How do we know it is ADHD?

There are some pointers that lead medical and educational professionals to suspect a student has ADHD:

Inattention

• Difficulty following instructions or completing tasks
• Short attention span and difficulty ‘sticking to’ an activity
• Difficulty organising tasks and activities
• Easily distracted and forgetful
• Often doesn’t listen when spoken to

Hyperactivity

• Fidgets, is restless and can’t sit still in class
• Can’t stop talking, noisy
• Runs about when it is inappropriate

Impulsiveness

• Interrupts others
• Blurts out answers without waiting for the question to be finished
• Difficulty in waiting or taking turns

In adolescence and adulthood, both those diagnosed and undiagnosed with ADHD in childhood are often associated with continuing emotional and social problems, including substance misuse, unemployment and involvement in crime.

Is it definitely ADHD?

Unfortunately, as there is no one definitive clinical test for ADHD, diagnosis can be difficult. Many students have problems with self-control periodically and it is difficult to know when this is ‘ordinary’ development or when it could be as a result of ADHD.

There may be other causes of disruptive behaviour, such as dyslexia, language or hearing difficulties, or conduct disorder, which need to be considered (although these problems may also affect students with ADHD). For these reasons, a diagnosis of ADHD should only be made by a child and adolescent psychiatrist, paediatrician or other appropriately qualified healthcare professional (HCP) with training and expertise in the diagnosis of ADHD and other mental health conditions.