A practical system for those with ADHD to take back their personal power and embrace their unique talents for success in the modern world
• Explains how those with ADHD grow up wounded by the negative labels and attitudes surrounding them and their "diagnosis"
• Shares simple and fast-acting techniques from neurolinguistic programming (NLP) to recalibrate painful memories into valuable learning experiences, re-pattern learned behaviors and negative habits, and discover personal motivation
• Reveals how the novelty-seeking behaviors of those with ADHD are valuable assets to society and should be embraced rather than suppressed
One of the first rules of child-rearing is "condemn the behavior, not the child." Yet this commonsense rule doesn't seem to apply in the case of attention deficit disorder, or ADHD, where the very name of the condition implies that those labeled with it are "disordered," "deficient," and incapable of paying attention. Those with ADHD grow up wounded, told by teachers, guidance counselors, even parents that they are dysfunctional and unable to succeed in the "normal" world. But, as ADHD expert Thom Hartmann explains, those with ADHD are capable of great success if they can shift the negative self-image created by others and learn to work with their unique strengths.
In this accessible guide for adults with ADHD and the parents and teachers of ADHD children, Hartmann offers a practical system of useful tools and strategies to heal the damage done to a person who grew up labeled as "dysfunctional" and help them cope with--and succeed at--daily life. He explains how the character traits of ADHD were once valuable assets in hunter-gatherer societies and that the later dominance of agricultural and industrial societies, where "farmer" and "worker" skillsets excel, left ADHD "hunters" as behavioral outcasts. Sharing simple and often fast-acting techniques from neurolinguistic programming (NLP), Hartmann explains how those with ADHD can take back their personal power, recalibrate painful memories into valuable learning experiences, shed fears and negative habits, and rebuild their self-image in a positive way.
By integrating the strategies in this book into daily life, those with ADHD can transform their way of responding to the world, discover personal motivation, and teach their children to do the same. As Hartmann reveals, it is not ADHD that needs to be healed but our attitudes toward those born with the "hunter" gift. Thom Hartmann is the host of the syndicated talkshow The Thom Hartmann Program and the TV show The Big Picture. He is the award-winning New York Times bestselling author of 24 books, including Adult ADHD, ADHD and the Edison Gene, and The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight. A former psychotherapist and founder of the Hunter School, a school for children with ADHD, he lives in Portland, Oregon. From Chapter 3. Life Is What We Think It Is
When we understand how much influence our beliefs and assumptions have on how we perceive and experience the world, we can then begin the process of changing those beliefs and assumptions which are not useful to us.
A good starting point for this redefinition process is the notion of self-identity--where a person fits into the overall larger scheme of social and cultural life.
For example, consider what would happen if you were to dump the label of diseased, disordered, or defective. How would your life be different if, instead, you started looking at your or your child's ADHD as "Hunter qualities," and searched out those particular "Hunter skills" which are the most useful? Using this model of reality, you would now have the power to identify the behaviors and strategies you have which you'd like to keep, those you'd like to get control of, and those you'd like to get rid of.
Identifying and Changing Limiting Beliefs
Limiting beliefs are those stories we tell ourselv
