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The Ups and Downs of Being a Writer with ADHD
How I’m learning to write with my ADHD Brain.
I remember sitting in my dorm room as I tried to finish my story. I was in my senior year in college and I was in the second semester of a journalism class at Michigan State that gives J-students real-world experience as reporters for newspapers and radio stations throughout Michigan.
It was always difficult, worked hard to make sure the story was correct. I had my notes out in front of me as typed, flipping the notepad back and forth to check over and over. It was so hard to remember what was said. Did I remember that quote correctly?
I loved writing a story and still do. But as I look back to that memory of me sitting in my dorm room on a spring day in 1991, I can remember how much of a chore it was to write. It took forever to write that story. Frankly, any story took forever to write.
Writing for me has always been a chore. But I wanted to write. Why couldn’t I write a simple news story? When I wrote, it was always hard to focus on the task at hand. When I was focused on the story, I had a hard time remembering what my interviewee said I was so scared I was going to get what they said was wrong. Never had I loved something that was also complete torture.
This is the most important thing to remember here. Writing isn’t something I hate, it’s something I love. I preach weekly and more often than not, I write out my sermon because I love it. But loving something doesn’t mean it comes with no cost and my love of writing comes with a huge price tag.
The reason it’s been such a chore to write is due to my Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD. ADHD can affect reading and writing. I don’t know if everyone with ADHD has this problem, but it seems like it is common. When we put pen to paper or type the keys on our computer, we don’t think of the various processes that need to take place and there are many:
“The technique involved in expressing oneself through writing is actually a quite complex, multi-step process. It requires the integration of several skills, including planning, analyzing, and organizing thoughts; prioritizing and sequencing information; remembering and implementing correct spelling, punctuation…
