iSpecialist

Dr. Walt Larimore

Walt Larimore, M.D. has been called “one of America’s best known family physicians.” He is a nationally-known and nationally sought after speaker and health expert. read bio

Is ADHD Different in Boys and Girls?

It’s important to realize that while ADHD is usually associated with hyperactivity, there is a form that is not associated with hyperactivity. This form is especially common in girls. Girls with predominately inattentive type ADHD will usually be seen as dreamy or detached. Unfortunately, some will be called “airheads” or “space cadets.” Such a young lady can look at a book for 30 minutes without reading a word.

One parent told me that their daughter would lose every article of clothing that wasn’t hooked to her body. Nearly every day, this child’s teacher would have to send her back to the playground to retrieve her sweater or coat, only to have her return 15 minutes later without it, having forgotten what she went after.

A girl with that kind of distractibility would find it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to get home night after night with books and assignments written down, and then to complete the work and turn it in the next morning.

Dr. James Dobson has written, “The ‘far away’ child worries me more than the one who is excessively active. She may be seen as a good little girl, who just isn’t very bright, while the troublemaker is more likely to get the help he needs. He’s too irritating to ignore.”

Taken with permission and adapted from the book, Why ADHD Doesn’t Mean Disaster by Dennis Swanberg, Diane Passno and Walter L. Larimore, M.D. A Focus on the Family book published by Tyndale House Publishers.

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