Out of the Fog: Treatment Options and Strategies for Adult Attention Deficit Disorder - Softcover

Murphy, Kevin; Levert, Suzanne

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0786880872 ISBN 13: 9780786880874

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 1995

Synopsis

Once known as "hyperactivity" and thought to occur only in children, Attention Deficit Disorder is now proving to be a serious neurobiological condition, which affects millions of adults across the country. In Out of the Fog, Dr. Kevin R. Murphy, Chief of the Adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, and medical writer Suzanne LeVert give adult ADD patients and their families everything they need to understand and live with ADD, including practical advice on how to cope with its symptoms and current methods for treating this often debilitating condition. In this lively, accessible guide you'll also find:

• the latest medical information on drug therapy and other treatment breakthroughs
• psychological insight into the emotional fallout from ADD and how to handle it
• helpful tips on how to tame the "organizational devil" and improve communication skills
• strategies for coping with ADD in the workplace and in relationships

Reassuring and authoritative, Out of the Fog is the definitive handbook no one affected by ADD should be without.

About this title

About the Author

Kevin R. Murphy, Ph.D., is Chief of the Adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in Worcester, Massachusetts. He is a member of the advisory board of Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Disorders (CH.A.D.D.), which is the leading ADD organization in America, with over 25,000 members. Dr. Murphy has written extensively on the subject for professional publications and regularly speaks to and conducts workshops for professionals and lay audiences across the country. He lives in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts.

Suzanne LeVert is a health and medical writer with seven health care titles to her credit. She lives in Boston.

Reviews

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), is the diagnosis given heretofore to the "overactive" child who acted out in school, got poor grades, and couldn't sit still. Three decades ago, such children were often held back in school and thought to be lacking in self-control. Two decades ago, it was found that the stimulant Ritalin inexplicably calmed hyperactive children. It was believed that they eventually "grew out of it," usually by puberty. However, new research suggests that they do not grow out of ADD but instead learn to adapt and struggle with the disorder well into adulthood. Two new books address this premise. Wender (The Hyperactive Child, Adolescent, and Adult, Oxford Univ. Pr., 1987), professor of psychiatry and Director of Psychiatric Research at the University of Utah School of Medicine, has written Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder for professionals, but informed lay readers will appreciate the case histories. In thorough, if quite technical manner, Wender synthesizes the overlapping research and possible relationships between ADHD and learning disorders, as well as alcohol abuse as those afflicted try to self-medicate. Out of the Fog, written by the chief of the Adult ADHD Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, is written for a popular audience and could serve to "self-diagnose" readers by using "Self-Exploration Exercises." Murphy also gives lists for simplifying and improving life for the adult with ADD, using concrete examples of time management and organizational skills. Written from a personal perspective (Murphy also has ADHD), it provides much insight into the world of the hyperactive adult. Both books are highly recommended.?Nina Wikstrom Aguilar, Melbourne, Fla.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Murphy, chief of the adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, aided by medical writer LeVert, discusses the recent recognition of attention deficit disorder as a problem that is not outgrown in adolescence, and they cogently summarize the stumbling blocks this affliction creates in the pursuit of a career or attainment of a healthy family life. Other books, such as Hallowell and Ratey's Driven to Distraction (1994) and Kelly and Ramundo's You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid, or Crazy? (1993), have done excellent jobs in alerting readers to ADHD as an issue in adult lives. But Murphy and LeVert's coverage of psychological and medicinal treatment is invaluable. An essential library item. Denise Perry Donavin

Edition details

• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
• Publication date: 1995
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0786880872
• ISBN 13: 9780786880874
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 300