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The Benefit of a Support Group for Girls with ADD By Dr. Kara Goobic
The diagnosis of AD/HD impacts girls in different ways. Some girls are highly verbal (i.e. “chatty”), and talk freely and easily about the diagnosis and how it impacts their daily life. More reserved girls may have more difficulty expressing their feelings about the diagnosis and refrain from talking about it to anyone except close friends. Other girls may not be willing to accept the diagnosis at all, instead, mislabeling themselves as “lazy”, and convincing themselves that if they just worked harder, everything would be fine.
While all girls differ in their response to the diagnosis, one common theme seems to continually appear when I work with adolescents in therapy – I find that many girls, at some level, blame themselves for the disorder, and experience some level of shame or embarrassment, especially during the middle school years. This negative response is a common reaction and needs to be understood and normalized. Receiving the diagnosis of AD/HD can be frightening to all teens, as many lack the necessary knowledge and experience to make sense of the diagnosis.
When a teenager receives the diagnosis, despite concerted and well-meaning efforts by adults who deliver the diagnosis, because of the significance of the label, some kids will simply tune out, or only hear parts of what is being explained to them. No one is to blame. It is simply the reality of how we process new information that can be frightening and confusing.
While frequently parents’ initial reason for their daughters entering therapy is to learn strategies to improve homework, make friends, and/or increase compliance with their requests, the more challenging task is to deal with their daughters’ perceptions of the disorder, any myths about AD/HD, and ways to normalize the process of understanding what AD/HD actually means to them.
The purpose of the support group for middle school girls with AD/HD is to provide them with an opportunity to meet other kids with AD/HD, become knowledgeable about the diagnosis, share their experiences with other teens, and come to accept themselves wherever they are in the process of understanding the disorder. For more information about this group, please contact me at karagoobic@chesapeakeadd.com or call me at 301-562-8448 ext 12.
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