Driven to Distraction: Still the Gold Standard for ADHD Books
2009 will mark the fifteenth anniversary of the publication of Driven to Distraction, and with it the birth of contemporary ADHD literature . We have learned an enormous amount about ADHD in the years since it appeared, and thankfully it’s now got plenty of excellent company on bookstore and library shelves. Personal stories, self-coaching guides, and explorations of ADHD brain science, as well as the highly readable followup to Driven, Delivered From Distaction, now offer a wide range of perspctives on this maddeningly, brilliantly paradoxical kind of brain wiring. But as with so many things, the first is often the best.
Part of what gives Driven to Distraction its power is the extensive use of real-life stories –the daily experiences of people with ADHD, and the challenges we face. And the book gives such a varied and detailed look in to the minds and lives of ADHDers, that at some point every person with ADHD reading it will inevitably at some point look up from the page and say to himself, “I’ve felt exactly like that!”
Another wonderful thing about Ratey and Hallowell’s book is how forcefully they shattered the myth that ADHD is nothing more than the result of parents failing to discipline their rambunctious redheads. They revealed to the world that it is a complex, paradoxical, and very real neurological condition. And they made it clear that ADHD is not a childhood disorder — it often persists through adolescence and right through adulthood. Driven to Distraction lifted the veil on the tortured lives of struggling parents with ADHD kids, and again and again showed us the puzzlement — and relief — of adults who finally learn about their own ADHD until relatively late in life.
Despite all that’s been written about ADHD in the last 15 years, the fundamental prescription for treatment remains exactly the same:
- Get an accurate diagnosis by a trained psychiatrist or psychotherapist with expertise in ADHD;
- Educate yourself about ADHD. The more you know about the condition, the more you will understand about how it affects your life. Greater understanding will make it easier to explain your condition to others, as well.
- Get structured. Systems and organizational habits do not come as naturally to ADHDers as they do to others. The chaos that results can be very destructive. Structure and ritual provides stability and a sense of control.
- Seek coaching and/or psychotherapy. Coaches are a powerful ally, helping you to maximize your strengths, minimise your weaknesses, and keep you focused on the goals and challenges that you define. Therapists can play an important role if other conditions co-exist with ADHD.
- Consider Medication. There is a wide and growing range of safe, effective medications that can help people with ADHD to reduce their impulsiveness, remain focused, and reduce pressure and anxiety. For some people, medication can make a tremendous difference.
As an ADHD coach, I like to keep up with as much literature about the subject as I can. But when I’m struggling for a simple explanation, or hunting for the perfect description of a classic ADHD behaviour, I find myself returning again and again to Driven to Distraction. IF ever there’s an ADHD Hall of Fame, Drs. Ratey and Hallowell should be the first inductees.
