Ailments

 by: Sarah Jenkins

Attention Deficit Disorder wears many faces among children. While the hyperactive, rebellious boys are easy to spot, there are also several other types of children that suffer from ADD that go undiagnosed because of their less conspicuous behavior. Girls often fall into this category.

Some girls are referred to as the ?tomboy? type. Preferring more physical activities, they often exhibit some of the key characteristics of ADD, without the defiant behavior of their male counterparts. For this reason, parents and teachers will usually assume the child is not academically inclined and unorganized, but never consider ADD to be a possibility.

Another often undiagnosed group of ADD children are the ?chatty? girls. This type is a combination of inattentiveness and hyperactivity and is typically exhibited as being extremely social. More hyper-talkative than hyperactive, these girls have a very difficult time keeping quiet even after being disciplined for talking. They will also tend to jump around a lot when telling stories and organizing their thoughts.

?Daydreamers? are another category often overlooked as having ADD. These girls are usually very quiet and do not draw attention to themselves. However, their extreme inattentiveness is a standard ADD trait. They may exhibit depression and anxiety about school projects, but are not able to stay on task to complete assignments. These are probably one of the most difficult children to diagnose, as teachers and parents do not usually notice the behavior as being a problem and assume the child is simply lazy.

Interestingly enough, there are also a lot of ?gifted? girls with ADD. High IQ levels may make it easier to cope with inattention and impulsiveness, but as a child ages, their shortcomings often emerge. It must be remembered that ADD is not a learning disability, and sufferers do not inherently perform poorly in school. They may be able to mask their disorder well into middle or high school, where it them makes itself apparent as work becomes more difficult and assignments become more pressing.

Attention Deficit Disorder can cause many problems when it goes undiagnosed. It will often be assumed children are lazy, unintelligent, and unorganized, when in actuality, they suffer from this disorder. They will often grow up with poor self-esteem and think themselves quitters, or even worse, think they are stupid because of the problems they have. It is important to notice these traits and treat them accordingly to prevent any long term consequences of the disorder.