Parenting adult ADHA

[Oluomo]

How do I help my 25year old son, that never got help with ADHA early? Now he is finding it difficult to get hired. He is very good with the computers, training, graphics and photography

But he lives in Nigeria,where no one recognizes ADHA,as a special need.

I need help to know how to help him build his self esteem.

I feel alone.

[anirush]

I know adults who have gotten on medication for focus. Is that a possibly for him?

[LL_Mom]

Dear Olomouo,

I have a 16-year old that was diagnosed with ADHD when he was 12. Like your son, mine is a bright, artistic, and talented person. He needs a a lot of structure and support. As he gets older he does not want to accept that help from me because of course our children want to become independent as they must.

The only thing that’s really helped my child is medication. Stimulant medications did not work for him. They made him irritable and he could not eat or sleep well. In about 5 days after taking stimulant medication, he and I and his doctor knew that my son needed to try non stimulant medication. He tried one, which he said didn’t work well, so he tried another one. He is now taking vyvanse and it seems to help him focus on his schoolwork. He did not have any side effects with that medication. Good luck to your son and you.

[Nats2005]

What aspects are making it difficult? Arriving at a job on time? Remembering tasks? Something else? There are a lot of coping techniques, apps, etc. that might help depending on the issue.

For example - and no idea if this is ADHD-related - I have friends who need multiple alarm clocks to get them out of bed in the morning, including sometimes one across the room that forces them to leave the bed.

I need to write to-do-lists for myself, put deadlines on calendars, use Outlook task lists, etc. or I will forget important dates and deadlines.