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ADHD Newsflash Ignoring Useless Information Aids Memory

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ADHD Newsflash Ignoring Useless Information Aids Memory

by Angie Dixon

It was one of those "Well, DUH" moments for me. I was researching ADHD and came across the headline, "Ignoring Useless Information Aids Memory."

Well, of course it does. But if you have ADHD, especially if youre a child with ADHD, determining useless information in the first place can be a major challenge.

Whats useless? If youre 10 and have ADHD, grammar is useless. But ignore it and your memory will really improve. Youll have a clear memory of flunking fifth grade English because of ADHD.

Or maybe the author meant frivolous information--things like the names and life histories of all of Harry Potters freinds. Those, indeed, could safely be ignored most of the time, even by an ADHD kid.

So here I am, a ten year old ADHD fifth grader who hates grammar and loves Harry Potter. My attention deficit both makes it hard to focus on anything for long and makes it hard to shut things out. Too many stimuli.

What do I do? If my ADHD makes it hard to study in class and remember my grammar, I take refuge in Harry Potter and enjoy his exploits and make friends with Ron and Hermione. I let my ADHD help me hyperfocus on what I do enjoy and get something out of.

So while "Ignoring Useless information Aids Memory" may be a great breakthrough, its not for those of us who have ADHD. We already know that ignoring much of what our ADHD brains pick up would help us.

We dont avoid this ignoring because we dont want to do it. Everyone with ADHD--be we politicians, teachers, or just ADHD kids--want to focus and cant.

I didnt read the article, because I was hyperfocused on something else. Im just riffing on the headline. But it seems to me that knowing the problem is a long way from solving it, and telling ADHD people to "ignore" anything is not as helpful as it might seem at first glance.