[Medicated]

It's me again, cluttering up the board...

I'm in PA school, which is like mini med school - shorter, but still very intense. I've been through some drama in the past couple months (it's a longish story), and a couple weeks ago, I was told I probably have ADD or "selective attention," as my psychiatrist prefers to call it.

I shouldn't be surprised. My classmates mocked me for my inattentiveness in lectures. I was incapable of studying - no matter what I tried, as soon as I opened the powerpoints or the book, my brain was elsewhere. I would concentrate, wrestle, and beg it to stick around, but no such luck. (Imagine a TV set to auto-surf... it lingers a few seconds on each channel and it just keeps switching...) I'd be lucky to get 5 solid minutes of studying in. After a while this scene became so frustrating that I almost stopped trying, although I would begin every new unit by saying "THIS time, I'll get my act together!" And yet, I always seemed to be looking at the materials for the first time the night before (or morning of) the exam.

It's a mystery to me, but somehow I made it through the first year.

Anyway, I just started ADD meds last week, so we're still tinkering with those. However, I know that meds alone won't cure me; I need a new approach to school and life too.

As I mentioned, I'm on a leave of absence now (until the end of the year), but because I feel like I didn't learn much in my first year (go figure), I'd like to use some of my spare time studying and catching up. However, I feel like my study habits are so dysfunctional (non-existent) that I don't know where to start. I'm hoping that there are some others on these boards who have also dealt with similar ADD-type challenges in relation to school and studying, who can help me get on my feet.

As a right-brained, visual thinker, how should I go about trying to study? What methods work best for those of you who have ADD? Are there any books or websites or resources that you would recommend? Sage words of wisdom?

Thanks!

[Moreta]

get a timer and try studying in 10 min intervals. you might want to try a sound machine so it will block out all the unnecessary noise. i had a really hard time studying too, but I volunteered as a tutor at my school and 75% of the time nobody came in. I would use that time to study, because I was sitting in an office and didn't have anything else to do. Maybe you could go somewhere to study. I could never study at home. Also I would get to school super early and go to the library find a quiet corner and then study then. Good Luck

[sunrise]

Originally Posted by Medicated

As a right-brained, visual thinker, how should I go about trying to study? What methods work best for those of you who have ADD? Are there any books or websites or resources that you would recommend? Sage words of wisdom?

When I really need to study intensively, I put myself into a room by myself with as few distractions as possible. Lately I have been using our basement. I go down there, all by myself, turn on the lamp and sit there and study. It seems much more effective for me than being upstairs, where I will go fix myself snacks, check my email, surf the internet, hear the phone ring, be where other people are, do chores such as wash the dishes, etc. I am just so easily distracted. I also study better late at night when the house is quiet. I'm a visual learner too, although not completely right-brained. Maybe because of this, I am also distracted readily by visual stimuli. I try to shut the drapes so I don't see stuff outside, especially moving stuff, like trees blowing in the wind and animals running around, or whatever. I also make sure it is as quiet as possible, within reason for the other people who live with me. I like to use a highlighter when I read to emphasize the important points. This really helps me attend to what I am reading if I have this extra task I have to do to the words from time to time, and it helps my brain always keep on task to identify what the important bits are of what I am reading. Similarly, if I am trying to remember the 3 main features of something and a description of each, it works better for me to actually write the 3 things out than just read them and focus on repeating themselves mentally to myself and hoping they will go into longer term memory. I also like to take notes in class, even if the teacher gives handouts with lecture notes on them. I just learn and pay attention better if I have to listen to what the professor is saying and translate that into my own words and write it in a notebook.

I think some of these things I do aren't necessarily to combat ADHD but to do what is most effective for my learning style. The ADHD stuff is not being able to stay on task, procrastinating, getting distracted, etc. Very frustrated. Sometimes I give myself rewards if I can read for 15 minutes straight. Then I let myself get up and do something else for a few minutes. Then back to task and try to go another 15 minutes. It's very hard. The procrastination is especially annoying to me. Sometimes I could just smack myself for how much time I waste.

Good luck with the PA. I know someone who would like to be a PA but is having a hard time getting started.