A Splintered Mind

A weekend consumed by a certain wizard wasn't part of my adult plans, but I'm sure glad things happened that way. Sometimes we need to be flexible, positive minded, and patient to be rewarded with new and delightful experiences. Those who follow my column know that my life is not my own during the summer months. As a stay-at-home dad, I've got four kids to manage. As a stay-at-home dad with AD/HD and Chronic Motor Tic Disorder, I sometimes wonder if I have four kids too many. I'm not SuperDad, that's for sure. The dull household chores are pure torture for me, the laundry is always behind, I don't enjoy cooking, and my ticking often makes us late to the various lessons and performances we need to be at. Frankly, I'd rather hide inside my iBook. Is it any wonder I stay up late to finally get into my personal projects? I am a conflicted man. I want to wear the Daddy hat, but the career hat just looks so much cooler. I've tried wearing both hats, but that d...

Thought you were just depressed? Well, maybe you are double depressed instead. Next will be double couches. Double sessions. Double delicious meds to chew. A double pleasure's waiting for you. According to the article : "[Double Depression] refers to chronic, less-severe depression (dysthymia) that worsens into major depression." Which makes you wonder why they don't just call it Dysthymia, except that, perhaps, nobody knows how to pronounce it. "Double Depression" is a terrible name for something that is seemingly less-severe than good old fashioned Depression. It seems, however, that this particular flavor of Depression has a sprig of hopelessness in the brew. Unlike major Depression, of course, which is apparently bubbling with hope by comparison. I'm skeptical as well that "Double Depression" is a useful moniker. It says nothing of hopelessness, which is its defining characteristic, and it sounds like people have a double helping of Depress...

Supposedly, Adults with AD/HD have low self-esteem due to a life of dumb mistakes, social blunders, and a lack of focus. Not that my life has been like that (ahem), but how can one reverse the damages? One of the many ways that AD/HD affects me is low self-esteem. I also deal with hypersensitivity, distractibility, and my personal favorite, depression after success. Of course, I'm chock full of other AD/HD goodness (scoring 25 out of the 20 on the Hallowell and Ratey's Diagnostic Criteria for ADD in Adults ), but these few choice nuggets will be all I focus on today. After all, I have a limited attention span. As an adult with AD/HD these attributes become most troublesome when I try to draw in public. For example, drawing in class was torture . I simply couldn't tune out all the hustle and bustle around me. Likewise, drawing en plein air was equally difficult. In the field I also had information overload to juggle along with all the other events plying for my at...

As a way of keeping low self-esteem and depression at bay, I decided to do some landscape painting and drawing. Don't be afraid to pick up new things to keep your mind fresh and your perspective positive. Wordless Wensday Links to other Wordless Wensdays! tags technorati : Wordless Wednesday #2 Like reading The Splintered Mind ? Share articles with your friends, link from your blog, or subscribe !