This has been bugging me for years.
i'm 33 but I feel like I like I don't know much.
I suppose I'm talking about the level of depth
or relevant info for a given subject or thing.
Like when I read this forum people here seem
knowledgeable even people I know
seem to know stuff.

Strangley enough if I watch a quiz programme
I can answer alot of the questions.
But how did the answers, some of them obscure,
get in my head. I don't know

Is it a belief thing, a memory thing, a relevenance thing?

Like when I was at school I got really really low grades
because I didn't know what to learn to pass.
I think for me there is so many variables so I suppose
I get overwhelmed by choices.

if I relate it to my recently Dx ADD, is it because
my brains always distracted I can't retain or use
information, properly?
who knows?:D

Over to you guys

doctor doctor give me the 'knews'. I know, I know..you don't have to shout ..just send money..

I can't let you live with this bug any longer. IMO U need antibiotics..

Finally someone on an ADD forum who seems to have an inferiority complex..(Ahh UK huh?).

[Is it a belief thing, a memory thing, a relevance thing?]

It's a living thing, its a terrible thing to lose..Have you tried liquid cheese..neither have i.

Have you thought about changing your mind? I have some spares..

No, that feeling of not knowing anything is not just you.
I have a college education, and yet sometimes I feel stupid.
You can't know everything, it's just not possible.
I can answer some trivia questions that you can't, and visa versa.
It's what we are interested in that we retain, not everything we hear.
I love music and cars.
I can rattle off useless info about groups from the 80's, including metal groups, pop groups, etc.
I can sit and watch the Barrett-Jackson auction each January (for the entire 40hours which is x amount per night, and 10-12 on the last few days), and tell you which cars will go high, which ones will go low.
If it's science (while I used to enjoy it, I just can't focus long enough), or
hollyweird, etc, I just don't care for it.
We each have our own fields that we are superior in, you just have to find yours.
Then work on "general" knowledge of things by reading the news each day, or whatever you get bombarded with each day from coworkers.
Nobody knows everything, but many try to convince us they do! :D

It could be a memory thing, as jacinta suggested. I have a pretty weak memory myself. I mean, I read a lot, and I know it's all stored in there somewhere, but my problem is with "pulling" information in a timely manner (or at all, in many instances). This makes it difficult to engage in conversations. I think the issue is with the Explicit memory... but I could be wrong (I don't remember! lol). Try to google it and see what you come up with.

Since memory-related problems can be serious, I do intend to get some MRI scans done sooner rather than later.

I find myself in the same boat and have found it is largely related to hyperfocus. When I am in that mode, I learn easily and actually remember. But often the things I hyperfocus on are useless endevours that helps to make me good at trivial persuit.

I also tend to only remember things when something is so unexpected or there is something interesting to latch on to like a phrase.

I was thinking about it,
when i have to learn something
there's like extra activity in my head.
so I can't be receptive or open to hold new info.
Stuff like me saying to myself "don't forget this, it's important!"
"what I am gonna eat later? or "I wonder what he/she is upto?"
basically anything apart from a quiet mind.


I also tend to only remember things when something is so unexpected or there is something interesting to latch on to like a phrase.I find I'm like this too!

I suppose another question is how to find the uninteresting/mundane interesting?:)

I do that wandering when I'm driving at work.
I have so many things going, that I shift back and forth between them.
From what I'm going to do later, to what I have to do now, etc.
But that's the mind of an ADDer.
Sure, we want to focus on what's important, but that doesn't always mean we will.

Driving is the worst, I often don't remember driving home. The only other time that is really bad is bed time, if I don't pass out from exhaustion my racing mind will keep me up for hours regardless how tired I am.

My mind races a lot at night.
So I wear myself out by walking 1-2 miles at 5:30-6:10pm.
Then I watch a few of my favorite shows.
By 9-10pm, I'm wearing down.
By 10:30pm, I'm out. LOL
Wear yourself down IMHO, or do some reading, and by the time you go to bed, you will sleep.
If you don't, make sure you keep a pad and pen by the bed.
Write down what you are thinking about (groceries, things to do at work, home, etc). You can look at it from time to time, if you keep worrying about it, and know those things are on a list to remind you. So you might as well sleep, because that list isn't going anywhere.
It's worked for me in the past.

My mind races a lot at night.
So I wear myself out by walking 1-2 miles at 5:30-6:10pm.
Then I watch a few of my favorite shows.
By 9-10pm, I'm wearing down.
By 10:30pm, I'm out. LOL
Wear yourself down IMHO, or do some reading, and by the time you go to bed, you will sleep. I watch TV to start with and by the time it is bedtime, If I immediately go to bed, I am out like a light. If my wife starts the slightest conversation then I am up for an hour or two as my mind wanders and drifts aimlessly.

Which comes to the second point:

If you don't, make sure you keep a pad and pen by the bed.
Write down what you are thinking about (groceries, things to do at work, home, etc). You can look at it from time to time, if you keep worrying about it, and know those things are on a list to remind you. So you might as well sleep, because that list isn't going anywhere.
It's worked for me in the past.I am not kept awake by worry, I can barely keep a worry in my head that long! I am kept awake by the noise of my head rambling through thoughts and building code. You see, I am gifted/cursed with the ability to do mental abstract modeling ie: I don't have to see it to build it, I create it in my head and unfortunately, it gets running it does not let go:) And it might be a book that I will never right, or code that I have been working on that I still see even when I am not looking at the screen and running or it could even be the remainder of a problem or something hobby related, my mind will build it and run the model and work through all the details, the flow the process and it does not always take the primary thread!!!

Well long enough, I am exhausted, bed time!!!!:faint:

Ooo, I know about Building Codes.
Well somewhat.
I'm the Fleet Manager at Code Enforcement for Shelby County TN.
If you are familiar with all those codes (ICC), your ADD doesn't get the best of you.
For a minute I thought you were bragging, by saying worrying doesn't keep you up.
At least other things do.
I would hate to think someone with ADD could get some sleep!
What's bad, is that my wife can be asleep within 1 minute of laying her head down.
Man I hate that!
Not for anything pertaining to "manly needs" but because she can do this!
I'd give anything without meds to be able to do that.