ADHD and Girls E-Book

Suzanne Byrd

• Herausgeber: Pufferfish Books
• Kategorie: Ratgeber
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Beschreibung

In this introductory guide to ADHD in girls, I cover the signs and symptoms of ADHD in girls; how ADHD is affected by adolescence and puberty; and also the way in which ADHD  differs in boys and girls. Lastly, I cover how to provide support to your child/student given the particular ways in which ADHD is experienced in girls. This introductory guide is aimed as a primer to the subject, and I have referenced research papers/other websites throughout this book. The key thing to remember is that ADHD is a real developmental disorder experienced by girls and women, and the way in which it is experienced differs from boys. It is important to validate the experiences of girls, as all to often their signs and symptoms are ignored for a variety of reasons. This book is part of the effort to redress the balance and provide the much needed support to girls suffering from ADHD.

Best Wishes,

Suzanne, England, UK.

Leseprobe

Suzanne Byrd

ADHD and Girls

An introductory guide: from symptoms to support.

First published by Mental Health Publishing 2020

Copyright © 2020 by Suzanne Byrd

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

First edition

Editing by Pinky Hashmi Cover art by Billy Joe

This book was professionally typeset on Reedsy Find out more at reedsy.com

Contents

Mental Health Publishing

Introduction

Signs and Symptoms in Girls

ADHD and Puberty

How is ADHD different in Girls

Supporting your child

Conclusion

An audiobook bonus for readers

A humble request

Related Books

Mental Health Publishing

Celebrating Diversity

We’re a small imprint based in England and at the heart of our mission is to celebrate the diversity of mental wellbeing all across the globe. Previous books in this series on ADHD Insights have covered ADHD and Women; Managing Relationships with ADHD and also Getting Organised with ADHD. You can find out more about these books as well as our organisation on MentalHealthPublishing.com

Follow us on the below social media sites:

Twitter:https://twitter.com/mentalhealthpu1

Pinterest:https://www.pinterest.co.uk/mentalhealthpublishing

Introduction

I have recently published a book called ADHD and women in which I talked about the salient points of ADHD when it comes to gender differences. this book has proven to be very popular and the reason for this is that women are under diagnosed when it comes to the neuro-developmental disorder of ADHD1.

In a similar vein I also wanted to write a book about ADHD and girls, so that the particular signs and symptoms which affect girls can be better understood. The under-diagnosis actually begins when someone is a child, and through a combination of low index of clinical suspicion, different symptoms and the development of coping strategies in girls that mask their ADHD better than boys, ADHD in girls continues to be under reported. What is particularly worrying is that the literature suggest, “If not properly diagnosed and treated, girls with ADHD experience the same negative consequences as boys, including poor academic performance and behavioural problems.”2.

According to the Centres for Disease Control (CDC), in 2016 12.9 percent of 5 to 17 year-old boys were diagnosed with ADHD, whilst only 5.6 percent of 5 to 17-year-old girls.3 To put it simply, boys are more than twice as likely as girls to obtain a diagnosis of ADHD.

This has actually brought about a mistaken belief amongst many that ADHD is a ‘boys’ problem’ that seldom affects girls, whereas in actual fact the issue is a complete lack of understanding of the coping strategies employed by girls one the one hand (in part due to the different socialisation they undergo in society), and a lack of appreciation of the internally focused signs and symptoms displayed by girls, on the other. In popular literature it is the hyperactivity symptom of ADHD that is giving the most air time and the inattentiveness dimension is not really focused on (which happens to be the type of ADHD most affecting girls.

A little side note must be mentioned, then, at this stage where i briefly discuss the three main subtypes of ADHD:

1) Mainly hyperactivity-related signs and symptoms