ADD?

[1lydia]

Hi to everyone,

I've been wondering what the problem is with me. As a child I was slow although I learnt fast, learnt to read when I was 5 y.o., but I responded slowly when talked to and generally was phlegmatic, usually lost in thought. Didn't have serious problems with school although I was rather lazy and ill-organized. As a teenager I could spend hours just sitting and dreaming. I would start doing something, e.g. making my bed or washing myself, and then I would sit or crouch and lose myself in thought until my parents came or banged at the bathroom door, telling me to hurry. Always had poor concentration, although at that time I was lucky to be able to read much, while now at about 40, with the internet and all distractions, I rarely manage to read 10 pages without interruption.

Never been hyperactive, rather dream-like, but when I first went to school I had trouble sitting quietly at the desk and instead kept standing up, eating, walking, but when I learnt it wasn't to be done, I stopped. Other states that could pass for hyperactivity (at later age) were when I got extremely anxious or extremely sad, then I couldn't sit down, I would walk from wall to wall, bang walls, leave home and go for a walk etc.

Now I work largely at home, using a computer, and I have major problems with concentration, I escape from my task to the internet, games or to the kitchen ;) I used to suspect I was addicted to the internet, but after doing a test it seems I'm not - I don't miss it when I'm out, I don't put the net reality over the "real" reality; it's simply that while working at the comp, I constatly have to make breaks and escape from the task, it's difficult for me to work even for 5 minutes without such short escape. I can open the same web pages over and over again although nothing has changed there since last time. Obviously I'm disappointed then that nothing has changed. Sometimes I promise myself to work without interruptions until finish a specific fragment, and in a moment I find myself in a kitchen or web-mining. I simply have forgotten the promise I'd made a minute earlier!

Recently I read about ADD, or ADHD without H, and began to wonder whether my condition could have something to do with it. So I ask the people who have experience with it - does it sound similar? If so (or even if not) , are there any techniques you'd recommend me to enhance my performance, to keep my attention on the task for longer periods and make the breaks rarer? Thanks in advance.

[1lydia]

Ah, and one more thing - I'm quite shy, so the solo work at the computer generally suit me fine, which is yet another reason why I want to overcome my concentration problems and go on working like this (if a bit faster).

[1lydia]

Thanks for all the advice Sandman, I'll check the links you gave. When i was a kid ADD or ADHD was generally rarely heard of where I lived (in the sense that it wasn't diagnosed, although it obviously existed), be it in girls or in boys (actually I suspect my father of having it too, but obviously when he was a kid it was completely unknown).

[Sandman2]

   Certainly you exhibit some of the symptoms of ADD.  You are also of an age that did not focus on girls in public schools who had ADD.  All the attention tended to go to those hyper little boys.  So its entirely possible that you were overlooked, specially if you had the intelligence to "get by".  
   A site that you might be interested in checking out is - http://jeffsaddmind.com/
Its for adults with ADHD, but a lot of it applies.  Take a while to go through it. Like its creator it tends to bounce around a lot.  But it covers a lot of topics that you might find interesting.
  To answer the second part of your question (only a doctor could really answer the first part). I suspect that the work you do on the computer is not overly stimulating to you, and you pretty immediately lose interest.  Taking short breaks is the gold standard.  However, its how and when you take the breaks that are important.  I recently saw an article on exercise and how it helps to increase concentration levels.   The link is -
       http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/709864
  I would suggest getting a jump rope and go at it.  You will have to take it easy till you build up the endurance and skill.  Another choice is the to get the WW11 gaming system.  There are some very good exercise choices.  I love the downhill skiing and ski jumping.  But be careful they can be addicting!  Hope some of this helps.