Living with ADHD
My name is Dr. Juls Gilliam. I have adhd and dysgraphia. I am a professor at a community college and my adhd is a gift. I am able to see the student’s faces, their monitors, the main screen, and know the content that I am going to convey all at the same time.
I see students struggle with ADHD. But I know from my own experience, you can be successful. It is my hope just by me being in the classroom teaching my students, they know they too can be successful.
I didn’t say it was easy but it is just like any obstacle; there is a gift in it. We view so many articles of the weaknesses of ADHD. We view the downfalls and barriers that it causes. But having a brain that thinks out of the box is truly a gift.
If you have ADHD, you are able to hyperfocus on something that you are interested in. You can view the world differently. You can see solutions that others can not see. You can go after solutions that others would shy away from.
Your problem solving ability is off the charts. Your passion leads to major break throughs in the world. You leap into action when called upon without hesitation. You know how to get up when the world brings you down.
You can juggle multiple things. For example, there are a lot of musicians with ADHD. You can take in a lot of information that most people cannot store. You are needed in this world!!!
I hear so many stories from parents who are frightened when they hear they are diagnosed with ADHD. Because most of literature out there is from people who are not living with ADHD.
So if you are a parent, a friend, a lover, a caregiver, or a family member, I am living proof you can be successful. You can learn to utilize your superpowers for the good of the world. You can be the difference maker in this world.
Stop listening to the negatives of being impulsive, not having discernment, or being able to regulate your emotions. Listen to the messaging that you can tap into your brain, and view the world from a unique perspective.
Being in the classroom as a student was extremely painful to me. I wasn’t celebrated. I had to conform to objectivist learning model. Which is when the instructor is the expert in disseminating knowledge and control the learning process. The old way of testing was through the old method of multiple guess or choice. Trying to trip you up so you don’t succeed.
That way of testing wasn’t geared for those who learned by formulating an idea or thinking about a question from a different perspective. As a professor, I create authentic assessments that students will experience by developing real-world scenarios in the application of the content.
