Does ADHD make you retarded?Am i retarded?

I'm trying to get a 2.0 gpa, and i have a 1.8. right now i have 2 A's, one C+ one D, and 3 F's.I wont graduate till next year I was out of my meds for 3 months because my insurance was cancelled. Now im on adderol XR. I was told that, Colleges will never accept me, because of my hoorible grades. and i blamed my bad grades on ADHD, i didnt tell my teacher, because ONE, it's not an excuse, and TWO, it wont make a difference and teachers dont really care. People keep saying in news articles and opinion magazines and forums, that ADD freaks will never amount to anything, they are retarded, they will get low paying jobs, I hear it goes away in adulthood, but not all the time. when i hear there's a 65% chance you will have ADHD in adulthood, I was crying. If possible do you kno where i can get like a survival guide for ADHd kids, books or internet. Why is everyone calling me retarded? are they right?

Are there any Florida or National scholarships for people with ADHD?

No, it does not. I have ADHD and have a grade point average of 3.4, but it's going to go down. In fact, Albert Einstein might have had ADHD. http://techrepublic.com.com/5208-6230-0....

You're not retarded, it just means that you have trouble focusing on the task at hand.

Check out http://kidshealth.org/parent/emotions/be... for more info. Good luck! :-)

you are not retarded and people have no right to tell you that.
i am NOT adhd and i could barley sustain a 2.0 gpa so youarent doing that bad.
ADHD just means that your attentions shifts quickly and randomly making it near impossible for you to focus on your own. Your brains is just taking in too much at once.
I think it is shitty of your parents to have let the insurance lapse stop you from getting the neds you needed to be successful in school.
ADHD is not an excuse, but it is a valid reason for your less than perfect grades. Try talking to your teachers 1 on 1 and explaing the situation to them. let them know that you are trying to the best of your ability. Tell them about the 3 months without your meds and see if there is any extra credit you can do.

ADHD and ADD does not make you retarded. Your low grades will make it hard to get into a college but your local tech colllege will accept you. You were entitled to help in school with the american disablitlies act and you should have had your parents insist on this help for you. THe school is required to make modifications for you. You will have ADHD all your life. It is not something that goes away. You are not stupid and not retarded but just not getting all of the help that you should have been getting from your school system. Ask your parents to go in and talk to your counselor and get the help that you should have been getting all along with an IEP. You cannot blame your bad grades on your ADHD as help is available but only if you speak up and ask for it plus your parents making sure the school gives you the modifications you were entitled to. You will amount to a lot but only if you speak up and ask for the help that is available.

I'm an adult with ADHD and I work full time and make 60000+ a year, and I also go to University on an extension to finish up my BSc. Dont worry about it, cause if you worry you will fail.

First you are not retarded. ADHD effects you ability to pay attention so it is very common for people with ADHD to do poorly in school, especially unmedicated. I understand because I have ADD and my younger brother has ADHD. It's tough, especially when you don't want to tell people because you don't want them to think you are retarded.

The classes that you have to take over again, work really hard in them, If you find you are struggling go after school to the teacher and try to get help. Showing this effort will show potential schools that you are really trying hard. Also, when you write your college essays you can write about having ADHD and how you work hard. Talk about the time you have spent trying to better yourself.

If you don't get into a great college right off the bat you can always go to a community college for a year and get good grades there. Then you can take those grades and transfer to another school.

I did it and I know you can too. Just keep trying and don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it.

You're not retarded. I have adult ADD. I know what you're going through hun. Colleges will often have a place where you can indicate that you have ADHD. They will then make sure you get the help you need to succeed in college. Your high school should be doing something to help. If not, maybe it's time to talk to the board of education. But you are not retarded. That is something comepletely different. The people who call you that are close-minded arrogant pricks.

You are not retarded, not at all. My nephew has ADHD and he's had trouble with his grades in the past as well. ADHD makes it difficult for you to concentrate on things like that because your brain actually wants to work faster. Talk to your teachers and your doctor about it. They may be able to come up with some ways to help you focus on school work. Good luck!

Hi there,

No, ADD or ADHD does not mean you are "retarded". Attention Deficit does not mean that you can not pay attention; it means that you pay attention to everything! The problem is that because there is so much going on that is interesting, people often tend to choose those things that they find interesting, not necessarily choosing to do what they should be doing. In a school setting that means that chances are the fly buzzing outside the window is far more interesting than what the teacher is saying. Does it go away? No, most doctors seem to agree that ADD/ADHD is biochemical disorder and it's something that you are born with. Why they still do not know; sugar intake has been one theory but I do not know how much it has been studied.

Regarding future options the sky is the limit. People who have "conditions" (for lack of a better word) are not stupid; they will need to learn how to cope with their inherent difficulties. As to resources for help, you might want to contact a local Learning Disabled society. Not that LD and ADD are the same (they are very, very different!) but there is a high comorbidity and so often the two go hand in hand. They should be able to help provide information or put you on the right track.

I was diagnosed with adult ADHD 2 years ago...before then, i had spent 12 yrs trying to get through junior college...not because i'm not a smart person, or retarded...i'm not...i am very indecisive, my attention shifts and i get disinterested in things really quickly...i am also a huge procrastinator, without my meds...i hadn't filled out any pprwk for financial aid because i always missed the deadline lol..when i finally got on track, i filled out the pprwk only to be denied because i had taken over 99hrs at a jr college and they don't pay after that...i wrote a letter to the dean explaining to him my condition and he granted me aid...you can be accepted to college and people will listen...it is true that some people don't understand the condition and they think it's an excuse when you tell them about it, but there are some that do understand that ADHD is so serious that it ruins lives sometimes...i'm 30, very much ADD and doing well...you can make it

ADHD doesn't make you retarded. Don't let anybody tell you you can't do something. Don't let them be dream killers in your life. If you don't get into the university or college U want to get into, community college isn't bad. I'm in community college right now. It's inexpensive, you get your core classes out of the way (i.e: English, Math, Science, etc), and if you keep a C or higher your credits will transfer, so if you don't get into the college U want to get into right after high school U can transfer from a community college. (check the college website so U can see what classes will transfer and talk to the guidance counselor @ the community college if U need help)

ADD/ADHD does not cause retardation.

It does decrease the ability to learn and retain information.

I have a 12 yr old daughter ADHD and a 15 year old Son with ADD. Both had extreme difficulty with academics prior to getting stabilized on the medications. Daughter on Focalin and Son on Strattera,. from D student, my son is a B student, and daughter was a D student is on the Middle school honor with straight A's

Keep the information about your situation to yourself. take the medications as prescribed and do your homework. You have to work harder then most kids to learn but if my daughter can do it, any kid can.

There are many things that I would like to say here.....

ADHD doesn't make you retarded. ADHD makes you different, unique and special just like being tall, white, catholic, American and etc can make a person different, special, unique. ADHD just means that you think and do things differently than people who don't have ADHD.

You can look at your ADHD traits in a positive or negative light. Yes, ADHD people can be impulsive. If you buy stuff on impulse that can be bad. You could run up credit cards and get into debt that way. But...being impulsive also means that you're willing to take risks. Moving up the ladder in the work force requires some risk taking. So in that sense being impulsive/a risk taker could be good.....

Through reading books, talking with people who have ADHD, and working with therapists you can control ADHD traits to some degree. You can learn ways to deal with impulsivity and etc.

The right medication can help with your ADHD traits, but medication can't solve all you're problems. Medication can help you focus more, be impulsive less, and etc. Medication cant help you learn social skills or study skills or whatever. Medication also can't help you deal emotionally with all that comes with having ADHD. Therapy can help teach skills and deal emotionally but therapy can't always help a person focus long enough to teach those skills, so....sometimes it's necessary to be medicated and do therapy.

ADHD won't go away on it's own. (If it does then you didn't have ADHD in first place or you've learned to cope with it or you've learned to avoid situations where the negative ADHD traits are evident). ADHD people who don't get help do have a higher tendency (than ADHD people who do get help) to drop out of school, have trouble keeping a job, staying out of trouble with the law and etc.

ADHD people can be extremely successful. Off the top of my head I can't think of any well known ADHD person who was successful. I know Christ Knight (Peter Brady from the Brady Brunch) has ADHD. But...I can't think of anyone else right now. ADHD people can and do become successful teachers, doctors, entertainers, pro athletes, and etc.

Good four year colleges won't accept bad grades. But...you could go to a junior/community college for a couple years, get good grades and then transfer to a good four year college. Alot of people do that. Some people do it to save money. Other people do it because they have bad grades.

Suggestions........
1. Additude (or something like that) is a really good magazine for people who have ADHD/ADD. The magazine has helpful hints and also has stories about ADHD people who are successful.
2.) Books:
Learning Outside the Lines (by Mooney and Cole)
Gift of ADHD (by Honos)
Drive to Distraction (Hallowell)
Any books by Hallowell
Attention Deficit Disorder (Thom Hartman)
Any book by Thom Hartman
ADHD and the college kid (Quinn)
Any book by Quinn
Survival Guide for College Students with ADD...(Nadeau)
Any book by Nadeau
There are other good books, but.....
Avoid any books or websites that look at ADHD as a defect or something horrible.
3.) Talk to the doctor that is prescribing the Adderall. If s/he isn't helpful then seek out another doctor.

You are not retarded and anybody who says that is stupid! Even adults with ADHD can lead normal productive lives. You can get a job, get married and have kids just like anyone else. It's more difficult to do the day to day things but you can still have a normal life so don't give up. Behavioral therapy might help you. They teach you ways to deal with your ADHD and organize your life. Lots of luck.

That article is horrible! Having ADHD doesn't make you retarded...it just means that your brain chemistry doesn't work properly on it's own. To tell you the truth, I have read that most children and adults with ADHD are quite intelligent, they just can't seem to stick to task or stay organized without medication. Ignore that article, I can't believe someone would write that kind of trash especially since self-esteem is a big factor with ADHD. You are a person worthy of love and acceptance just like the rest of society. In order to become a failure to society you must first fail yourself and if you stick with your meds and have them adjusted when needed you will do great things. There are a lot of children and adults with ADHD that become successful....my husband is one of them.

It would help your teachers if they knew of your learning disabilities. Most schools have classes for the learning disabled with teachers to specialize in various aspects of mental disabilities. Yes, it takes you longer to learn or you need to learn differently than most people. I learn by taking notes, my son learns by hearing, my brother and my son both had problems reading. It is still hard for them, but one is an electrical engineer and the other learned on jobs and now owns his own business and is very successful. Talk to your school social worker, psychologist or trusted teacher. Do your parents know how you feel. I am sure there are books out there, but a professional can probably help you find the book you want.

PS Kids can be mean. and I don't know how you can change that except to know that since your read so much about ADHD you must be pretty smart. When you do graduate go to a community college and take 1 or 2 courses that interest you the most - or try something totally different, like acting or drawing. You might even work for a year, then go back to school. Good luck

you will amount to something, just go to a comunity college
and adhd dose not make you retarded, my daughter has it and her grades have improved greatly, they just call you that cause they dont understand

Heck no ADHD doesn't make a person retarded and
NO YOU ARE NOT RETARDED!
It is a fact that ADHD people are usually very creative and lots of famous people have ADHD, as well as many famous artists and inventors of the past had ADHD. Look it up on this website; adhdrelief.com/famous.html
And you can also get books on the subject of ADHD and how to live with it etc at any local library. Just ask the librarian to help you find it. Also your school library.

Good luck

YOU ARE NOT RETARDED!!! Don't let others, who are ignorant on the disorder, have you believe that for a MINUTE! I am bipolar and the first thing my good doctor said, before I had a minute to freak out, was that I was not crazy. You aren't either. You do need therapy and medication to help you balance out your behavior. You can do this and have it remain a good habit. I was what they called back then a 'slow learner'. They didn't know of ADHD. I had it and probably still do. I need medication as well. Never go off your medications as you will go thru some confusing times. You can get your grades up. Don't give up. I believe in you.