✢ Research: Attention Deficient Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) —•✧•— ✤ What It Is ✤ Attention Deficient Hyperactive Disorder or ADHD, is a mental disorder that is genetic. You cannot "gain" or "lose" ADHD, as you are either born with it or you are not. There are three types of ADHD: Hyperactive (the "typical" type, what most people associate with ADHD), Inattentive (Sometimes called ADD, though this isn't entirely accurate), and Mixed (The least common type. Shows a mixture of both.) In order to be diagnosed with ADHD, it must effect your daily life in a major way. We are bodily diagnosed with Mixed ADHD, and so that is the type that Mistkit will have, as it's the type I have the most personal experience with. —•✧•— ✢ Signs ✢ There are many signs of inattentive ADHD. However, every person with ADHD is different. It's also important to remember that ADHD is a type of neurodivergence, meaning that his brain will function differently. THIS IS NOT A BAD THING. Now, the specific signs Mistkit will show. He will likely have a harder time paying attention, due to getting distracted often. His brain might 'snag' on things rather then listen to whoever is talking, such as counting the leaves on a tree or how a squirrel runs. Because he has combined or mixed type, he will have signs of both. In addition to the signs I have already mentioned, he will fidget often and will have a lot of nervous energy that he will display. He will also "info dump" often, and his brain will move slower then his mouth. —•✧•— ✤ Cause ✤ ADHD is a disorder that is mainly genetic. This means someone in his biological family must have it. In my family, all of us bodily have it, including both my parents, and all three of my siblings. —•✧•— ✢ How This Will Affect My Kit ✢ I sort of already covered this in my signs, but I will do it more fully here. Because he has combined ADHD, he will have symptoms of both hyperactive and inattentive ADHD. He will fidget, likely with a small rock or some sort of other object. His verbal stims will include saying a word or sound over and over again (for us it's normally making 'octopus' sounds or saying EEEEEEE), clicking his tongue, and saying the 'th' sound. His physical stims will include tapping his paws, flicking his tail up and down, and chewing on objects. His brain will be more likely to wander and he will have trouble focusing, which is exacerbated by the fact that he dislikes sitting still. He will tend to hyperfocus on things that catch his attention, leading him to lose track of time. (Once, we even got so sucked into crochet that we woke up at 6 am and didn't come downstairs until 11). He will have a good memory for remembering songs and quotes, but will often forget what people are saying to him, leading him to look scatterbrained or like he's not trying to pay attention or doesn't care. He often talks over people and misses social cues because he's so excited to tell people about this cool bug he found. —•✧•— ✤ Stereotypes ✤ Some stereotypes of ADHD are that everyone who has ADHD is hyperactive. While many are, not every single person is. This can lead to people with inattentive or combined ADHD being overlooked as just needing to 'try harder' or 'pay attention more'. Another stereotype is that people with hyperactive ADHD act like they are constantly caffeinated. (Also, caffeine can also help calm ADHD symptoms for some people, which is wild.) Hyperactive ADHD means that they stim and dislike sitting still, NOT that they are constantly running around and breaking things. Occasionally, autism gets confused with ADHD. While they do share symptoms (fidgeting, dislike sitting still, stimming) they are not the same thing. —•✧•— ✢ How he will manage it ✢ Mistkit will find a fidget, likely a small rock or branch, to hold and mess with. This will help him pay attention, as doing something with your hands increases the ability to stay focused. He also might craft while listening to someone, as a different way to fidget. He will learn scripts (Eg: "___ is something I like to eat! What do /you/ like to eat?) to help him engage in conversation instead of just talking at someone. He might ask for instructions in steps so he doesn't get overwhelmed and forget what he's doing. He might want to stand up while listening to someone, so he can wiggle. He might even do this while he's eating. He also might have a stick to chew on so he doesn't bite his claws. —•✧•— ✤ Sources ✤ https://add.org/adhd-combined-type/ https://www.human.health/blog/adhd-combined-type https://www.cdc.gov/adhd/signs-symptoms/index.html https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-what-you-need-to-know https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/5197-attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd-in-adults Our own experiences Our family's triggers and coping mechanisms —•✧•— ✢ Roleplay Example ✢ Cnt in n+c
Mistkit walked out of the nursery, tail flicking. He tapped his paws, eyes flitting around camp. One... Two... Three... he found himself counting the sections of cracks on his stick. He rolled it between his paws, clicking his tongue and looking for someone to tell about his new friend, Buggy. He'd found the rock by a tree, and loved the contrast between the smooth rock and the rough moss. "Mmmmmmmmmm." He hummed, running his paws over the rock. "I liiiiiike you."
