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Monthly NewsNote
May 2006
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DO YOU HAVE ADD FRIENDS? PART 2
In my April NewsNote I asked the question, “Do you have ADD friends?”
This month I’m providing a questionnaire to help answer that question.
The goal is to foster thought and discussion, which can hopefully lead to diagnosis
and treatment for those who need it.
The need to find undiagnosed ADD adults is important because treatment doesn’t
just benefit the patient; it benefits relationships, marriages, jobs and many
other aspects of everyday life. In fact, an article in the April 2006 Journal
of the American Psychiatric Association found that 4.4% of the adult population
has ADD. They also found that most of these adults were male, were generally
untreated, and had other serious problems including depression, anxiety and
bi-polar disorder.
The fact that these other serious conditions exist is another important point.
If we can identify untreated ADD adults, we can look for these other problems.
And perhaps, as the APA article suggests, with effective treatment even “reduce
the onset, severity, and persistence” of those disorders.
We need to do more to identify and treat this group. So let’s get to
the questionnaire.
ADULT ADD QUESTIONNAIRE
The scale is the Wender Utah Adult ADD Scale 5.0. If you’d like to print
it as a separate document, you can go to the questionnaire page.
The questions are scored from 1 to 5. The maximum possible score is 120. My
unofficial guide is: 0-50 probably not ADD, 50-75 maybe, 75 -100 probably and
above 100, it’s for sure. This questionnaire is provided as a guide only,
and should in no way be considered diagnostic.
The questions below refer to how you have behaved and felt DURING THE PAST
WEEK. Rate each question on a scale of 0 to five, using the following scale:
| 0 = not at all |
1 = just a little |
2 = somewhat |
| 3 = moderately |
4 = quite a lot |
5 = very much |
| 1. At home, work, or school, I find my mind wandering from
tasks that are uninteresting or difficult.
|
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 2. I find it difficult to read written material unless it is very
interesting or very easy.
|
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 3. Especially in groups, I find I hard to say focused on what
is being said in conversations. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 4. I have a quick temper…a short fuse. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 5. I am irritable, and get upset by minor annoyances. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 6. I say things without thinking, and later regret having
said them. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 7. I make quick decisions without thinking enough about
their possible bad results. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 8. My relationships with people are made difficult by my
tendency to talk first and think later. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 9. My moods have highs and lows. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 10. I have trouble planning in what order to do a series of
tasks or activities. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 11. I easily become upset. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 12. I seem to be “thin skinned” and many things upset me. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 13. I am almost always “on the go.” |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 14. I am more comfortable when moving than when sitting still. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 15. In conversations, I start to answer questions before the
questions have been fully asked. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 16. I usually work on more than one project at a time, and
fail to finish many off them. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 17. There is a lot of “static” or “chatter” in my head. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 18. Even when sitting quietly, I am usually moving my hands
or feet. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 19. In group activities it is hard for me to wait my turn. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 20. My mind gets so cluttered that it is hard for it to function. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 21. My thoughts bounce around as if my mind were a pinball
machine. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 22. My brain feels as if it were a television set with all the
channels going at once. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 23. I am unable to stop daydreaming. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
| 24. I am distressed by the disorganized way my brain works. |
0 1 2 3 4 5 |
Now add up the scores and rate them according to the guidelines I gave above.
As a therapist, when I look at the scores I focus on the questions with answers
rated 4 or 5, and use them for starting points during the interview. For example,
question 6 says, “I say things without thinking, and later regret having
said them.” If I see a 4 or 5 circled after the question, I can be specific
in asking about impulsivity, judgment, and interpersonal relationships.
I also like question 22 which says “My brain feels like it was a TV set
with all the channels going at once.” This can open up a good deal of
discussion on focus and distractibility.
Hopefully these two Notes will get you thinking, which will certainly improve
the numbers of ADD adults identified. And proper identification and treatment
can change a life.
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