I'm loathe to diagnose other people with add, it smacks of 'I have it, now i see it in everyone,' but with my parents i think i'm pretty spot on. In my humble opinion they're both SO innattentive add you could stick thier little faces on the med bottles. And since i've heard of quite a few people having both parents with ADD, i'm wondering if this is just statistics, or is there something about ADD that unknowingly draws people to each other? Do many of you guys have two add parents, diagnosed or otherwise?
I've never told my parents my thoughts. They wouldn't believe me and they're too dysfunctional to do anything about it. My mother read a couple of books about it when she found out i was diagnosed (She was so happy! At last! Something to blame for our daughter, um, being like she is! So everytime i get upset or angry or chase her around with the stable fork i get 'Is this the add, dear?') In hindsight i thought it might have trigged something in her, but she has never mentioned it.
My dad's an alchoholic and has all the classic signs of innattentive. He's also a lousy human being in general and not the sharpest tool in the tool box, probably due to the drinking, so i would never bring it up with him, we don't speak.
Anyway, would love to hear your thoughts or stories, if you feel so inclined!

When we realised that DW was an ADD'er, it become apparent to me where her ADD traits came from in her family tree. Her dad sounds just like yours.

My mother definitely is but is not diagnosed. I took the Healing ADD book and she answered the questions and scored almost as high as me. She is very smart about really random things that most people dont know the answers to but can not ever get jokes. Now that she knows a lot of the traits she agrees but has not said anything about getting treated. She sunk into depression at the same age I did which I found odd. I know its hereditary but I didnt realise the age of onset may be. My father has some sort of LD I think but dont know what. He is a retired aeronautical Engineer which I dont think he could have done with anything severe. Besides being mean, controlling and abusive (he is a narcissist). There is something else. He has no common sense and I also believe he may have social anxiety there is just something that I cant really put my finger on. We have always just tried to figure him out. I need to maybe study up on Asperger's as he does not seem to make the appropriate responses to how he reads someone. In Dr. Amens book I read that if one parent has it you have a 50% chance and if both high 90's.I also read in an article by Dr. Bartley, that there is a better chance of someone with ADD getting with another person with a LD. I dont know how true this is but I can see where it would be believable.

Wow, the similarites are spooky. My mum knows a lot about history and other electic subjects, but try and have an everyday conversation or share a joke and she doesn't connect. My Dad also sounds a lot like yours.

Actually, come to think of it, before my Mum developed CFS she was the sort of person who could never sit down, sit still. She'd always leap and do some cleaning or something. So maybe she was hyper as well!??? (Lightbulb moment.)

My parents are in thier 50's, so you have to wonder how many people in this age group are going through their lives self medicating with booze or drugs, because it just wasn't diagnosed or recognised 'back then.' And if innattentive they wouldn't have even been noticed, they were probably the quiet kids who made no fuss and treated like underachievers. Thier self esteem must been just mangled.

Is Dr Amen the guy who wrote the book about 6(?) different types of ADD? He works with brain scans? I found that quite interesting.

You said something about your father being an alcoholic.

Alcohol can always provoke inattentiveness.

Alcohol doesnt just cause sadness/depression. It can also cause an unsettled mind and a lack of motivation.

A lot of alcoholics show symptoms of ADD.

And as for your mother.... then it is quite possible that she may have ADD. Its very common to be past though biologically

Wow, the similarites are spooky. My mum knows a lot about history and other electic subjects, but try and have an everyday conversation or share a joke and she doesn't connect. My Dad also sounds a lot like yours.

Actually, come to think of it, before my Mum developed CFS she was the sort of person who could never sit down, sit still. She'd always leap and do some cleaning or something. So maybe she was hyper as well!??? (Lightbulb moment.)

My parents are in thier 50's, so you have to wonder how many people in this age group are going through their lives self medicating with booze or drugs, because it just wasn't diagnosed or recognised 'back then.' And if innattentive they wouldn't have even been noticed, they were probably the quiet kids who made no fuss and treated like underachievers. Thier self esteem must been just mangled.

Is Dr Amen the guy who wrote the book about 6(?) different types of ADD? He works with brain scans? I found that quite interesting.

That is the doc.

I noticed that when I was evaluated by my pdoc that he had test with almost all the same questions. When I asked what he thought of Dr. Amens work he replied, "that is was just him doing this but that everyone was starting to take notice".

I really do not understand why his work is not accepted everywhere and studied more. Maybe someone will see this and explain.

Personally I was blown away with the pics of scans that show more inactivity when adders concentrate and show a difference when these same people are medicated. I dont see where there would be any controversy.

It also helped me to understand that it is a real disorder and not something I can just try really hard and fix it.

then again, a lot of people with ADHD self medicate. it's the whole chicken vs egg - alcoholic cause add symptoms or the person is trying hard to self reg. and drinks or does drugs.

I don't believe my mother has any signs of adhd, other than being a compulsive list maker (a trait that nearly every woman in our family has, lol.)

I haven't had a real relationship with my father since I was a teenager, but there are definitely signs there. He lacked the motivation to reach his many goals, but was able to be a workaholic in a fairly low skill occupation. Any time that wasn't about work was about needing to relax. Not that the average hard worker doesn't need a good deal of down time, but I remember it as being much like how I operate; The minute focus and attention isn't *needed, it's shut off completely.
Socially speaking, I have a lot of the traits he had, but I like to think I observed and absorbed enough to not be quite as obvious.

I inherited migranes, bad knees leading to early arthritis, and a bad nose from him. Why not this, too, lol?

I love the title of this thread! :D

Everyone in my family has been diagnosed with ADHD except mom, but I have long suspected she has it, too. My father, sister and brother are all combined type but I am PI. I think mom is PI; I'm practically a carbon copy of her.

That reminds me, better go call her - I forgot today was Mother's Day! :o

Well, since it is 85% genetic, it is likely!!!!

Both my parents have passed on, but I believe that both of them had ADHD, my mother was describe by my friend as eccentric, she made her living as a midle school teacher,.

My Dad was a lot like me in many ways. He was easily distracted, but hyperfocused big time to the point of blocking all of us out.

I never found out about my ADHD till way after my Dad died. I strongly suspect that my twin sisters, identical, 2 years younger than me, both have ADHD. My neice is diagnosed with it. Genetics sure do play a role in things.