Tree Number Four
For much of my life, my alarm system for unwise conduct in my relationships, jobs, or being anywhere doing anything, especially in stores shopping, could be overridden by the smallest impulse. But after many years of therapy and medication I’ve learned that this behavior is symptomatic of my ADHD and Bipolar II disorder. But I blame Christmas Trees.
A Thanksgiving Time Warp
Everybody’s happy, and I’m trying to be as well. But even though I’m in the kitchen cooking, which is what I want and love to do on Thanksgiving, I’m not. My happiness is caught up in fried brain wiring and escalating confusion. I’m holding a full hot pot and there are laughing obstructions between me, and the sink and I yell. “Kids! Get away from the goddamn pies! I told you already!”
Never Let Go
Many of us with ADHD agonize about how our frequently erratic behavior negatively affects our partner, or others we love. When my wife went through a long emotionally challenging time, I worried. Does my ADHD make me of no help when I'm needed?
After the Storm
Rolling the empty wheelbarrow back toward the gate, I thought about the difference between Dad’s brain troubles and mine. His focus shifted arbitrarily, and he’d lose track of time and place. The problem with my ADHD, I thought, wasn’t arbitrary shifting focus. It was the lure of insight.
