ADD/ADHD problems and tech writing/editing careers?

[Geoff Hart <ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca>]

Anne Davis wondered: <<I am struggling with Attention Deficit Disorder 
(ADD) and, looking back on my career, it makes sense that I was 
diagnosed with this problem.  Even though I consider myself a decent 
reader and writer... I continue to have a lot of trouble concentrating 
and focusing on large or complex documents, following instructions 
(written and oral), following through on writing tasks, getting jumbled 
up when handling forms and paperwork, ineffective time management, 
trouble being on time, and generally feeling/being lost in space most 
of the time.>>

Sounds an awful lot like my son, and I can't tell you how reassuring it 
is to hear that you made it through; it's my biggest ongoing stress 
trying to figure out how to help the poor kid cope.

You didn't mention whether you had received professional counselling 
and treatment by a qualified psychiatrist. Ritalin has gotten a bad rap 
because it's overprescribed by doctors who don't understand ADD, and 
who increase the doses until kids are zombified rather than helped. I 
can tell you from firsthand experience that if you need it, you need it 
bad, and that it works. Matt picked up 2 years of reading skills in the 
space of a couple months once we put him on Ritalin, and began 
developing normal social skills. I can also assure you that he wasn't 
even remotely sedated by the pills. On the contrary, there were times 
when we guiltily wished that he had been so we could have a break.

<<In any case, my question is, where to go from here.>>

First step is to consult with an expert; your GP (family doctor) is 
almost certainly _not_ an expert, but can probably refer you to one. 
Many adults are belatedly diagnosed (including my cousin's wife) and 
find someone to work with them on finding a combination of 
pharmaceuticals and training/counselling.

With a firm diagnosis and treatment plan in hand, you can now talk to 
your boss: "I have a medical disability, and here's how I'm coping with 
it. I may need you to be understanding with me, and work with me to 
find solutions that work for both of us." For example, many kids with 
dyslexia are granted special priveleges when taking tests: extra time, 
a private and quiet workspace with no distractions, makeup tests, etc. 
This is very difficult to do in the modern workplace, but perhaps you 
can come up with at least something that will help (see below).

One thing that can works well, or at least better than the old way, is 
"active listening": When you have a conversation with someone or 
receive instructions, always paraphrase what they told you and ask them 
to confirm that you understood. (This works for all of us, but can be 
crucial for people with perceptual difficulties.) Try asking your 
colleagues to adopt this approach with you. "Anne, I'd like you to 
repeat what I just said. Yes, that's right. No, you missed a point. 
Let's try again." It can be awfully humiliating to have to do this (you 
feel stupid), but it really can work.

<<Do I continue to try to make my ADD brain fit a highly-focused, 
attention-to-detail technical writing career, even though it's been a 
struggle for 10 years with no promotions, 5 layoffs (some were due to 
the economy, but not all), and numerous difficulties on the job with 
frustrated coworkers and bosses, not to mention the work itself--or 
search for a completely different career path.>>

If you're enjoying the work, stick with it and see whether your 
medication helps. ADD doesn't inevitably prevent you from doing 
excruciatingly detailed work; a good friend is a top-notch computer 
programmer despite his ADD, and he's learned to manage it very well 
indeed. Another friend with ADD is a top-notch medical writer and 
editor.

<<It gets to be frustrating and even demoralizing when bosses tell you 
"I know you can do this," only to find that "you missed so much" and 
"what's wrong with you, why aren't you getting it?">>

What these people fail to understand is that this kind of advice or 
encouragement is akin to telling a diabetic "if you try real hard, you 
don't need insulin". They don't understand that ADD is a biochemical 
problem that needs (at least in part) a biochemical solution. It's not 
simply "bad attitude" on your part.

I suspect that I have a light case of ADD, and that Matt got a more 
full-blown version from me; one reason I spend so much time in e-mail 
is that I can't concentrate for long stretches on any one thing, and 
need frequent breaks to release all that pent up mental energy. Who'd 
have figured that I'd be able to work professionally as an editor?

--Geoff Hart   ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca
(try geoffhart -at- mac -dot- com if you don't get a reply)


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

SEE THE ALL NEW ROBOHELP X5 IN ACTION: RoboHelp X5 is a giant leap forward
in Help authoring technology, featuring Word 2003 support, Content 
Management, Multi-Author support, PDF and XML support and much more! http://www.macromedia.com/go/techwrldemo 

COMPONENTONE DOC-TO-HELP 7 PROFESSIONAL:  From a single set of Word documents, create online Help and printed documentation.  New version offers yearly subscription service, Natural Search, Modular TOC Utility, Image Map Editor, Theme Designer, Context String Editor, plus more. http://www.componentone.com/doctohelp .

---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archiver -at- techwr-l -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot-  Visit
http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.