ADD trait because I do it (multi-tasking) and I'm not sure I have ADD myself.)

I can't mulit-task, I am horrible at that. Only thing I can mulit-task is having many different Interenet sessions open at one time. But that is not really multitasking, it is going back and forth. My wife is a great multitsker. Talk on the phone, eat, and surf the net.

Please fogive me for a computer analogy...

to get a computer to do more than one thing at a time you must have either:

multiple independent processing components operating at exactly the same time (parallel processing - like hearing and seeing at the same time!) or

some way to swithc from one task to another and back, fast enough to look like you are multi-tasking, without really doing more than one thing at a time.

One method is time division, every job get .01 seconds, and then it is the next one in lines' turn,

or pre-emptive multitasking... any "important" task gets to jump to thefront of the line, then other things take turns,

or co-operative multitasking which really is doing one thing at a time unless some process goes on break and gives up its turn, at which some other process can run for a while till it goes on break.

ADHD people set up multiple things to do, and then swithc between them at a finer grain than "normal" people, but that isn't "really" mulittasking like being able to DO multiple things at once, rather than just monitor to see what needs attention next, from a larger number of things to do, one at a time.

Normal people can schedule a process to run at a certain time, and then, lo and behold, when the time comes, the process runs!

THAT I can't do! (reliably)

You know, I just realized something, how many of the things we love about ourselves are viewed negatively by us too when we feel down. I remember hating my mind going a mile a minute. But now that I've come to terms with my ADD I see the problem solving ability it has. I remember wishing I could break myself out of hyperfocus because I missed a bus, an appointment etc. Now I see how to use it to my advantage, 40 pages of sections in a day... no problem!!