According to the Centre for ADHD Awareness Canada: ADHD affects 4-6% of adults and 5-7% of children, or approximately 1.8 million Canadians.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder. Symptoms appear in childhood and may continue into adulthood. People with ADHD find it difficult to focus attention, regulate impulses, and control the urge to be physically active. Even emotions can be hyper- reactive. ADHD affects about one in twenty children. Over half are still impaired by symptoms as adults. Adults with ADHD are easily distracted, struggling with mental restlessness, disorganization and procrastination. They have difficulty beginning and completing tasks, managing time and controlling behaviours and impulses. Some find it hard to manage their emotions, and may be labelled as “thin- skinned”, “hypersensitive” or “short-fused”. People with ADHD often channel their physical restlessness into work or sports activities. Some self-medicate with stimulants (e.g. caffeine, nicotine) or illicit drugs (e.g. cannabis, cocaine, speed). ADHD symptoms can profoundly affect personal and work lives, leading to a chronic sense of under-achievement and low self-esteem.

SOURCE: Canadian ADHD Resource Alliance

This is a difficult question to answer as it varies for each person based on their personal symptoms and medical history. ADHD symptoms can overlap with other mental health conditions.

The real value of an assessment is having a skilled provider taking the time to understand what the root cause of your symptoms are, what other diagnoses might be contributing, and teasing out which condition is having the most effect on your function.

Untreated anxiety can look like ADHD for example, but untreated ADHD can also look like anxiety. A lot of thought and collaboration goes into deciding the best treatment options with you, which may be treating ADHD with medications, or may be recommending treatment for other mental health conditions that can be clouding the picture. This process is designed to get you the best care and treatment to have the greatest impact on your function and as a result, the greatest positive impact on your life.

Yes! Our 8-week virtual course focuses on developing skills that are helpful for all types of brains. You will learn skills to optimize your working memory, time management, emotional regulation, and organization, to name a few. Who wouldn’t benefit from this? If a group doesn’t feel like a good fit for you, or you prefer 1:1 sessions, our OT will create a custom plan to work on areas that are impacting your life, and provide support to help you Level Up in your life.

Executive functions can be thought of as the control center of the brain. Some people may say you need executive functions in order to “adult.” Skills such as managing time, managing money, controlling emotions, using working memory, impulse control and problem solving all involve our executive functioning systems.

We are very committed to providing you with all the options and then you provide the decisions. In addition to offering options for medications we have virtual courses and 1:1 offerings to help you Level Up. We also have an evolving treasure trove of resources with recommendations for books, podcasts, blogs etc. We would also encourage you to explore the “why” of not wanting to take medication; sometimes we’ve received inaccurate information, or have heard myths that have a seed of truth, but aren’t the whole picture. We welcome an open discussion and are happy to answer your questions about medications. We want to help you find a path that fits your needs.